In March 2007 the Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation (FCT) working with the University of Texas at Austin launched The International Collaboratory for Emerging Technologies (CoLab). The main objective of this 5-Year collaboration was, and continues to be, to strengthen Portuguese scholarly research and graduate-level education, industrial links, and academic entrepreneurship. 

From the start, this collaboration focused on building strong and mutually beneficial scholarly relationships among Portuguese and UT Austin faculty and students in three academic areas: Digital Media, Advanced Computing, and Mathematics. Emphasis was focused on establishing collaborative research, faculty and student exchange, and capacity building though conferences, workshops, and academically-related events. 

Now the emphasis is on building research and educational excellence and collaborations across the three academic programs in support of a new CoLab focus: Advanced Digital Media.

Why Advanced Digital Media?

As CoLab research and education opportunities became more defined, Advanced Digital Media emerged as a prominent transdisciplinary keystone for all three academic areas. Advanced Digital Media facilitates new devices, methods, and processes for industry, education, and entertainment applications. From medical diagnostics, learning modules, and telecommunications devices, to musical experiences and multi-site multiplayer gaming – Advanced Digital Media is at the leading edge of technology and product development, as well as transdiciplinary scholarly contributions. 

While media technology and applications are evolving at an astounding rate, there is rapid saturation of these technologies across multiple cultures and, as a result, new social structures emerge. Because this new media saturation is interactive, questions arise far beyond the bounds of meeting market needs. As the audience becomes author, new challenges arise concerning the role of the media itself, as traditional roles are challenged or displaced. To keep pace with these diverse phenomena, Colab will increasingly focus on the following strategic activities: 

• Digital Media Content Creation
• Evolving Media Industries
• Interactivity: New Horizons for Technology, Software, Interface Applications
• Creating a Climate for Creativity