Duncan Crowley (131C-3C21-2E95)

Curriculum Vitae

Duncan Crowley

Duncan Crowley is an Irish architect exploring Community-Led Ecocities through an action research PhD in Lisbon, Portugal (Architecture of Contemporary Metropolitan Territories / ISCTE-IUL). A climate activist for a quarter-century, his work builds bridges between different communities, languages, movements, and peoples. Assistant Researcher in the Cities and Territories research group of DINÂMIA'CET (Centre for Socioeconomic and Territorial Studies) at ISCTE and External Collaborator at CE3C Research group in FCUL (Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes / Lisbon University Faculty of Science). Co-president of the European Network for Community-Led Initiatives on Climate Change and Sustainability (ECOLISE) (2021-2022) & team member (2022-2024). Worked on H2020 (UrbanA: Urban Arenas for Sustainable and Just Cities & FLIARA) & Erasmus+ (WAVE, Regen4all, ETiA) projects. Work involved collaboration with Global Ecovillage Network (GEN). Lived in Barcelona (2006-13), co-founded Transition group, gained Permaculture Design Certificate (2010) and participated in 2011’s Indignado square occupations. Also worked with Eco Intelligent Growth (EIG) on LEED and Cradle to Cradle certification, collaborated with William McDonough and contributed to a White Paper for Sustainable Urban Development of Barcelona for the Catalan Government (CADS). Lived in Curitiba, Brazil (2014-18), attained Master in Environment and Development from UFPR’s multidisciplinary PPGMADE course at UFPR, focusing on Urban Sustainability & Citizen Participation. Living in Portugal since 2018, active in Portuguese Regenerative movements and member of the Portuguese Degrowth Network. Ecocity activist since Banja Luka, Bosnia (2003), set up “Ecocity Groups” in Dublin, Curitiba and Lisbon. Set up the Curitiba Ecocity Festival during the 2017 Ecocity World Summit, supported Ecocity Builders online conference in 2020 and participated in the 2021 (online) and 2023 Ecocity World Summits. Part of the Climate Social & Climate Justice Caravan, with indigenous groups, during COP15 in Copenhagen 2009 and co-created the 1st Curitiba Indigenous Week in 2016. Elected part of ECOLISE delegation to COP25 in Madrid 2019. Facilitated October 12th event between Indigenous groups and Climate Action groups 2020. Work to create community gardens and develop an urban bicycle greenway in Dublin mentioned at Venice Art Biennale (2005). Invited resident at the French pavilion METAVILLA at the 2006 Venice Art Biennale. Active in Irish and UK Climate Camps 2007-09 and many subsequent Climate Justice activist movements. River lover, Gaelic footballer, comic book enthusiast and big fan of adventures. VIVA LA PACHAMAMA (Long live Mother Earth).

Read full resume ↓

Identification

Personal identification

Full name: Duncan Crowley
Gender: Male

Citation names

Crowley, Duncan

Author identifiers

Ciência ID: 131C-3C21-2E95
ORCID iD: 0000-0001-7110-5959
Google Scholar ID: -q5ZPkwAAAAJ
Researcher Id: ABD-6305-2021
Scopus Author Id: 57223233605

Websites

https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Duncan_Crowley (Scholar)
https://dinamiacet.iscte-iul.pt/full-team/duncan-crowley (Scholar)
https://www.ce3c.pt/research/research-groups/towards-sustainable-and-resilient-ecosystems/plant-soil-ecology/duncan-crowley (Scholar)
https://linktr.ee/duncancrowley (Personal)
https://ciencia.iscte-iul.pt/authors/duncan-crowley/cv (Scholar)
https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.url?authorId=57223233605 (Scholar)
https://www.webofscience.com/wos/author/record/ABD-6305-2021 (Scholar)
https://www.dinamiacet.iscte-iul.pt/research-team/Duncan-Crowley (Personal)
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=-q5ZPkwAAAAJ (Scholar)

Knowledge fields

Humanities - Arts - Architectural design
Natural sciences - Earth and Environmental Sciences
Social Sciences - Economic and Social Geography - Urban Studies
Social Sciences - Political Sciences
Social Sciences - Other Social Sciences
Humanities - Other Humanities
Social Sciences - Economic and Social Geography

Languages

Language	Speaking	Reading	Writing	Listening
English (Mother tongue)
Portuguese	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)
Spanish; Castilian	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)	Proficiency (C2)

Education

	Degree	Classification
2018/10/01 - 2026/03/01 Ongoing	Architecture of Contemporary Metropolitan Territories (Doutoramento) Major in Research line: Cities and Territories ISCTE-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa Escola de Tecnologias e Arquitectura, Portugal "Architecture is a Political Act. Regenerative Community Responses to Ecological Emergency" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)
2022/01/01 Concluded	Conflict Transformation: A Systemic Approach (Outros) The Whole Partnership, Portugal
2020/10/01 - 2021/03/19 Concluded	Regenerative Development Practioner (Outros) Regenesis Institute for Regenerative Practice, Portugal
2020/01/01 - 2021/01/01 Concluded	Municipalities In Transition, Training of Tutors (Outros) Municipalities In Transition (MiT), Portugal
2020/01/01 Concluded	Regenerative Urban Communities (Outros) Global Ecovillage Network (GEN), Portugal
2016/03/01 - 2018/05/01 Concluded	Environment and Development (PPGMADE / UFPR) (Mestrado) Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil "Constructing a Sustainable Curitiba through Citizen Participation. Local Responses from Civil Society groups in Curitiba, Brazil." (THESIS/DISSERTATION)
2017/01/01 Concluded	Ecology, Democracy, Utopia: Introduction to Social Ecology (Outros) Institute of Social Ecology, United States
2017/01/01 Concluded	Ecological Urbanism (Outros) Federal University of Paraná (UFPR), Brazil
2017/01/01 Concluded	Sustainable Cities (Outros) SDG Academy, UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, Portugal
2017/01/01 Concluded	Rethink the City: New Approaches to Global & Local Urban Challenges (Outros) TU Delft , Netherlands
2016/01/01 Concluded	Creation and Management of Areas of Conservation in Urban Areas (Outros) Instituto de Arquitetos do Brasil (IAB), Brazil
2015/01/01 Concluded	Reclaiming Broken Places, Civic Ecology (Outros) Cornell University, United States
2010/08/31 Concluded	Permaculture Design Certificate (PDC) (Outros) Richard Wade / Mas Franch, Spain
2005 Concluded	Architecture Degree (B.Arch) (Bachelor) Technological University Dublin, Ireland "Catalyst @ Botanic Spine" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)	Pass

Affiliation

Science

	Category Host institution	Employer
2022/01/01 - Current	Researcher (Research)	Fundação da Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal
	Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, Portugal
2019/11 - Current	Research Assistant (Research)	ISCTE-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa DINÂMIA'CET Centro de Estudos sobre a Mudança Socioeconómica e o Território, Portugal
	ISCTE-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa Centro de Investigação em Ciências da Informação Tecnologias e Arquitetura, Portugal
2019/11 - 2021/12	Contracted Researcher (Research)	FCiênciasID Associação para a Investigação e Desenvolvimento de Ciências, Portugal
	Centro de Ecologia Evolução e Alterações Ambientais, Portugal
2016/09 - 2018/03	Researcher (Research)	Federal University of Paraná (UFPR), Brazil

Others

	Category Host institution	Employer
2007 - 2009	Chief architect. White Paper for CADS (Catalan government sustainable advice). LEED Certification. Collaboration with Spanish & international archictural firms including William McDonough.	Eco Intelligent Growth, Spain

2006 - 2006	Ireland’s largest urban design practice. Architect on range of various scaled schemes.	Reddy Architecture + Urbanism, Ireland

2001 - 2004	Architect in Dublin, Ireland.	TOT Architects, Ireland

Projects

Contract

	Designation	Funders
2024/01/01 - 2024/12/31	We Are Voices of Ecology (WAVE) KA220-YOU-BA6DEFB3 Project Management ECOLISE, Belgium	European Commission Ongoing
2024/01 - 2024/08	FLIARA: Female-Led Innovation in Agriculture and Rural Areas 101084234 Project Management ECOLISE, Belgium	European Commission Concluded
2023/01/01 - 2024/03/31	Regenerative Communities For All (ReGEN4All) 2022-2-DE02-KA210-ADU-000099233 Action Researcher ECOLISE, Belgium	European Commission Concluded
2020/01 - 2022/12	Ecovillage transition in action (ETiA) KA204-ADD77A89 Project Management ECOLISE, Belgium	European Commission Concluded
2019/05 - 2021/12	UrbanA (Urban Arenas for Sustainable and Just Cities) 822357 Integration into Research Grant Fellow FCiênciasID Associação para a Investigação e Desenvolvimento de Ciências, Portugal	European Commission Concluded

Outputs

Publications

Book	Seixas, Paulo Castro; Lobner, Nadine; Martins, Mirelle; Veiga-Pires, Cristina; Dias, Ricardo Cunha; Roborg-Söndergaard, Justin; Gonçalves, Fernando; et al. The Transformational Wave. Lisbon, Portugal: Independently published. 2020. Published
Book chapter	Crowley, Duncan; Marat-Mendes, Teresa; Falanga, Roberto. "Social Movements". In Vocabulary for Sustainable Consumption and Lifestyles, edited by Thomas Smith, 269-273. Routledge, 2025. Published • 10.4324/9781003584056-64 Crowley, D.. "Transformational Politics. New networks of governance". In The transformational wave: Beyond Covid-19. Lisbon, Portugal: Independently published, 2021. Published Crowley, D.; Belchior, C.; Hamilton, M. "Creating a Sustainable and Just Lisbon". In Urban Hub 20 : Accelerating City Change in a VUCA World: Thriveable Cities, 184-192. Paul van Schaik, 2020. Published Crowley, D.. "Greening the City, Connecting Communities, C2C City". In Self-sufficinet city, 388-389. Barcelona, Spain: IAAC - Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia, 2010. Published Crowley, D.. "Art spaces as weapons of war.". In Permaculture : visual arts at Project Arts Centre, Dublin 2001-2006, 68-69. --, Ireland: The Metropolitan Complex and Project Presss: a division of Project Arts Centre, 2008. Published
Journal article	Crowley, Duncan; Marat-Mendes, Teresa; Falanga, Roberto. "Drinkable cities. A regenerative approach for cities and their rivers". CIDADES, Comunidades e Territórios sp26 (2026): https://doi.org/10.15847/cct.40819. Open access • 10.15847/cct.40819 Avelino, Flor; van Steenbergen, Frank; Schipper, Karlijn; Steger, Tamara; Henfrey, Tom; Cook, Ian M.; Bach, Matthew; et al. "Mapping the diversity & transformative potential of approaches to sustainable just cities". Urban Transformations 6 1 (2024): https://doi.org/10.1186/s42854-023-00058-8. 10.1186/s42854-023-00058-8 Crowley, D.; Hefrey, T.. "Urban Arenas for Sustainable and Just Cities". Ökologisches Wirtschaften - Fachzeitschrift 38 1 (2023): 24-26. http://dx.doi.org/10.14512/oew380124. Published • 10.14512/oew380124 Crowley, Duncan; Marat-Mendes, Teresa; Falanga, Roberto; Henfrey, Thomas; Penha-Lopes, Gil. "Towards a necessary regenerative urban planning: Insights from community-led initiatives for ecocity transformation". CIDADES, Comunidades e Territórios Sp21 (2021): https://doi.org/10.15847/cct.20505. 10.15847/cct.20505
Online resource	Crowley, Duncan. Community responses to covid-19. 2020. https://wiki.sustainablejustcities.eu/Cities,_justice,_sustainability_and_covid-19.
Thesis / Dissertation	Crowley, D.. "Constructing a Sustainable City through Citizen Participation. Local responses from civil society in Curitiba, Brazil.". Master, 2018. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/327060391_Constructing_a_Sustainable_City_through_Citizen_Participation_Local_Responses_from_Civil_Society_groups_in_Curitiba_Brazil. 10.13140/RG.2.2.35821.23525 Crowley, Duncan. "CATALYST @ Botanic Spine". Degree, Technological University Dublin, 2005. https://tinyurl.com/kwn6xyyk. 10.13140/RG.2.2.12280.70402

Other

Other output

The Cloud that kills the river. A 4-minute interactive theatre piece that grew from the SPARK project after the "Fixing the Future" festival in Barcelona with many Climate Justice youth groups from Europe, Latin America and beyond in 2023. It has 4 parts and includes the use of a magical time machine, which needs audience participation to function. Performed twice: With ECOLISE in Belgium and SOS Quinta dos Ingleses in Portugal.. 2023. Crowley, Duncan. https://www.instagram.com/p/DT8kNmcgPXN/.
Urban walking tours as a tool to Connect Communities and green our cities. Ecocity World Summit 2023. 2023. Crowley, D.. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/372282041_Urban_walking_tours_as_a_tool_to_Connect_Communities_and_green_our_cities.
10.13140/RG.2.2.31355.90406
Community-led Ecocity Transformation. Developing an Urban Systems Community of Practice Ecosystem. SCORAI Webinar Series 2020-2021. 2021. Crowley, D.. https://scorai.net/webinar-series/.
From Curitiba: A Municipalist based Ecocity Network response to Today’s Global Crises. TICYUrb (Third International Conference of Young Urban Researchers). 2018. Crowley, D..
10.13140/RG.2.2.27144.26884

Activities

Oral presentation

	Presentation title	Event name Host (Event location)
2023/06	UrbanA's experiments in connecting communities to create a sustainable just cities community of practice.	Ecocity World Summit 2023: Connecting Communities (Panel "A global catalogue of community action") Ecocity Builders (London, United Kingdom)
2022/10/19	De Oeiras para Umundu – a importância dos territórios locais no paradigma económico global	Evoluir Oeiras no Festival UMUNDU Evoluir Oeiras (Lisbon, Portugal)
2022/10/10	"Lisboa, crise climática e inferno urbanao" -Degrowth Portugal event, speech given in Lisbon's public library.	Lisboa, crise climática e inferno urbanao Degrowth Portugal (Lisbon, Portugal)
2022/07	Community-led Ecocity Transformation. Developing an Urban Systems Community of Practice Ecosystem	Degrowth + International Society for Ecological Economics Conference 2021: Building Alternative Livelihoods in Times of Ecological and Political Crisis University of Manchester (Manchester, United Kingdom)
2021/11	Regenerating Cities.	COP 26 - Humanity Rising Special Coverage Ubiquity University
2021/09	UrbanA Portugal asks “How might an urban Community of Practice help manifest the dream of a Sustainable and Just Lisbon?”	Frontiers in E3 - 7th cE3c Annual Meeting Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (Lisbon, Portugal)
2021/06/08	Ativismo e Liderança Climática	Seminários em Ecodesign I 4a. Temporada Design ao Vivo (Curitiba, Brazil)
2021/06/05	Governança e Políticas Participativas	Habitar o Vago Associação Eco-bairros de Futuro (Lisbon, Portugal)
2021/04/23	The future of Urban Commons	SSE&Commons Webinars, 2020 and 2021 Centre for International Studies, ISCTE (Lisbon, Portugal)
2021/03	Community-led Ecocity Transformation. Developing an Urban Systems Community of Practice Ecosystem	SCORAI Webinar Series 2020-2021 Sustainable Consumption Research and Action Initiative (SCORAI)
2021/02/22	Translocal adventures in developing an Urban Systems Community of Practice	The Nature of Cities Festival TNOC
2019/11	Examining and Enabling Community-Led Responses to Climate Breakdown as base for a Global Ecocity Network	Social Solidarity Economy and the Commons: Contributions to the Deepening of Democracy (SSEC 2019) ISCTE (Lisbon, Portugal)
2019/04	Kicking our Oil Addiction to create a Post-Capitalist Community led Ecocity in Lisbon	4th International Conference URBAN E-PLANNING Institute of Geography and Spatial Planning; University of Lisbon (Lisbon, Portugal)
2019/04	Lisbon as an Ecocity. Examining and enabling Community-Led Responses to Climate Breakdown	4.º Encontro Nacional de Investigação em Arquitetura + Urbanismo e Design (ENIA+UD) Faculdade de Arquitetura da Universidade de Lisboa (Lisbon, Portugal)
2019/04	Adapt or Die. Kicking our Oil Addiction to create Post-Capitalist Community led Ecocities	4th annual NEST Conference 2019 (Network for Early Career Researchers in Sustainability Transitions) CENSE (Center for Environmental and Sustainability Research) (Lisbon, Portugal)

Event organisation

	Event name Type of event (Role)	Institution / Organization
2022/03/01 - 2022/04/03	"We Are Nature" was a month long artistic, cultural, social adventure happening in the Ourico art space in Parede neighbourhood in Lisbon, during March 2022. https://www.instagram.com/wearenature_2030/ (2022/03/01 - 2022/04/03) Exhibition (Co-organisor)	Ouriço, Portugal
2021/06/08 - 2021/06/08	Governance and citizenship for transition - A "Cities for Change" event. Tue 8th June, 18h CEST. The event explores Portuguese case studies on citizen participation for new models of governance and public space. (2021/06/08 - 2021/06/08) Conference (Co-organisor)	Amsterdam City Council, Netherlands
2021/05/26 - 2021/05/26	From Fridays for Future to Communities for Future. How can community-led initiatives bring about system change? - Part of the "Cities for Change", a 2 month online program showcasing world-changing ideas in digital and interactive events for building a just, sustainable and equal society from the ground up. (Infos: https://x.com/sustjust_cities/status/1395717595362435074 ) (2021/05/26 - 2021/05/26) Conference (Member of the Organising Committee)	Amsterdam City Council, Netherlands
2019/11/22 - 2021/02/24	Arenas Urbanas para Cidades Sustentáveis e Justas (2019/11/22) Conference (President of the Organising Committee)
2019/12/02 - 2019/12/13	Convenção das Nações Unidas de 2019 sobre Mudança do Clima (2019/12/02) Conference (President of the Organising Committee)
2016/10/12 - 2016/10/14	1st AMERICA INDIGENOUS WEEK CURITIBA. 1st Curitiba Forum marking 12 October. Aldeia Tupã Nhe'é Kretã (Guarani + Kaingang communites) + Setorial da Cultura dos Povos Originários de Curitiba, Casa Latino-Americana (CASLA) (2016/10/12) Conference (Member of the Organising Committee)	CASLA (Casa Latino-Americana), Brazil
2014/04 - 2014/04	ADVENTURES IN ARCHITECTURE (First Live Streamed Talk) (2014/04) Conference (Co-organisor)	Bicicletaria Cultural, Brazil

Event participation

	Activity description Type of event	Event name Institution / Organization
2025/11 - 2025/11	The Ethical Assembly, Roundtable on "Engaged Citizens" Conference	Climate & Social Justice Summit
2022/03 - 2022/04	Introducing conflict transformation with a systemic perspective and deepening our personal enquiry into a live conflict situation.	Conflict Transformation: A Systemic Approach The Whole Partnership, United Kingdom
2020/10 - 2021/03	The Regenerative Practitioner (TRP). Directors: Pamela Mang & Ben Haggard. Regenerative practice is based on the premise that we cannot make the outer transformations required to create a truly sustainable world without making inner transformations in how we think, how we work, and who we are.	The Regenerative Practitioner Regenesis Institute, United States
2019/04/04 - 2019/04/05	Adapt or Die. Kicking our Oil Addiction to create Post-Capitalist Community led Ecocities Conference	4th annual NEST Conference 2019 (Network for Early Career Researchers in Sustainability Transitions). Theme: “Transitions to where? Shared values and visions for sustainability transitions. Universidade Nova de Lisboa Centro de Investigação em Ambiente e Sustentabilidade, Portugal
2015/12 - 2015/12	"From the edge of the World to the New World, an Irishman's journey" Conference	GLOBAL TALKS. (Immigrants Life Stories) Paiol Theatre, Brazil
2010/03 - 2010/03	LEAVING THE OIL AGE BEHIND. Conference	Climate Justice Talk EXCHANGE Gallery, Ireland
2003/03 - 2003/03	ECOCITY BANJA LUKA EXHIBITION. (2 week art exhibition at State Art Gallery with EASA, European Architects Student Assembly) Exhibition	ECOCITY BANJA LUKA Museum of Contemporary Art of Republic of Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Association member

	Society Organization name	Role
2019 - Current	Portuguese Degrowth Network	Member of Lisbon group
2019/01/01 - 2024/12	ECOLISE	Co-President

Committee member

	Activity description Role	Institution / Organization
2024/01/01 - Current	SOS Quinta dos Ingleses - Member	SOS Quinta dos Ingleses, Portugal

Course / Discipline taught

	Academic session	Degree Subject (Type)	Institution / Organization
2023/03 - 2023/03	Invited speaker for a masters class in Germany	(Master)	Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, Germany

Other jury / evaluation

	Activity description	Institution / Organization
2021 - 2022	Transformative Cities "Atlas of Utopias" jury member. The Atlas of Utopias showcases collective transformations that ensure access to basic rights: water, energy, housing and food.	ECOLISE, Belgium

Distinctions

Other distinction

2021	Co-President of ECOLISE, European Network for Community-Led Initiatives on Climate Change and Sustainability ECOLISE, Belgium
2019	Part of ECOLISE delegation at COP 25 in Madrid
2017	Rethink the City Exhibition TU Delft (1 of 12 selected from 9,000+ MOOC) Technische Universiteit Delft, Netherlands
2017	NASA Hackathon: Stardust Peoples choice award Curitiba NASA, United States
2010	Self Sufficient City Finalist Institut d'Arquitectura Avançada de Catalunya, Spain