On 28 May, which marked FEP’s Day, the School of Economics and Management of the University of Porto (FEP) and the Crédito Agrícola Group (GCA) announced the results of the first edition of the Crédito Agrícola & FEP Geração Impacto Award. This initiative stems from a strategic partnership between the two institutions, aimed at recognising projects developed by students that make meaningful contributions in the environmental, social, and economic spheres.
Under the motto “We give a future to your impact”, the initiative awarded the project Impacte as the winner of this first edition, granting it a monetary prize of four thousand euros. The project is a digital platform that allows users to automatically invest in projects and funds with social and environmental impact, aligned with their personal values. It operates in a simple and transparent manner, seeking to democratise investment and promote more conscious financial choices in everyday life.
In addition to the winning project, three Honourable Mentions were awarded to initiatives with high merit and transformative potential. These included Machine Learning for Predicting Demand in Non-Profit Healthcare Organisations: A Case Study of Liga Portuguesa Contra o Cancro’s Skin Cancer Screenings, which applies machine learning models to predict demand for skin cancer screenings, helping to improve resource allocation and the sustainability of non-profit organisations in the healthcare sector; OPORT(O)NIDADE, a pro bono initiative by FEP Junior Consulting, which provides free consultancy to small businesses in the city of Porto, promoting more efficient and sustainable management and encouraging local entrepreneurship; Susplus, a technological solution based on blockchain and artificial intelligence to support companies in measuring, reducing, and offsetting their carbon footprint, facilitating regulatory compliance and the climate transition.
The jury for this edition was composed of representatives from FEP, Crédito Agrícola, and two external experts whose experience was a valuable asset to the evaluation process: Cláudia Severino, President of RotaEco—an organisation that aims to inspire change through sustainability capacity-building—and Luís Jerónimo, Director of the Equity and Sustainability Programme at the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.
FEP’s Dean Óscar Afonso highlighted the importance of this award in encouraging social and environmental responsibility among the new generation of leaders, stating: “The submitted projects demonstrate the quality and civic commitment of our students, revealing a clear orientation towards purposeful innovation and the construction of a more sustainable future.”
Luís Seabra, Board Member of Caixa Central do Crédito Agrícola Mútuo, also emphasised the role of this initiative in supporting young talent and sustainable innovation, affirming that: “Economics and management—whether developed in academia, business, or the financial sector—must always promote the creation of positive impact for the various stakeholders we interact with, from the most direct—students in the case of FEP, clients in the case of CA, or employees in both—to the more indirect—the economy and the communities that surround us.”
FEP and Crédito Agrícola thus reaffirm their commitment to equipping future managers and economists to tackle sustainability challenges, actively contributing to the positive transformation of Portuguese society and economy.
About Crédito Agrícola
The Crédito Agrícola Group is a cooperative-based financial group formed by local Agricultural Credit Banks. With national scope and exclusively national capital, the Group has approximately 413,000 members, more than 1.65 million clients, and over 600 branches across Portugal. Founded in 1911, it initially focused on financing farmers in Portugal and has since expanded into other sectors and areas of operation.
Today, the Group comprises, in addition to the Agricultural Credit Banks and the Caixa Central, companies active in insurance, asset management, venture capital, and other auxiliary services. Crédito Agrícola, the only cooperative financial group operating in the Portuguese market with national capital, was recognised as the best bank in its category by the “Consumer Choice 2023” award. It has also been a pioneer in offering innovative payment services to its clients.
It was the first bank to introduce contactless payments in Portugal, the first to offer a payment card with a chip, the first vertical card, and a pioneer in offering Apple Pay and mobile-only banking solutions to its clients.
