The Faculty of Arts and Humanities (FAH) of the University of Macau (UM) held the Macao Humanities Forum, where Fátima Vieira, vice-rector for culture and museums of the University of Porto, delivered a lecture titled ‘The University as a Place of Culture: The Portuguese Experience’. The lecture attracted many students and faculty members.

In his welcome address, Joaquim Kuong, assistant dean of FAH, noted that Macao has been selected as a ‘Cultural City of East Asia 2025’. The city, with its unique background as a melting pot of Eastern and Western cultures, is committed to fostering global understanding through education. Cultural education is not just an academic pursuit, but also a journey of discovery, understanding, and growth. João Veloso, head of the Department of Portuguese, said that since her appointment as vice-rector of University of Porto, Prof Vieira has transformed the university into a cultural centre in the city. She has also facilitated inclusion initiatives with the local government, establishing the university as a bridge between academia and the community. As an expert in Utopian studies, Prof Vieira advocates integrating academic ideas into social innovation, setting an international model for the integration of universities and communities.

During the lecture, Prof Vieira pointed out that both the University of Porto and UM exemplify the concept of ‘universities without walls’, as their campuses are open to the public. She referenced the European University Association’s seminal document titled ‘Universities without walls: A vision for 2030’, which, for the first time identified culture as the fourth mission of universities. Prof Vieira mentioned that the University of Porto has adopted a number of measures to integrate culture into its academic ecosystem. These include: 1) incorporating ethics modules into science programmes to encourage medical students to participate in art activities such as the ‘poetry and medicine’ course, which involves visits to national theatres and museums; 2) launching the ‘Casa Comum’ initiative, which holds 280 public cultural events every year open to the public; 3) launching the ‘Cultural Prescription’ project in collaboration with healthcare institutions to incorporate artistic activities into mental health treatments; 4) transforming the university’s museums and botanical garden into public learning platforms to raise awareness of environmental protection by fostering emotional connections; 5) launching the ‘Cultural Corridor’ project in collaboration with the Expert Committee for the Arts and Culture of the Council of Rectors of Portuguese Universities (CRUP) to promote global collaboration, provide students from partner institutions with abundant resources, boosts economic and cultural vitality of the region, and expand regional cultural programmes to include other European institutions. Prof Vieira proposed that universities should cultivate students to become well-rounded citizens with both scientific literacy and humanistic values, in order to address global challenges such as climate crisis and digital transformation.

During the Q&A session, UM students and faculty members engaged in in-depth discussions with Prof Vieira on various topics, including how to encourage students to participate in cultural activities at museums; how the University of Porto, a university with several campuses spread across the city, interacts with local cultural institutions, and the challenges of establishing cooperation between different sectors. Prof Vieira explained that the University of Porto provides students with free shuttle bus services to cultural events and organises interactive activities featuring popular artists to boost engagement. Despite not having a centralised campus, the University of Porto encourages community involvement and cultural participation among its students through the ‘Cultural Corridor’ project and off-campus learning at museums and theatres, ensuring education extends beyond university walls.

This was the sixth lecture of the Macao Humanities Forum for the 2024/2025 academic year. Every year, the forum invites distinguished scholars in different fields of the humanities to present their latest research findings with students and faculty members in Macao. Previous lectures of the forum have covered a wide range of topics, including literature, linguistics, history, translation, and the arts.