Cultural mapping serves as a bridge between tangible assets and the living narratives of a community. At its core, cultural mapping aims to make visible the ways that local cultural assets, stories, practices, relationships, memories, and rituals constitute places as meaningful locations, while bringing a diverse range of stakeholders into conversation about the local cultural dimensions and potentials. This CES-UBI Winter School focuses on combining cultural mapping methodologies to develop and apply a systemic approach to local development based on culture, creativity and regenerative tourism.

Covilhã is a UNESCO Creative City of Design, located on the slopes of the Serra da Estrela mountain. It offers a unique backdrop with a strong wool textile industry heritage, a rich labour union history, a wide natural landscape, and a lively contemporary arts scene. Participants will be immersed in Covilhã’s living nature-culture heritage landscape where a wool ecosystem has been developed for centuries. The programme directly addresses the region’s contemporary challenges, including the climate crisis (wildfires and severe storms) and socio-economic shifts like depopulation and aging, examining how regenerative planning can mitigate these impacts on the lived experience of smaller communities.

The programme is co-organised by the CREATOUR Observatory at CES, the iA* Arts Research Unit, the Wool Museum of the University of Beira Interior, and 4iS Inovação Social. The Winter School is hosted at the Wool Museum, an interdepartmental centre of the University of Beira Interior. Located in the former Royal Textile Factory, an 18th-century dyehouse, the museum exemplifies the city’s ability to repurpose industrial heritage for academic, artistic and cultural life.

This Winter School is a unique opportunity to enhance knowledge and to gain skills on cultural mapping and culture-based development. Throughout the five-day programme, participants will engage in a mix of site visits, local networking, learning seminars, and hands-on workshops, ending with an ideation and prototyping lab where attendees will actively engage in designing culture-tourism projects that address real-life local development issues, community needs, and expectations. Through these activities, participants will examine, discuss, and generate new ideas to enhance existing initiatives and inspire future projects, with a particular focus on regenerative approaches to culture and tourism that support broader local development in Covilhã.

The course concludes with a public presentation where participants share their curated project ideas with the local community. This collaborative output ensures that the knowledge generated during the school has a direct, visible connection to the people and places that inspired it.

Whether you work in urban regeneration, tourism management, design for social change and territorial development, or local planning, this school provides the tools to transform cultural assets into drivers for local development.

This Winter School follows the success of previous editions of CES Summer Schools in Penela (2019) and Caldas da Rainha (2022), continuing our commitment to cultural mapping as a tool for community resilience.
 

This CES-UBI Winter School is an officially certified training course where you can receive 2 ECTS or an official course certificate integrated with the Portuguese SIGO system (“certificado referente ao Sistema de Informação e Gestão da Oferta Formativa [SIGO]”).
 

Thematic areas of the course
Cultural mapping
Culture-based local development
Regenerative tourism and urban dynamics
Community resilience and development
Sustainability and climate change
Design for social change and territorial development
Wool heritage, landscape, and ecosystem change
Project design: Ideation and prototyping
 

Participants
We welcome professionals from the private and public sectors (e.g., municipalities); policy-makers; graduate and PhD students and postdoctoral researchers in the social sciences, tourism, design, economics, or cultural management-related areas; and practitioners and planners working with culture and/or tourism strategies for local development.

Participants should have a good knowledge of English as the Winter School will be held in English and group work will be an essential component of the course, as well as an interest in one or more of the following areas: cultural development, urban regeneration, tourism management, or local development.

Maximum number of registrations: 25
Minimum number of registrations: 20
 

Key dates

Earlybird registration deadline: 27 July 2026
Final registration deadline: 14 September 2026
Winter School dates: 13 – 17 October 2026
 

Coordination team
Nancy Duxbury, Sílvia Silva, Tiago Vinagre de Castro (CREATOUR Observatory, CES) and Rita Salvado (iA* and Wool Museum)
 

For any questions, please contact us at: creatour@ces.uc.pt

The winter school runs from Tuesday to Saturday, following a sequence that moves from site immersion to practical action. Each day includes site visits, allowing participants to ground their learning in the local landscape and community, which then leads into a mix of seminars and workshops to bridge the gap between theoretical mapping and hands-on application. The week concludes with an Ideation and Prototyping Lab focused on co-designing culture-tourism interventions. In this final phase, participants will translate their findings into project proposals that address specific local challenges and community needs in Covilhã.

Certified Training and ECTS Credits
This Winter School is an officially certified training course:
● ECTS Credits: Participants are eligible to receive 2 ECTS
● Official Certification: Participants are eligible to receive an official course certificate integrated with the Portuguese SIGO system (“certificado referente ao Sistema de Informação e Gestão da Oferta Formativa [SIGO]”)

Download the draft programme HERE

Ana Margarida Ferreira currently serves as Associate Professor with Habilitation in Design at University of Beira Interior, alongside her role as Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Director of PhD Program in Design and Researcher at UBI’s R&D unit, iArtes. Her academic background includes Habilitation in Design (IADE, 2020), Postdoc in Design and Innovation for Social Change (Cyprus University of Technology, 2019), a PhD in Prod Eng/Industrial Design (UBI, 2008), Post-Graduation in Product Design (Glasgow School of Art/CPD, 1996), and BA in Industrial Design (IADE, 1995). Dr Ferreira’s research interests primarily lie in Design Research Methodologies, Creativity & Innovation, Design Education, Social Innovation, and Sustainable Development.

João Rosa is director and co-founder of 4iS Social innovation. Since 2006 he has been developer and coordinator of volunteering and community-based projects for local development and in 2009 co-founded the first Iberoamerican students’ network. Co-founder of VivaCidade – Dress-up city Voids project under the framework of Actors of Urban Change program. He’s a cultural manager and a certified trainer in project management, non-formal education and education for human rights and active citizenship. He was part of the strategic team for the implementation of Tandem Europe – Social Innovation & Tandem Regions program. He was also coordinator of the outreach and mediation programme of the Aveiro 2027 European Capital of Culture candidacy.

Julia Cyr serves as the Museum Supervisor for the Kamloops Museum and Archives, Canada. In Julia’s role, she oversees the museum’s comprehensive operations. This includes spearheading a team with a community-focused lens on exhibitions, programs, initiatives, and the stewardship of a rich archival collection. Leading in the museum’s commitment to reconciliation with the local Indigenous community, Julia played a key role in strategic planning in the development of the award-winning “You Are Here” Kamloops Cultural Strategic Plan (2024-2034). Julia is currently the longest-serving leader of an arts organization in Kamloops.

Katarina Šrimpf Vendramin, ethnologist and cultural anthropologist, is a research associate at the Institute of Slovenian Ethnology ZRC SAZU. She conducts research in the field of folklore studies and material culture, primarily studying identity processes in borderlands, folklore genres, clothing culture, fashion history and traditional textile crafts. She is the author of a scientific monograph and numerous academic and popular articles. She regularly participates in international and national conferences and is involved as a collaborator or project leader in many international projects.

Nancy Duxbury is a Principal Researcher at the Centre for Social Studies, University of Coimbra. Her research areas include cultural mapping, cultural work in non-urban areas, culture in local sustainable development, and creative tourism development. She coordinates the Horizon Europe project “IN SITU: Place-based Innovation of Cultural and Creative Industries in Non-urban Areas.” She also leads the CREATOUR Observatory on Culture and Tourism for Local Development, which aims to bridge research, practice and policy. She is co-editor of the books Cultural Mapping as Cultural Inquiry (2015/2021) and Artistic Approaches to Cultural Mapping: Activating Imaginaries and Means of Knowing (2019/2021).

Rita Salvado is Professor of Textile Science and Technology and Director of the Wool Museum of the University of Beira Interior (UBI). In 2019 she was awarded by Messe Frankfurt Exhibition Gmbh for the “Techtextil Innovation Award”, concerning the co-authorship of a “New Application” for the textile industry. Previously, she was awarded with “The UBI Pedagogic Award”, for work developed to consolidate the identity of the bachelor in Fashion Design of UBI (2006-2012) and with “The Fiber Society Student Award for the Best research paper” for the study of non-woven materials. She researches on the synergy between Textile Engineering and Design, applied wearable technology and cultural valorization.

Sílvia Silva is a sociologist and researcher at the Centre for Social Studies of the University of Coimbra, where she is executive coordinator of the CREATOUR Observatory, focusing on the intersection of culture and tourism as a catalyst for local development. She has collaborated extensively with public and private entities, developing projects in cooperation with different organizations. Key initiatives include CREATOUR, linking the cultural and tourism sectors through an “action-research” approach; UNCHARTED, exploring the diverse emerging values of culture; and IN SITU, understanding the forms, processes, and governance needs of CCIs in non-urban areas to act as drivers of innovation. She has co-facilitated consultation, ideation, and prototyping sessions in the areas of culture and tourism. Her primary research interests include cultural policies and practices, creative tourism, participation, and collaborative practices.

Tiago Castro is a cultural manager, urbanist and researcher with 20-year experience in the cultural sector as producer, manager, creator and trainer. He is cofounder of the NGO 4iS Inovação Social where he develops urban transformation, community development projects and networks through culture, participation, collaborative practices and co-creation. He’s a researcher and executive coordinator of the CREATOUR Observatory at the Centre for Social Studies of the University of Coimbra in the fields of creative tourism, culture, local development and urban regeneration. He’s also a PhD candidate in Sociology - Cities and Urban Cultures with the research project «INTERMEDIA - Cultural intermediaries in urban regeneration in small cities».

Will Garrett-Petts is Professor of English, Rhetoric and Canadian Studies, and Principal Investigator for the Community and Cultural Mapping Research Group at Thompson Rivers University, Canada. He is engaged in exploring questions of visual and verbal culture, cultural mapping, and the artistic animation of small cities. His recent mapping projects include the co-development of the award-winning Kamloops Cultural Strategic Plan, You are Here; a nationally celebrated community-university alliance; the Researcher-in-Residence initiative; and Hot Topic, the cultural mapping of British Columbia’s fire mitigation program (FireSmart). He has presented and published over 170 papers and articles, and 18 books, including Artistic Approaches to Cultural Mapping (Routledge, 2019/2021), and Cultural Mapping as Cultural Inquiry (Routledge, 2015/2021). In 2023 he was awarded the Killam Visiting Professorship in Canadian Studies at Bridgewater State University.

Discover UBI

UBI Map

By Car

The city of Covilhã is easily accessible from different parts of the country via a network of motorways, with an average journey time of approximately 2 to 3 hours. 

Coming from the North: Take the A1 towards Lisbon, exit onto the A25 towards Guarda, and finally take the A23 to Covilhã.

Coming from the South: Follow the A1 northbound and take the A23 to Covilhã.

Coming from the Centre: You can take the IP3 to Viseu, exit onto the A25 towards Guarda, and finally take the A23 to Covilhã

Note: In all cases, you should take the Covilhã Sul exit, towards the hospital. 

By Bus

Arriving via Porto Airport:

Take the Metro (Line E / Purple: Airport to Estádio do Dragão) and get off at Campanhã.

Head to the Campanhã Intermodal Terminal (TIC) (Address: R. da Bonjóia 691, 4300-084 Porto)

Arriving via Lisbon Airport:

Take the Metro (Red Line: Airport to S. Sebastião) and get off at Oriente.

Head to the Gare do Oriente Bus Terminal.

 Bus timetables to Covilhã from various parts of the country can be found on the Rede Expressos or Flixbus websites.

By Train

Arriving via Porto Airport: Take the Metro (Line E / Purple: Airport to Estádio do Dragão) and get off at Porto Campanhã Station. 

Arriving via Lisbon Airport: Take the Metro (Red Line: Airport to S. Sebastião) and get off at Gare do Oriente Station. 

You can check train timetables on the CP website.

Important Note: Train traffic on the Beira Baixa line (which serves Covilhã) was heavily disrupted by extreme weather and landslides. While some sections have reopened with bus replacement services, please check the CP website's "Traffic Alerts" (Avisos) before your journey to confirm current line status.

ACCOMMODATION

Please note that accommodation is not included in the registration fee. A special rate was made available for the participants of the summer school at the Micampus Covilhã.

Micampus Covilhã(closest to UBI)
UBI partner rates are available, subject to availability. To book, email: comercial.covilha@micampusliving.com and mention your participation in the CES-UBI Winter School.

Hotel Solneve ***

Sport Hotel Gym + SPA ***

Hotel Covilhã Jardim **

CREATOUR Observatory
MdL - Museu de Lanifícios da UBI
iA* Arts Research Unit
4iSCT - Associação para a Inovação Social
Thompson Rivers University
Kamloops Museum and Archives
Câmara Municipal da Covilhã
New Hand Lab
Estrela GeoPark Mundial da Unesco
Rota da Lã Translana
EcoLã
Burel Factory
Coolabora
Tentadora
URDIDURA. Arte Participativa na Fábrica
WOOL Urban Festival

Registration fee

Earlybird registration fee
Students: €445
Non-Students: €520

Late registration fee
Students: €520
Non-Students: €595

What does the fee cover?
The fee includes all materials, sessions, visits, coffee breaks, lunches (five days), and farewell dinner.
The fee does not cover accommodation or transportation.

Winter School cancellation policy
If you should have to cancel your registration, notification in writing should be sent to Inês Costa <inescosta@ces.uc.pt>. Please make sure you state the name of the winter school in the subject line of your email.
• A refund of 75% of the full amount paid will be given for cancellations received until Monday, 27 July 2026.
• A refund of 40% of the full amount paid will be given for cancellations received between 28 of July and 14 September 2026.
• No refund will be issued for cancellations received after 14 September 2026 nor failure to attend.