Dr Ana Sofia Dias presents an ISSMGE Bright Spark Lecture at the 5th European Conference on Unsaturated Soils.

Dr Ana Sofia Dias, a former research associate in the Department of Engineering, 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 her work on the ACHILLES project at Durham University, investigating weather-driven deterioration of clay embankments and her PhD work in Italy and France on vegetation effects on slope stability in pyroclastic soils. 

Dr Dias was a research associate in the Department of Engineering from 2019-2023 working with Professor Paul Hughes and Professor David Toll. She is now a geotechnical engineer working with Mott MacDonald.

The Bright Spark Lecture Award was created by International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (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.

PHOTO: Dr Dias receiving her Bright Spark Lecture Award from Professor Enrique Romero, Chair of TC106, and Professor Lyesse Laloui, ISSMGE Vice President for Europe.