The Workshop

Offered annually since 2018, the  International Summer Workshops in  Urban Design  in Lisbon follows an intense, immersive two-week program. We welcome planning, architecture, and landscape architecture undergraduate and graduate students, as well as young professionals. Applicants from other disciplines who are interested in planning and urban design are welcome to apply. Lisbon, with its historic and picturesque architecture, intricate urban morphology, lively public spaces, and walkable streets, is the perfect city to study urban design.

The four first workshops were offered in collaboration with the urbanism program of the Universidade Lusofona with the support of professor Diogo Mateus. Our host for 2024, the Instituto Superior Técnico (ISTec) is part of the Universidade de Lisboa, the largest and  best public university in Portugal and top-ranked in Europe.  The workshop was administered in conjunction with the CiTUA (Center for Innovation in  Territory, Urbanism and Architecture), with a focus on the redevelopment of a waterfront brownfield (old Quimiparque site) at Barreiros, a town across the Tagus River from Lisbon.

​Divided into three parts, the workshop focuses on urban design as a tool for creating  livable and sustainable places. In the first week, participants are guided through walking and observational studies in areas that represent different historical periods and planning/design paradigms, such as the Alfama, Baixa, Rossio, Bairro Alto, Alvalade, and Parque das Nações. We will also hear presentations by local experts, including on the project site. On Saturday there is an optional guided visit to Sintra. The second week is dedicated to assess the project site, meeting local planners and community members, and develop an urban design vision for the area. Participants work in small interdisciplinary, international teams  to develop imaginative short and  long terms proposals that may inspire local public, private, and  community redevelopment efforts.

The workshop is taught in English and offers a total of 80 contact-hours (field + studio) plus the optional day-long visit to Sintra. Participants receive a university certificate and 10 ECTS (European Credit Transfer System) credits.

Principal Faculty (2024 workshop)

Vicente del Rio

Fernando Nunes da Silva

Ana Morais de Sá

Pedagogical Coordinator 

​Architect-urbanist; Pos-Graduate Diploma in City and Regional Planning; M.A. in Urban Design; PhD in Architecture and Urbanism. Professor Emeritus, City and Regional Planning Department, California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo. Formerly professor, vice-director and graduate coordinator at the school of architecture and urbanism, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Worked for the state and the city of Rio, Brazil, as well as a consultant and project associate in several private offices. Visiting professor, Universidade Lusofona. Author of nine books including "City Fragments: Reflections on Urbanism and Urban Design", "Contemporary Urbanism in Brazil: Beyond Brasilia", "Projeto do Lugar " and "Introdução Desenho Urbano no Processo de Planejamento", among other publications.
See www.vicentedelrio.net

 Coordinator and Instructor

Full Professor of Urbanism (retired) and researcher at the Center for Innovation in Territory, Urbanism and Architecture (CiTUA) at the Instituto Superior Técnico (IST) of the University of Lisbon. Graduated in Civil Engineering (IST, 1980), postgraduate in Regional and Urban Planning (UTL) and in Transport Planning (EPFL, 1983), PhD in Civil Engineering (1992) and in Urban Planning and Transport (IST, 2000). Fernando has been a visiting lecturer in several universities abroad, and has been a busy consultant in Portugal and abroad. Among his several positions, he was: president of the Association Internationale pour le Dévelopement Urbain (INTA); vice-president of the Red Universitaria Ibero-americana de Territorio y Movilidad (RUITEM); Lisbon's city council member for Municipal Works (2009/2011) and Mobility and Transport (2009/2013); director of ​​Urbanism and Territorial Planning, Civil Engineering, Architecture and Georesources Department at IST (until 2021); and a founding member of the Portuguese Association of Urban Planners.
See: cienciavitae.pt/A716-9264-6990

 Local Organizer and Instructor

Assistant professor of Urban Planning at Instituto Superior Técnico and a senior researcher at the Centre for Innovation in Territory, Architecture, and Environment (CiTUA) at the University of Lisbon. She teaches courses in spatial planning and urban management. Her research interests focus on the relationship between land policies, land economics, land and property taxation, and planning practices.