Candidate:
Acilon Himercírio Baptista Cavalcante
Date, Time and Location:
26 January 2026, 14:30, Room Professor Joaquim Sarmento (G129), Department of Civil and Georesources Engineering, Faculdade de Engenharia da Universidade do Porto
President of the Jury:
António Fernando Vasconcelos Cunha Castro Coelho (PhD), Associate Professor with Habilitation, Faculdade de Engenharia da Universidade do Porto
Members:
Isabel Alexandra Reis Gonçalves Ferreira (PhD), Researcher at the Centre for Social Studies, Universidade de Coimbra;
Ivone Marília Carinhas Ferreira (PhD), Assistant Professor, Department of Communication Sciences, Faculdade de Ciências Sociais e Humanas, Universidade Nova de Lisboa;
Ana Isabel Barreto Furtado Franco de Albuquerque Veloso (PhD), Full Professor, Department of Communication and Art, Universidade de Aveiro;
José Manuel Pereira Azevedo (PhD), Full Professor, Department of Communication and Information Sciences, Faculdade de Letras, Universidade do Porto (Supervisor);
Maria Van Zeller de Macedo de Oliveira e Sousa (PhD), Invited Assitant Professor, Department of Informatics Engineering, Faculdade de Engenharia, Universidade do Porto and Researcher at the Instituto de Engenharia de Sistemas e Computadores, Tecnologia e Ciência (INESC TEC).
Abstract:
This thesis investigates the promotion of social well-being in cities through the concept of urban-digital hybridity, which considers social and spatial interactions—whether physical and/or digital—as inseparable in the urban context. Based on an integrative literature review, a set of indicators was identified and categorised to more comprehensively assess the effectiveness of public policies aimed at improving quality of life in technology-mediated urban environments.
The review of indicators combined traditional methodologies—such as those used in the World Happiness Report, published by the United Nations—with metrics related to physical and mental health, community participation, perception of safety, and cultural vitality, while also incorporating emerging variables derived from the use of digital media. The research methodology adapted the mapping and critical analysis of these indicators to Marichela Sepe’s Cartography of Happiness, applying it to contexts of urban-digital hybridity and combining it with empirical digital placemaking experiments.
Case studies and digital placemaking experiences were conducted in the cities of Porto and Póvoa de Varzim, involving local communities, religious institutions, and schools, exploring technological mediation as a catalyst for social bonds and the activation of public spaces. Heatmaps of interactions, together with qualitative field data, allowed the identification of correlations between patterns of urban activation, city morphology, and landscape.
As its main outcome, the research proposes three core metrics for assessing social well-being in hybrid cities: Sense of Belonging, Sense of Place, and Sense of Community, analysed in their urban, digital, and hybrid dimensions.
The thesis’ main contribution is an integrated model for assessing urban social well-being, combining physical and digital metrics to provide an operational framework for urban planning and public policy design, aiming to foster more inclusive, participatory, and well-being-oriented cities.