Sílvia Sousa is an Urban Planner and Project Manager at the Porto Energy Agency (AdEPorto), where she leads and manages multiple European Union-funded projects. These include POWERYOUTH, PROLIGHT, and CLIMATEFIT, which focus on empowering young energy communities, advancing sustainable energy districts, and securing climate adaptation finance. Additionally, she is a key team member for the ASCEND project (Accelerating Positive Clean Energy Districts), supported by the European Commission. As part of her work at AdEPorto, Sílvia also assists municipalities with CDP reporting, Covenant of Mayors commitments, European City Facility (EUCF) projects, and the elaboration of Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAPs), providing essential support to local governments in their climate action and energy transition efforts. She is also a member of Porto’s Transition Team, where she contributed to the development of the city's Climate City Contract, helping guide its pathway toward climate neutrality and resilience. Sílvia is an Integrated Member of the Research Centre for Territory, Transports, and Environment (CITTA), contributing to Research Group 2. She co-founded and co-coordinates the Societal and Climate Transitions (So-ACT) cross-thematic research area at CITTA, focusing on societal adaptation to climate change and sustainability transitions. In addition to her project management and research roles, Sílvia is an evaluator of proposals, including for the prestigious New European Bauhaus (NEB) prize, and a reviewer of scientific and technical publications. She also co-supervised doctoral and master's theses, contributing to the academic development of future urban planners. Her academic and professional experience includes key roles at the University of Porto, where she served as a Researcher, Invited Assistant Professor, and Member of the Board (Executive Secretary) at CITTA. She has been involved in various high-profile international research projects such as the ERA-NET 3S RECIPE Smart Shrinkage Solutions, which focuses on innovative strategies for managing urban shrinkage across Europe. Sílvia has also contributed to European-wide discussions on urban regeneration and property value management in shrinking cities as an active member of COST Actions, including CA17125 Public Value Capture of Increasing Property Values (PUVACA) and TU0803 Cities Regrowing Smaller (CIRES). Her expertise encompasses urban development, regeneration, and climate resilience, and she has served as a consultant on urban planning projects, including work for the UNESCO World Heritage Upper Douro site and various urban development plans across Portugal. Sílvia holds a Degree in Urban and Regional Planning from the University of Aveiro (2001), a Specialization in European Spatial Planning from KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden (2001), a Master's in Environment, Planning, and Urban Project from the University of Porto (2006), and a PhD in Civil Engineering (2011), with a thesis on planning strategies for shrinking cities. Her recent work on urban shrinkage has been featured in numerous publications and conference presentations, including her co-editorship of a special issue on Children's Wellbeing in Post-Pandemic Cities in the journal Urban Planning (2024). An active participant in international urban planning discourse, Sílvia has presented at key global conferences. Her research interests include climate action, urban resilience, public value capture, child-friendly cities, and the dynamics of gentrification and overtourism. She is a founding member of the Portuguese Association of Urbanists (APU) and a member of the Shrinking Cities International Research Network (SCiRN). Sílvia is also a SHIFTer Working Group Member in the COST Action CA21166 project, focusing on the integration of social sciences and humanities in climate resilience efforts.