Helena Macedo is a People Development Officer at INL, leading Learning & Development initiatives and contributing to HR strategies that support scientific careers and organisational development. She chairs the Joint Training Board, which advises the Director General on training-related matters, and co-manages the implementation of the European Commission’s HR Strategy for Researchers (HRS4R) Seal of Excellence.

Helena contributes to the development and implementation of INL’s new Career System, particularly in areas related to performance appraisal and career development. She is also involved in the creation and rollout of the INL Postgraduate School, a programme designed to support the professional growth of PhD students.

With a scientific background that includes an Integrated Master’s in Biomedical Engineering (University of Minho), a PhD in Biomedical Sciences (University of Porto), and a postdoctoral fellowship at INL—alongside research stays in Leuven and Barcelona—Helena brings a researcher-informed perspective to her work in HR.

She is also engaged in science communication and policy initiatives, as a founding member of the Portuguese Association for Science Management (Associação Portuguesa para a Gestão de Ciência), and previously served as co-lead of the Non-Conformist Scientist initiative.