Cáritas Coimbra participated in a digital Think Tank dedicated to Technology
Cáritas Coimbra participated as a speaker in the digital Think Tank of the “PME no Radar” initiative, dedicated to Technology in times of “new normal”. The session, promoted by Jornal de Negócios in partnership with Santander (Portugal), took place on April 28 and the public was able to follow live on social networks. The institutional opening of the conference was made by the Portuguese Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Manuel Heitor.
The think tank had a panel of experts and leaders from SMEs (Small and medium-sized enterprises) to analyse and debate the solutions adopted in the area of Technology in view of the conjuncture that society is going through. With moderation by André Veríssimo, Director of Jornal de Negócios, during the session the major challenges in the sector and key themes were addressed, such as the digital 2.0 revolution and the reinvention of business and new ways of working as a way of adapting to the new context derived from Covid-19.
Natália Machado, Project Manager at Cáritas Coimbra, was a member of the panel of guest speakers, contributing to the debate on the theme “SMEs in Portugal – Present and Future, the New Normal”. Natália presented the LIFEBOTS Exchange project, which, by continuing the Growmeup project, studies how social robots can be a potential solution to be used in providing care and support, particularly in the social and health fields.
LIFEBOTS is a project approved under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA RISE), under the European Commission’s H2020 programme, its objective is to create a new reality of care with the inclusion of social robots, through interdisciplinary, intersectoral and international cooperation and with the exchange of people and knowledge. The consortium is composed of 13 partners representing research institutions, companies and NGOs from all over Europe and South Korea.
At the end of the conference, the representative of Cáritas Coimbra referred to the important role of Technology in adapting the institution to the new reality, giving as an example: regular contacts and the alternative service for basic support (food and personal hygiene) for users of Day Care Centres that closed temporarily; the “Virtual Visits” in the Residential units, through tablets/smartphones, to maintain communication between users and their families; and the Triplo D project webinars that continue the debates that promote democratic involvement among the school community.
See the digital Think Tank “PME no Radar” on Technology, in Portuguese, HERE (the Think Tank only starts at 21 minutes).
