It is with sorrow that we write on the passing of our friend and colleague José Igreja.

José Manuel Prista do Valle Cardoso Igreja completed his Licenciatura and Masters in Electrical and Computer Engineering at Instituto Superior Técnico (IST) in 1986 and 1992, respectively, as well as his PhD in 2007 in the same field, also at IST, with the thesis “Controlo Adaptativo de Processos com Fenómenos de Transporte” (“Adaptive Process Control with Transport Phenomena”). The latter two degree were performed under the supervision of IST Professor and INESC-ID researcher Professor João Miranda Lemos.

A Coordinating Professor at Instituto Superior de Engenharia de Lisboa (ISEL, Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa) since 2007, Professor Igreja was also a researcher at INESC-ID, where he collaborated in several research projects funded by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT). These projects focused on ​control of dynamic systems related to applications in control of water distribution channels, control of thermodynamic systems and optimal control of cyber-physical systems.

In the last two years, Professor Igreja collaborated in the Artificial intelligence techniques for GNC design, implementation and verification (AI4GNC) project, the first European Space Agency (ESA) project in which INESC-ID participated, which concluded in December 2022. Professor Igreja was equally instrumental in mediating the third-party agreement between ISEL and INESC-ID, having thus rendered an invaluable service to our institute.

According to ISEL, Professor Igreja “participated in the management of [the school], namely on the Board of Directors, on the Supervisory Board of ISEL, on the Technical-Scientific Board, on the Pedagogical Board, on the Board of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, and on the General Board of IPL.”

Described as a great friend and good-natured colleague by many who knew him, Professor Igreja passed away at the age of 60.

Our warmest sympathies are with his friends and family.

Photo credit: ISEL