The CENSE - Centre for Research on the Environment and Sustainability promotes interdisciplinary research in environmental sciences and engineering, focusing on the interaction between human and ecological systems, to promote sustainable development. The centre is the research arm of a broader organisation, including researchers, students and staff at the NOVA School of Science and Technology, as well as several affiliated organisations.

The CENSE develops its activities through the promotion of research projects, extension initiatives, training programmes, collaboration with public and private organisations, dissemination of results and dialogues between science and politics. The CENSE's research is divided into five thematic areas: Ecological Economy and Environmental Management, Energy and Climate, Computing for Sustainability, Green Resources and Technologies, and Sustainable Water, Waste and Resource Recovery.