Polytechnic University of Lisbon (IPL)

The Polytechnic University of Lisbon (IPL) is a public higher education institution in the metropolitan area of Lisbon composed of eight specialized schools covering Arts, Communication, Education, Engineering, Health Sciences, and Business. The 2019 Newsweek’s global list of maker schools includes IPL, the only Portuguese institution featured. This distinction highlights its role in educational innovation and crisis response through digital fabrication.

The Local IPL DDP activities are coordinated by Prof. André Rocha and his team at the Lisbon School of Education (ESElx). Since joining the Distributed Design Platform in 2018, the team has developed key initiatives, including three editions of Maker Faire Lisboa, participation in Make Something Week with Greenpeace and the Fab Foundation, an annual open call connecting emerging and established DDP creatives, and active engagement in global events such as the Creative Commons Global Summit.

Fablab Benfica, a digital fabrication laboratory at ESELx and the only Portuguese node in the Fab Academy network, supports these activities. The lab serves as a prototyping space and educational hub, supporting initiatives like fabschools.pt and the Postgraduate Course in Design of Interactive Products for Education, in which students learn to and develop interactive educational products ranging from digital applications to tangible objects.