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Since its foundation in 1986, IEA has provided the academic community and the general public with the opportunity to establish direct contact with the ideas of several Brazilian and foreign personalities from scientific and cultural areas. It has also produced essential proposals for the economic, social, and cultural development of Brazil.

Due to the peculiarities of its objectives, IEA has an academic and administrative structure that differs from the usual standard adopted by most of the university institutions.

The emphasis on the debate of interdisciplinary themes makes IEA able to act in the definition of research and public policy directives, but not in educating researchers or executing experimental projects. That is the reason why IEA does not offer undergraduation or graduation programs, does not have a permanent board of researchers and does not possess laboratories.

RESEARCH GROUPS

The projects are developed by research groups that are specially constituted for each of the analyzed themes. These themes are chosen from a series of proposals presented by researchers and institutions to the Board of Trustees, who often defines the work topics of its own accord.

The duration of each group is conditioned by the time that is necessary for the execution of the respective project. The average term lasts for two years. Due to the relevance of certain themes or to long-lasting agreements with other institutions, some groups act for longer or undetermined periods of time.

There are also research projects that are developed individually by visiting professors and visiting researchers, but they are always related to the themes of interest of the Institute.

VISITING RESEARCHERS

The participation in the activities is open to researchers and professionals with projects that are related to IEA’s work themes. The analysis of this thematic confluence is performed by the research team coordinators and/or by the Board of Trustees. Participation is allowed to Brazilians and foreigners, those related to USP or not, holders of a university degree or not.

There are five positions for visiting professors (those external to USP), who receive a remuneration and a time limit of one to two years to develop their research projects. Other experts integrate into the activities without remuneration, as visiting researchers, to carry out individual projects or coordinate research teams. The body of researchers is completed with the other members of the teams and some of the Institute’s honorary professors, besides the specialists that are invited to deliver conferences or participate in seminars, panel discussions and other events.

GOVERNANCE

The ultimate deciding body is the Governing Council, which has ten members — among whom are the director and the deputy director. One of the positions is filled by a non-academic that represents the civil society. Another one is destined to a graduate student of the University of São Paulo. The remaining members are professors — one of them may be from another university.

The director’s duty is to chair the Board of Trustees, comply with its deliberations, manage and coordinate the activities of the Institute.

NEW CHARTER

The new IEA-USP charter, in effect since 2009, introduced a major institutional innovation, namely, official guidelines to create IEA hubs in other USP campuses in the state of São Paulo. In addition to specifying the goals and structure of the Institute, and the scope of its Governing Council and Board, the new charter also defines categories of researchers (visiting professors, collaborative professors, visiting researchers) and their responsibilities, and establishes criteria to create and run research groups and chairs.

HUBS

Ribeirão Preto — The Ribeirão Preto Hub opened in November 2009 and organized a series of conferences during its first two years. The first research groups began to be defined by late 2011. The Ribeirão Preto Hub will organize both extended and brief activities. Long duration actions will feature workgroups and chairs for visiting professors; among those of short duration there will be seminars, conferences and workshops, for instance. Topics that are already part of programs of the Ribeirão Preto campus will benefit from the existence of the Hub as an enhanced forum for debate and reflection. These topics include agribusiness, regional development, education, environmental problems, transport/traffic problems, public and family health, and health technology, among others.

São Carlos — An initiative of physicist Sérgio Mascarenhas, its first coordinator, the São Carlos Hub was created in 1997 and operates in partnership with the city’s research institutions (USP, UFSCar and Embrapa), the Technology Park, business incubators, high-tech industries, and public elementary schools. The Hub currently has ten research groups: Complex Systems, Information Technology, Organic Semiconductors, Bionanotechnology, Agricultural Instrumentation, Scientific Dissemination in Support of Education, Space Aeronautics, Innovation Network, Technological Prospecting for Agribusinesses, Education and Environment, and University and Businesses Enterprises.