Partnerships are at the heart of what the Ireland Portugal Business Network does. By working alongside organisations, businesses, universities, and innovation ecosystems across Ireland and Portugal, we create opportunities for our members to connect, learn, explore new markets, and build relationships that can lead to new business.
As we look towards the final quarter of 2026, we’re pleased to be partnering with a number of organisations and events bringing together entrepreneurs, businesses, researchers, investors, and policymakers around some of the issues shaping our two countries and Europe more broadly.
From business creation and innovation to port sustainability and Europe’s digital future, here are some of the opportunities we’re delighted to share with our members.
Coimbra | 16 September and 15 October
We’re pleased to support the Wavemaker Awards Portugal, an initiative connecting innovation, entrepreneurship, research, and business creation.
With the application and mentoring stages now underway, the next key moment is the Wavemaker pitch session in Coimbra on 16 September, where participants will present their ideas as they progress through the competition.
The journey will then culminate in the EIT Water Wavemaker Business Creation Launch Event on 15 October. The event will celebrate the next stage of the initiative and bring together the innovators, entrepreneurs, researchers, and wider ecosystem supporting the programme.
Registration for the 15 October is below. More information will be shared later.
Explore the Wavemaker competition and timeline
Limerick | 19–21 October
The IPBN is delighted to partner with Futura Innovation Conference, a three-day experience bringing together innovation, ideas, people, and opportunities across Limerick.
Rather than taking place in a single venue, Futura unfolds as a connected, city-wide experience, with sessions, meetings, workshops, roundtables, experiential activations, partner programming, and networking opportunities across multiple locations.
The programme spans seven tracks, creating opportunities to explore innovation from different perspectives and sectors while connecting with businesses, entrepreneurs, investors, researchers, and other leaders working towards what comes next.
With conversations continuing beyond the formal sessions and into receptions and networking, Futura is designed not simply as a conference, but as a space to build meaningful connections.
Because here, the future isn’t imagined — it’s built.
View the Futura programme and register — use code IPBN to access the special €249 rate!
Lisbon | 19–20 October
The IPBN is also pleased to partner with the International Conference on Ports Performance, Innovation and Sustainability, taking place in Lisbon on 19 and 20 October.
The conference comes at a critical moment for the maritime and port sector. Geopolitical tensions, energy volatility, changing global value chains, new trade barriers, and the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence are reshaping the environment in which ports and global logistics operate.
As crucial links in international supply chains, ports are under increasing pressure to adapt, innovate, and integrate more sustainable and efficient solutions while maintaining their competitiveness.
The conference will bring together policymakers, business leaders, senior public administration and company representatives, researchers, and academics to exchange ideas, share best practices, and explore new technologies and solutions for improving port performance.
With a particular focus on Portuguese-speaking countries, the event also provides an opportunity to strengthen international cooperation and explore how shared language and cultural connections can support economic and social development.
For businesses operating across Ireland, Portugal, and wider international markets, the conversation around resilient supply chains, innovation, sustainability, and competitiveness is increasingly important. Registration is free.
Find out more about the International Conference on Ports Performance, Innovation and Sustainability
Coimbra | 3 December
Our 2026 partnership programme concludes in Coimbra with Digital Europe: Competitiveness, Values, and Security, a collaboration between GO Coimbra and the Ireland Portugal Business Network.
The next decade of Europe’s digital future is being shaped right now. Geopolitical tension, dependence on technology built outside Europe, the rapid acceleration of artificial intelligence, pressure on critical infrastructure, and a changing security landscape are forcing difficult questions onto the European agenda.
These are also three of the central pillars of Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2026: competitiveness, values, and security.
In Coimbra, those themes will move from the European agenda into a practical conversation between companies, researchers, and policymakers.
Join us on Thursday, 3 December, in Coimbra. Details and registration information will be announced shortly.
Each of these partnerships reflects an important part of the IPBN’s role: creating bridges between Ireland and Portugal and giving our members access to conversations, communities, and opportunities beyond their immediate markets.
Whether your interests lie in entrepreneurship, innovation, technology, sustainability, international trade, or the future of Europe, we hope you’ll take advantage of these opportunities to meet new people, exchange ideas, and discover where new connections can lead.
Connect. Grow. Partner. Learn.
We look forward to seeing you at one of these events this autumn.
| The IPBN is supported by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Ireland under the ESP Grant programme |
