Hugo Vilela graduated in Economics at the Portuguese Catholic University, in 2005. He obtained a Master’s degree in Innovation and Technological Entrepreneurship from the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto in 2014. 

He currently works at the Innovation and Development Center, in the Technology Transfer Office at the University de Trás-os Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD), and he is responsible for the implementation and management of various innovation and entrepreneurship programs and technology transfer projects. 

He is also a PhD student in the doctoral program of Development, Societies and Territories at UTAD. His main research interests focus on innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem, social innovation, knowledge and technology transfer, university-industry cooperation, regional development and sustainable development. 

Main Publications

Vilela, H. F. (2019). “Why is social innovation emerging as a new framework for rural development? A literature review.” In Proceedings from the Regional Entrepreneurial Ecosystems and Sustainability – Rethinking the Helix: 4th Regional Helix, Porto, Portugal

Main Projects

(2022-2023) UI-CAN – Universidades como Interface para o Empreendedorismo. Funded European Social Fund (ref. POCI-03-33B5-FSE-071850). Coordinated by Aveiro University, Portugal. URL: http://www.uican.pt/

(2022-2023) UI-TRANSFER – Transferência e Valorização do Conhecimento Científico. Funded European Regional Development Fund (ref. POCI-01-0246-FEDER-181315). Coordinated by University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro. URL: http://www.uitransfer.pt/

(2022-2023) Emprego altamente qualificado nas empresas ou em COLABS – Contratação de Recursos Humanos Altamente Qualificados (PME ou CoLAB). Funded by European Social Fund (ref. NORTE-06-3559-FSE-000190). Coordinated by University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro.