Program recognizes Elisa Silva Ferreira as a tutor and Mariana Melo Pereira as the student representing Brazil’s Southeast region in a program that encourages more women to participate in science
The Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM) is celebrating a double victory in the 2025 CAPES Future Scientists Awards. The researcher Elisa Silva Ferreira was selected as one of the winning tutors, while Mariana Melo Pereira, a student at the Ilum School of Science, was chosen to represent the Southeast region in the student category.
This initiative recognizes students, teachers and tutors who stood out in the 2025 edition of the Future Scientists Program, which promotes gender equity by encouraging women to participate in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and math). The awards ceremony, hosted by CAPES as an online event, was held on November 5.
Nanocellulose: a green revolution in water treatment
Elisa Silva Ferreira tutored a group composed of two students and one public-school teacher, offering guidance about a project on the use of nanofibrils derived from sugarcane bagasse as a renewable and ecological alternative to aluminum-based flocculants for treating contaminated water.
Over the span of a month, the group conducted activities at the Brazilian Nanotechnology National Laboratory (LNNano) at CNPEM that involved preparing samples, microscopy and chemical analyses. This experience provided an immersion in the research environment and scientific experimentation.
“With the assays conducted by our Future Scientists team, we were able to show that nanocellulose removes contaminants more efficiently than conventional flocculants like aluminum sulfate, which is often used in water treatment plants. These findings indicate nanocellulose’s potential as an ecological alternative for water treatment,” said Dr. Ferreira.
As part of the award, she and the other winners will receive support from CAPES to participate in a national scientific congress related to the area of the research project. The CAPES Future Scientists Awards initiative was founded in 2024 and recognizes the best projects developed during each edition of the program.
“Receiving the CAPES Future Scientists Award was a valuable recognition of our dedication in encouraging women to participate in science. My team and I are very grateful for this award, which encourages us to continue promoting immersion in the world of science for high school students and teachers,” added Dr. Ferreira.
A journey of discoveries: from the classroom to the lab
Mariana Melo Pereira, a student from Campinas, is one of an elite group of young people recognized for their academic trajectory and their engagement in research activity and scientific training.
“I was very surprised and pleased. When I stopped to think about how many girls there are in the Southeast, and I saw my name listed as a representative, it was incredible,” said Mariana, who was participating in the Future Scientists program in 2024 at the Renato Archer Information Technology Center (CTI) when she learned about Ilum and CNPEM.
The Future Scientists program sparked her interest in pursuing her bachelor’s degree in science and technology at the Ilum School of Science, where she is finishing her first year of studies.
“Programs like Future Scientists are essential so that we girls can feel like we belong in science. They show us that we are capable and that a woman’s place is wherever she wants to be,” added Mariana.
Future Scientists Program
The Future Scientists Program was created in 2012 by the Northeast Center for Strategic Technology (CETENE) in Pernambuco, and expanded nationally from 2022 onward to involve research institutions across the country. The objective of the program is to encourage interest in STEM among girls and female teachers in public high schools.
CNPEM has participated since 2022, and with the new award winners celebrates the second straight round of recognition involving projects carried out in its facilities.
[cnpem_eng]
