Rés do Chão (R/C)

Rés do Chão (R/C) is Portuguese studio founded in 2014 specialized in architecture, urbanism and participation. We support public authorities, schools, communities and civil-society organizations in co-creating more inclusive, sustainable and democratic cities. We develop projects for urban regeneration and qualification of public and community spaces, through inclusive processes of participation. We develop strategies adjusted to the specifics of the context of each project, in order to enhance the networks of agents and local resources.

Over the last 12 years, R/C has designed and implemented participatory processes and spatial interventions that improve public spaces, strengthen social cohesion and increase citizens’ trust in institutions. Our work includes the co-design and transformation of public squares, schoolyards, streets, play areas, community facilities and public housing environments, as well as the development of engagement processes linked to urban planning, mobility, sustainability and local governance strategies.

A core area of expertise is the meaningful involvement of children and young people in urban decision-making. Through participatory design, gamification methodologies and place-based experimentation, we create opportunities for younger generations to actively shape public space, mobility systems and neighborhood development. In the last two years alone, R/C has engaged more than 1,500 participants across 78 participatory sessions and contributed to the improvement of nearly 9700 m² of public and community spaces. Independent evaluations of our projects have demonstrated measurable impacts on social cohesion, neighborhood relations, inclusion, trust in institutions and perceived public-space quality.

R/C combines expertise in:

• Participatory urban planning and co-design;

• Citizen and stakeholder engagement;

• Youth participation and child-friendly cities;

• Urban sustainability and climate adaptation strategies

• Public-space transformation and placemaking;

• School environments and active mobility;

• Community-led urban regeneration;

• Tactical urbanism and prototyping;

• Evaluation and impact assessment of participatory processes.

Our work has received recognition from institutions such as the European Investment Bank and the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. We have presented projects and methodologies at international events including the New European Bauhaus Festival, Placemaking Week and Future Design of Streets, and regularly host study visits from universities, researchers and policymakers.

R/C has extensive experience managing projects funded through local, national and European programmes, including ERDF, ESF, Portugal 2020 and New European Bauhaus initiatives. Notable examples include O Nosso Chão, an award-winning digital game promoting youth participation and social cohesion, and Sê Bairrista, a large-scale community-led public-space transformation programme implemented in vulnerable neighbourhoods of Lisbon.

At the European level, R/C is a core partner in the DUT YouthMove15 project, contributing to the development and testing of youth-led approaches to 15-minute cities, school environments and public-space transformation within a consortium of 26 organizations. R/C also secured EIT Community New European Bauhaus funding to co-design and implement the Cabra Figa Intergenerational Park (Sintra), demonstrating its ability to translate participatory visioning into built interventions aligned with European values of sustainability, inclusion and beauty.

For future DUT collaborations, R/C is particularly interested in projects addressing:

• Inclusive an democratic governance of cities;

• Co-creation methodologies and participatory innovation

• Public-space qualification and placemaking;

• School environments and youth-led urban design;

• Active mobility, sustainability and healthy neighborhoods;

• Climate adaptation and just urban transitions;

We are looking to collaborate with municipalities, universities, research centers, social innovation organizations and urban practitioners interested in testing and scaling participatory approaches that connect citizens, institutions and urban transformation processes.