Doctoral Candidate’s Projects
Raquel Barreto
PhD Candidate, University of Évora
CITUA–IST Research Fellow
From Social Perception to Behaviour in Multicultural Urban Space: Exploring Visual Technologies and Virtual Reality
Contemporary European cities are increasingly diverse, raising important questions about how multicultural urban spaces are perceived, interpreted, and experienced. This project examines how spatial features and visible social composition shape perceptions, social meanings, and decision-making in urban contexts. Using a sequential multi-method approach—including image-based safety judgments, photo-elicitation, and immersive virtual reality scenarios—the project aims to develop an interpretative model of socio-spatial perception in multicultural urban environments, contributing to both academic research and urban planning practice.
Tiago Santos
PhD Candidate, CITUA – IST Research Fellow
Living Urban Landscape Mapping: AI-Driven Capture of People’s Image of the City (POPTECMAP)
This PhD project develops a replicable, AI-based methodology for city-scale Urban Landscape Mapping that integrates expert knowledge, public perceptions, and urban experience to support territorial analysis and decision-making. Combining AI analysis, perception mapping, participatory methods, and user-generated data, the research produces multiple urban landscape layers—including liveability, identity, and sentiment—which are integrated into a coherent framework for Urban Landscape Character Assessment (ULCA).