Mission

The mission of the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon is to expand the limits of science and technology, transfer scientific knowledge into society, and promote research-based student education.

Motto

What we do not know today, we will know tomorrow (Garcia de Orta, 1563).

Video and Leaflet

History

The Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon was created under Decree-Law April 19, in 1911, and celebrated its first centennial in 2011.

Since its creation and until 1985, when it was transferred to its new facilities in Campo Grande, the Faculty of Sciences facilities were in the building that used to hold the Polytechnic School (Escola Politécnica), and before that, other key cultural and scientific institutes. In addition to this shared background, the Faculty of Sciences also takes on the historical, cultural and scientific heritage of its ancestors:

• Noviciado da Cotovia (1619-1759);
• Real Colégio dos Nobres (1761-1837);
• Escola Politécnica (1837-1911).

As an integral unit of the University of Lisbon, the Faculty of Sciences also belongs to this institution's founding history. Neither should we forget the turbulent beginnings of the University of Lisbon. In the words of A. Moreira Sá: 

"The Portuguese University was founded by King Dinis on March 1, 1290, and was transferred to Coimbra in 1308; thirty years later it was transferred back to Lisbon and then, in 1354, it was moved once again to Coimbra. However, King Fernando ordered, on June 3, 1377, its transferral back to Lisbon, where it stayed for 160 years without interruption - more precisely during the Discoveries, a period which greatly benefitted from the contributions of several of its students and teachers (among many others, the sailor Gil Eanes and two key scientific figures: Pedro Nunes and Garcia de Orta)."

The building on Rua da Escola Politécnica currently houses the University of Lisbon Museum (Museu Nacional de História Natural e da Ciência) - a set of important and rare museological installations and a forum for scientific activities.

The FCUL Centennial Anniversary

The Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon celebrated its 1st centennial in 2011.

More than about remembering the past, this anniversary constituted a broad forum for projecting FCUL's image as a prestigious institution that comprises a vast humanistic and scientific heritage. It is this heritage that allows us to use today's challenges to pave tomorrow's future.

Facts and Figures