Rui Colaço successfully concluded the Fulbright Grant at the University of California-Santa Barbara. Rui Colaço is a Ph.D. student in Territorial Engineering at the Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa. His research deals with the firm (retail) location models in the context of urban planning while also considering the impacts of online shopping. The outcome is expected to produce relevant insights into the persistent patterns of the retail location that may help policymakers deal with the challenge of keeping retail in the streets in the face of technological change and adoption. As a visiting student at the University of California-Santa Barbara, Rui was working with Prof. Konstadinos Goulias in assessing the transferability of the models, namely considering panel data regarding network centrality indexes/space syntax measures. The exchange allowed Rui to meet and work with different lab members at the University of California-Santa Barbara during the final semester of his Ph.D. thesis, thus adding academic and personal value to the research project.
“The Fulbright Commission’s mission is to promote mutual understanding between Portugal and the United States of America through its triple mission in the areas of education and science: (i) offering exchange opportunities for professors, researchers, and students; (ii) provision of guidance and quality information on the education systems of the two countries; and (iii) organization of initiatives that enhance the sharing of knowledge.”