11 June 2025
Bilbao Campus
On 11 June, the University of Deusto and Banco Santander presented the awards for the 20th edition of the Deusto-Santander Research Awards for Scientific and Social Impact — a call that marks 20 years of recognising research excellence with strong social relevance.
The first prize was awarded to the project “Intervenciones inteligentes para mejorar la calidad de vida y la salud en la adolescencia”, which focuses on the design and validation of innovative psychological interventions for young people, aimed at preventing risk behaviours and promoting their health and emotional well-being. The runner-up prize went to the European project TANGENT, which applies artificial intelligence, simulation and data analysis to improve multimodal traffic, reduce congestion and facilitate real-time decision-making.
The awards have the backing of Banco Santander, through Santander Universities, an entity that has been working closely with Deusto since 2004 to promote various academic initiatives with the aim of collaborating in the progress of both students and teaching and research staff.
The rector of the University of Deusto, Juan José Etxeberria, underlined the institution's commitment to quality research geared towards the common good. He highlighted the evolution of the research culture over the past two decades and the need to combine scientific excellence with social impact, avoiding shortcuts and emphasising rigour, collaboration, and ethics. He called for purposeful research, guided by social justice, human dignity and care for the planet. He also thanked the researchers, support staff, and Banco Santander, encouraging the entire university community to continue believing in the transformative power of knowledge. Full speech.
Matías Rodríguez Inciarte, President of Santander Universities, congratulated the award winners on a “well-deserved recognition” and emphasised that for Banco Santander, there is no better investment than education. He also highlighted that these awards exemplify the prominent role of Spanish universities in research.
The event also featured the Vice-Rector for Research and International Relations, Javier Arellano, and Miriam Gil, Director of Agreements and Sponsorship at Santander Universities.
Short and digital interventions
The winning project consolidates a research line developed over recent years that aims to overcome the limitations of traditional preventive approaches, which are based on information transmission and skills training. According to current literature, these approaches have limited effectiveness at this developmental stage, as adolescents tend to resist interventions perceived as controlling, due to their sensitivity to autonomy and social recognition.
In response to this challenge, the research team, led by Esther Calvete, has embraced “wise interventions,” an emerging approach aimed at modifying specific psychological processes through brief and highly effective psychological interventions. The research, developed in collaboration with the University of Texas, offers solutions that improve mental health and prevent online risk behaviours such as cyberbullying, partner abuse, sexting and grooming, as well as fostering resilience in young people exposed to these forms of digital victimisation.
The designed and validated interventions share key features: they are brief (a single session lasting less than an hour), self-administered, digital, and accessible, which facilitates large-scale implementation in educational and community settings. In fact, its online format allowed its use during the COVID-19 pandemic. To date, more than 3,800 adolescents have participated in the study, with promising results in terms of risk reduction and improved adolescent mental health.
The team also includes Izaskun Orue, Liria Fernández, Nerea Cortazar, Ainara Echezarraga, Maite Larrucea, and Joana del Hoyo.
AI and simulation for more efficient urban mobility
TANGENT aims to transform urban mobility by integrating different modes of transport - private vehicles, public transport and on-demand services - to make urban networks work in a coordinated and safe way. The project also aims to boost the digitalisation of transport by integrating digital platforms such as MaaS (Mobility-as-a-Service) and shared mobility, so that users can plan and pay for their journeys simply and easily.
In addition, thanks to digital twin technology, cities will be able to test and adjust traffic policies, prioritise public transport and implement anti-congestion measures before applying them on the streets. The project, validated in cities such as Manchester, Lisbon, Rennes and Athens, has shown that it is possible to reduce accidents by 5%, emissions by 10% and congestion by up to 20%. To achieve this, the work has combined technical knowledge with the collaboration of more than 100 experts from different sectors.
The research team is made up of Antonio David Masegosa, Leire Serrano, Arka Ghosh, Gabriel Duflo, Erick Rodríguez, Samra Sarwar, Itziar Salaberria, Asier Moreno, Xabi Cantero and Jenny Fajardo.
Projects Awarded the Social Impact Seal
In addition to the awards for the best research projects, this year—newly introduced—accreditations were also given to projects that received the Social Impact Seal. This distinction highlights impact in social, cultural, educational, or political spheres, beyond traditional indicators. Because impact matters, it can be planned, and deserves to be celebrated. The projects recognised were:
- IMPROVE. Improving Access to Services for Victims of Domestic Violence by Accelerating Change in Frontline Responder Organisations. Principal investigator: Ainhoa Izaguirre.
- MPCTED. Critical raw materials for energy transition and digitalisation. Principal investigator: Macarena Larrea Basterra.
- Cyber-Resistance. Facing the third gender digital divide and cyber-violence in childhood: co-education, opportunities and resistance. Principal investigator: Estibaliz Linares.
- TANGENT. Enhanced data processing techniques for dynamic management of multimodal traffic. Principal investigator: Antonio David Masegosa.
- V2G-QUESTS.Vehicle to Grid for Equitable Zero-Emission Transitions in positive energy districts. Principal investigator: Cruz Enrique Borges.
- Turism & CC. Tourism and Climate Change (TURLAB). Principal investigator: Marina Abad.
- ECOPYMES. Promoting eco-innovation in industrial SMEs in Gipuzkoa: a view from the perspective of organisational innovation. Principal investigator: Henar Alcalde Heras
- SE_PEFS. Conflictual divorce and emotional socialisation: impact on children's symptomatology through emotional insensitivity and insecurity. Principal investigator: Ana Martínez Pampliega
- AHEAD. Accessible Heritage Experience for Audience Development. Principal investigator: Macarena Cuenca
- SmartLiving EPC: Advanced Energy Performance Assessment towards Smart Living in Building and District Level. Principal investigator: Aitziber Mugarra.
- DECIPHER: Decision-making framework and processes for holistic evaluation of environmental and climate policies. Principal investigator: Aitziber Mugarra.
