Dionísio Tavares

Dionísio Mateus Tavares obtained a doctoral scholarship from the Consortium of Schools of Natural Sciences and Biodiversity (CEBiCNa), and is conducting a Ph.D. in BIODIV Programme by the Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbon, starting in October 2025, within the Tropical Plants and Systems research group at CE3C. 
He is conducting the project Rice Production and Climate Uncertainty among the Balanta People of Guinea-Bissau (Produção orizícola e incerteza climática entre os Balanta da Guiné-Bissau), under the supervision of Luís Catarino from TPS/CE3C. The PhD project aims are: 
- Study the social memory of the technological transformations that have occurred in rice farming, particularly the technologies for constructing water management infrastructure and the techniques for selecting and preserving rice varieties;
- Identify the challenges posed by climate change and social dynamics in mangrove rice production;
- Identify the sociocultural connection between Balanta groups of different origins and mangrove rice farming;
- Understand the relationship between mangrove rice production culture in the Balanta communities of the North and South and the conservation of the mangrove ecosystem.