Filipa Afonso wins Young Scientist of the Year Award from Fluviário de Mora

Filipa Afonso has been honored with the Fluviário 2024 – Young Scientist of the Year Award, a national distinction recognizing young researchers for their scientific contributions to the conservation and biodiversity of continental aquatic ecosystems.

The award was given for her article “Using semi-automated classification algorithms in the context of an ecosystem service assessment applied to a temperate Atlantic estuary”, published in the journal Remote Sensing Applications: Society and Environment. The study, led by Afonso and co-authored by Cristina Ponte Lira, Marina Clara Austen, Susanne Broszeit, Rita Melo, Rita Nogueira Mendes, Ricardo Salgado, and Ana Brito, stands out for its innovative use of semi-automated classification algorithms to evaluate estuarine ecosystem services.

The award ceremony took place on May 24 during the IV Fluviário de Mora Symposium, an event bringing together specialists and researchers to discuss the challenges of aquatic ecosystem conservation. This was the 15th edition of the award, which includes a monetary prize of 1,000 euros and recognizes the first author of a SCI-published scientific article in the fields of ecology, conservation, and biodiversity of rivers and estuaries.

The symposium was organized by Fluviário de Mora, in partnership with the Municipality of Mora, MARE – University of Évora, and ARNET – Aquatic Research Network, reinforcing the role of research institutions in promoting water resource sustainability and advancing national scientific knowledge.

Text byVera Sequeira

Filipa Afonso is a marine biologist and PhD candidate at MARE – Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbon, where she conducts research in estuarine ecology and ecosystem service assessment. Her work focuses on integrating remote sensing tools and spatial analysis to support the sustainable management of coastal and estuarine areas.