SONAE continues to promote long-term Education, awarding those who generously create opportunities for others to gain essential tools and methodologies that encourage a more informed and conscious view of the world. Through the Sonae Education Prize’s second edition, Sonae is once again recognizing innovative and inclusive projects that make Education more accessible and effective at every stage of learning.

From a selection of ten finalists, a panel of judges faced the challenging task of distributing the €150,000 award across three projects. João Günther Amaral – Chief Development Officer and Executive Board Member at Sonae; Isabel Alçada – Professor and Advisory Board Member at EDULOG; João Gonçalves – Director-General of Schools at DGEstE; Nuno Comando – Director of Casa do Impacto; and Rita Serra – Education Lead at Microsoft Portugal closely followed the finalists through an intensive process, assessing each project’s potential for Impact and scalability:

• > Albergaria + Inclusiva;
• > Ciberescola;
• > Escol@Acolhe;
• > Fab.CPL “I’MPOSSIBLE MAKER”;
• > Next Step Therapy AI – NEXTHIE;
• > MyPolis Agentes 2.0;
• > Smart Education Ecosystem;
• > Teach For Portugal;
• > Technovation Girls;
• > TUMO – Technology and Creativity Center.

From these high-value finalists, three winners emerged, each promising to advance educational access and shape a future that upcoming generations can build upon:

 

• > Ciberescola – Through videoconferencing, non-native Portuguese speakers can attend Portuguese schools and receive education from 2nd through 12th grade while learning Portuguese. This project, dedicated to teaching Portuguese as a Second Language, aims to expand access for more students and teachers.

“We are deeply honored by the recognition given to the Ciberescola project. This award highlights the importance of providing quality education to migrant children and young people who face significant challenges in language acquisition and school integration. By combining innovative technology with a communicative teaching model, Ciberescola has made a profound impact—not only on students’ language proficiency but also on the professional development of teachers specializing in teaching Portuguese as a Non-Native Language (PLNM).

The prize funds will enable us to expand the project into new regions of the country, enhance our web platforms, and strengthen our work with students and educators, fostering equal opportunities for learning and inclusion for everyone.” – Ana Sousa Martins, Coordinator of Ciberescola.

 

• > MyPolis | Agentes 2.0 – Transforms classrooms into Participation Academies, where students explore their communities, identify issues, and create innovative solutions to strengthen democracy through gamification and Artificial Intelligence.

“The financial aspect is important, but the recognition—knowing that our work is making a difference—is equally crucial and fuels our motivation to keep going. We don’t always take a moment to reflect, but our efforts have strengthened democracy across the country.

With this award, we will develop a new version of the Agents of Citizenship game and continue transforming civic education in Portugal, making it more engaging for students and easier to implement for teachers. This initiative turns classrooms into Academies of Participation, where students, acting as ‘Agents of Citizenship,’ explore their communities, identify problems, and create solutions in partnership with political representatives.” — Bernardo Gonçalves, Founder & CEO of MyPolis.

 

• > Teach for Portugal – With a mission to break cycles of poverty and educational inequality, Teach for Portugal seeks to enhance students’ academic performance and motivation through the help of Mentors placed strategically in disadvantaged schools, focusing on Financial Literacy through workshops.

“Teach For Portugal’s recognition through the Sonae Education Award 2024 serves as further validation of the vision that drives us every day: that one day, all children in Portugal will have access to an education that allows them to reach their fullest potential, regardless of the circumstances they were born into.

Sonae has been a partner from the very beginning, back when Teach For Portugal was just an idea. Now, the jury’s positive acknowledgment of our impactful, professional, monitored, and carefully evaluated work as we grow the organization brings us renewed energy and motivation. This recognition inspires us to keep innovating, testing, evaluating, learning, and scaling.” — Pedro Pinto de Almeida, CEO & Co-Founder of Teach For Portugal.

 

This second edition adds these three names to an already exceptional roster that includes Nocode Institute and EKUI.

See how the award ceremony went here. Though it’s early, who would you bet will join this distinguished list next year?

We don’t know which projects those will be, but we continue to hold the unwavering belief that there will always be those who fight to create opportunities for education, qualification, or retraining for everyone, just as there will always be organizations working to help them reach their destination: those same people.

Thank you, Sonae!

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