Cláudia Nogueira, a researcher at the Centre for Social Studies of the University of Coimbra, has been awarded the 1st Honourable Mention in Category A of the Social Sciences and Humanities Award for Inclusion, presented by the Institute for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, I. P. (IDiPD). The award recognises her PhD thesis in Sociology, entitled Para lá dos Silenciamentos. Sofrimento mental, integralidade e (im)possibilidades de uma ecologia de cuidados [Beyond Silences: Mental suffering, holism and the (im)possibilities of an ecology of care], developed as part of the Doctoral Programme in Sociology at FEUC, under the supervision of Pedro Hespanha.

About the thesis
The research offers a critical analysis of the Portuguese mental health care model, demonstrating that, despite international guidelines and national policy frameworks favouring community-based and human rights-centred responses, biomedical and hospital-centric approaches persist, reducing mental suffering to psychiatric diagnoses and pharmacological interventions.

Drawing on contributions from the sociology of health, public health, human rights and social justice, the thesis advocates a new care paradigm guided by the ethical and political ideal of comprehensiveness and by valuing the experiences and knowledge of people experiencing mental distress themselves. Based on in-depth interviews and ethnographic research with a Community Mental Health Team, the study identifies obstacles to change - notably insufficient public investment in psychosocial responses - but also signs of hope in practices rooted in proximity, connection and the ethics of care. The research also highlights the importance of fostering a dialogue between different epistemologies of care, what the author terms the ‘ecology of care’.

About the researcher

Cláudia Nogueira is a researcher at CES and a member of the “Risk(s), Ecologies, Health” research group. Her research interests focus on mental suffering, disability, public health policies and epistemological diversity in care. She is currently part of the Portuguese team at FRANET, the research network of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), having participated in the project on the protection of the fundamental rights of people with disabilities in institutional settings, contributing to the European report *Places of Care = Places of Safety?* (FRA, 2025).
This distinction follows on from the Honourable Mention in the António de Almeida Foundation Prize for the Best PhD Thesis from the Faculty of Economics at the University of Coimbra, also awarded in 2025, further cementing recognition of the scientific and social significance of her work.