Pedro Simões, Professor at the Guarda Polytechnic Institute, was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Civil Protection and Security from Graendal University in Miami, United States of America (USA). This degree, which recognizes paths of merit and excellence, was awarded to a teacher for the work he has done in this field in Portugal, the United States and Spain.

“This is the only doctorate in the world that does not have a civil defense doctorate,” Prof. Pedro Simões guarantees. “There are several honorary doctorates in the world, but the only one is the relatively new topic “Civil Protection”. I have been part of civil protection higher education since the founding of the defunct independent university in Lisbon over 18 years ago, and degrees and masters have been approved, but no doctoral degrees,” says the researcher. Renaissance.

The award ceremony took place on November 25, 2022 in Caracas, Venezuela, in a ceremony attended by several government and diplomatic figures.

At the age of 55, Pedro Simões achieved international recognition for his many years of work in the field of civil protection and security. “My career started with journalism and communication, I experienced a renaissance for several years, this is very important, not many people get this degree honoris causa, you can’t buy it,” he emphasizes, believing that “the honor to distinguish oneself from working in the field of civil protection, mainly because it is a unique recognition. There is no doctoral degree in civil protection and security anywhere in the world,” he insists.

“This award confirms my commitment, together with the Guarda Polytechnic Institute, to continue working to strengthen teaching in this area and create new training at the higher education level,” he concludes.

A teacher for 32 years, Pedro Simões was a pioneer of national and international higher education in the field of civil protection, CTeSP coordinator for risks and civil protection of the Polytechnic Institute of the Guard, had connections with the Portuguese government, facilitated training activities with the police, military, fire and business ties ( director general of several organizations) in Portugal, Spain and the United States in the field of security, defense and civil protection.

Born in Caldas da Rainha, Pedro Simões has a bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree in communications, as well as several postgraduate and specialist degrees in his curriculum. A professor at several national and international institutions of higher learning, he was one of the founders of the Observatorio de Segurança Criminalidade e Terrorismo and Asprocivil, the first civil protection and security association, representative of the National Fire Service and Civil Protection, and head of the Iberian Firefighter’s Combat Challenge, the World Fire Fighting Championship.

The professor was one of those responsible for the development of the CTeSP in the field of risks and civil protection, launched by the Guarda Polytechnic Institute in the 2020/2021 academic year. The training, which is being held in the second edition, is aimed at training specialists who are able to develop preventive actions in the event of imminent risk and disasters.

Pedro Simões worked in the field of communications from 1988 to 1990 as an announcer for Renascença, RFM, where he accompanied the station’s first steps.