Dr Ana Sofia Dias presents an ISSMGE Bright Spark lecture at the 5th European Conference on Unsaturated Soils in Lisbon
Dr Ana Sofia Dias, a geotechnical engineer with Mott MacDonald, was selected to deliver a “Bright Spark” lecture at the 5th European Conference on Unsaturated Soils EUNSAT2025 (Lisbon, 1-3 September 2025). Her lecture was titled “Evolution of Soil-Water Retention Curves and Permeability in Slopes” and was based on her PhD work in Italy and France on vegetation effects on slope stability in pyroclastic soils and her work on the ACHILLES project at Durham University, investigating weather-driven deterioration of clay embankments.
The Bright Spark Lecture Award was created by ISSMGE for promising young geotechnical engineers in both industry and academia to deliver keynote or invited lectures at ISSMGE international and regional conferences. Dr Dias was selected to deliver the lecture by ISSMGE Technical Committee TC106 on Unsaturated Soils in partnership with the Scientific Advisory Committee of the EUNSAT2025 conference.
Dr Dias receiving her Bright Spark Lecture Award from Professor Enrique Romero, Chair of TC106, and Professor Lyesse Laloui, ISSMGE Vice President for Europe