João A. H. da Jornada is Full Professor of Physics at Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, where he received his PhD in Physics in 1979, with honour degree. He has been an active researcher in the fields of solid state physics, materials Science and high-pressure physics, having published some 100 papers in indexed international journals, and advised several PhD theses.

 

He has been the President of Inmetro (the Brazilian National Metrology Institute), from 2004 to 2015, where he lead transformative changes in strategy, in scientific and technologic capabilities, and in management, leading the Institution to a world-wide recognition, with a strong interaction with academia, industry and government, committed to support innovation and competitiveness in the country.

 

He has been active in building ties between academia and enterprises, and developing a better understanding and new instruments to foster innovation and competitiveness, especially using the less visible perspectives involving complex adaptive systems and tacit knowledge related to culture, mindset and non-codified practices.  He is a member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences, and Fellow of TWAS (The World Academy of Sciences).

 

He was awarded the Grand Cross of National Order of Scientific Merit, Brazil, the Aeronautic Order of Merit, the Order of Rio Branco, and the Award for Outstanding Researcher in the field of Physics and Astronomy, FAPERGS, among other distinctions.