Raquel Costa

Raquel Costa joined the BrightnESS Coordination Team as a Project Manager in January 2016. Since 2008 she is a civil servant for the Portuguese Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education where she has worked as a project officer for R&D Programmes and Projects and as a senior policy officer for the Information and Knowledge Society Unit. Between 2012 and 2013 she was a Robert Bosch Foundation’s fellowship holder at the Federal Ministry for Education and Research in Germany collaborating in particular for the European Research Area and Internationalisation Strategy Units.

- My daily work includes the monitoring and administration of all aspects related to the  BrightnESS grant under Work Package 1. Having large experience for the overall execution of R&D projects and being used to work with multi-disciplinary and international teams, what I really like about the project is the involvement in hands-on operations, meaning that I not only ensure the successful delivery of the project, but I also carry out part of the work.

I see BrightnESS not as a stand-alone project, but as part of something much bigger since its main purpose is to support to the construction of ESS.  The grant provides the ESS and its partners with the means to optimise in key technical areas, technology transfer, in-kind coordination and community building.

Through BrightnESS I have the opportunity to take part in a unique research infrastructure, which facilitates scientific cooperation and pushes the boundaries of knowledge.