The project was one of the topics discussed during the visit to the President’s Office by the general director of Fundación Mapfre, Elvira Vega, and the project director, Infanta Elena de Borbón
One of the topics discussed during the meeting was a partnership established between USP’s School of Engineering and Fundación Mapfre for the development of a research project on speed in urban areas and road safety. The study will analyze the impact of changes in urban speed limits on the occurrence of accidents and drivers’ attitudes toward these changes.
“USP’s School of Engineering is a traditional institution that represents the best of the University. I’m confident this partnership will further strengthen ties with Spain, and that we will all grow together,” said President Carlos Gilberto Carlotti Junior.
He noted that, as a large university with researchers across all fields, USP can also contribute in areas such as artificial intelligence, physics, and psychology.
“Fundación Mapfre has just marked 50 years, and from the beginning we have sought collaboration with centers of knowledge like universities. We have agreements with more than 80 institutions worldwide and always aim to connect with the best in each country. We hope this will be the first of many projects we undertake together,” said Elvira Vega, Fundación Mapfre’s general director.
In addition to the research to be developed by the School, university scholarship holders will also participate in the outreach project Road Safety in Basic Education: Mentorship and Evaluation of School Projects.
Present at the meeting were the Vice-President for Culture and University Outreach, Marli Quadros Leite; the Deputy Vice-President for Innovation, Raul Gonzalez Lima; Fundación Mapfre’s Sustainability Director, Maria de Fatima Mendes de Lima; Sustainability Analyst, Maria Luiza Ikegawa Ruiz; the Coordinator for Traffic Education and Training from the National Traffic Secretariat (Senatran), Sirlei Kuiava; the Director of the School of Engineering (Poli), Reinaldo Giudici; the President of Poli’s International Relations Commission, Marcio Lobo Netto; the Head and Deputy Head of Poli’s Department of Transportation Engineering, Edvaldo Simões da Fonseca Junior and Claudio Barbieri da Cunha, respectively; and researchers Cassiano Augusto Isler from Poli and Jorge Tiago Bastos from the Federal University of Paraná’s School of Engineering.
The delegation also visited the School of Engineering’s Numerical Test Tank.
Mapfre Foundation
Founded in Spain in 1975, Fundación Mapfre is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving quality of life and recognized worldwide for its commitment to well-being and social progress.
Its work is divided into five main areas: culture, social action, prevention and road safety, health promotion, and insurance and social welfare.
The foundation also supported USP’s Inspire Project, which created a low-cost, patent-free ventilator that could be rapidly manufactured with local inputs. Developed at the School of Engineering and produced in partnership with the Brazilian Navy, the project delivered about one thousand devices during the covid-19 pandemic to help meet urgent demand.
English version: Nexus Traduções, edited by Denis Pacheco
