Event Details

On October 28, the Consul-General of Portugal Duarte Bué Alves will visit Lancaster to deliver a talk on sustainability and the future of UK-Portugal relations. The talk will be followed by an informal reception in the breakout area outside the lecture theatre. The event is open to all staff and students. Duarte Bué Alves is a senior diplomat (biography below) and an expert in sustainability, Blue Economy and ocean affairs, with several publications in the area.

Title: The future is green and blue: Portugal and the UK embracing a sustainable future

Abstract: The Portuguese national identity is inextricably linked to the ocean. Portuguese literature and gastronomy; diplomacy and economy are, to a certain extent, a reflection of those maritime circumstances. From an economic point of view, Portugal hosts a significant number of researchers and companies operating in the blue economy sector, benefiting from what the ocean has to offer: from offshore windfarms to aquaculture, from seaweed to costal tourism. This dynamic sector faces important threats and must be able to respond to the challenges ahead: sustainability is surely the number one. As regards the bilateral cooperation between Portugal and the UK, the new Joint Declaration, signed in London in June 2022, is the strategic compass our countries have in hands. Science, innovation, technology, and research (including climate and ocean) are some of the priority areas identified.

Our speaker: Duarte Bué Alves is an expert in sustainability, and especially in Blue Economy and ocean affairs, with several publications (books and articles) in the area of international relations. A senior diplomat, he joined the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1999 and subsequently served at the Portuguese Embassies in Luanda, Brussels, and Tokyo. In 2011, he returned to Lisbon as Head of Cabinet and senior diplomatic adviser to the Minister for Agriculture and Sea. He was also the Minister’s Sherpa for the Strategic Council for Open Economy. Between 2015 and 2016, he acted as chargé de mission with the view to opening the new Consulate General of Portugal in Guangzhou, China. In 2016, Duarte Bué Alves was appointed as Head of Unit for Transnational Threats at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Between 2017 and 2021, he served as Deputy Permanent Representative to the OECD, in Paris. He was external adviser to the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Envoy to the Ocean, Peter Thomson, between 2018 and 2022. Since September 2021, Duarte Bué Alves is the Consul General of Portugal in Manchester, UK.