Carlos Rodrigues holds a PhD in Social Sciences from the University of Aveiro. He assumed the position of Director of the Department of Social, Political and Territorial Sciences in 2015. He is also the coordinator of the Centre for Asian Studies and the director of the Master's programme in Chinese Studies, which the University of Aveiro offers in partnership with ISCTE/Instituto Universitário de Lisboa. In terms of research, he has participated and is participating in various national and international projects, particularly in the fields of territorial innovation systems and the relationship between higher education and regional development. His current research interests include science, technology and innovation policies, territorial innovation systems, territorially-driven public policies, sports and power, and Asian studies, with particular focus on China and its relations with the European Union. Carlos has authored and coauthored numerous publications in international scientific journals, edited books and book chapters. In the field of education, Carlos started teaching at the University of Aveiro in 1998. He was then responsible for several courses in the Urban and Regional Planning degree. This range of courses was expanded over time: teaching hitherto 25 different courses to programmes such as Public Administration, Public Management, and Geographical Engineering (first cycle), Regional and Urban Planning, Management and Planning in Tourism and Chinese Studies (second cycle) and Public Policy, Cultural Studies and Tourism (third cycle). He is currently responsible for the micro-credential on Intellectual Property and Licencing and teaches in the post-graduation in Knowledge Transfer and Valorisation. With regard to cooperation with society, he has extensive experience of interacting with local, regional, national and international public and private organisations, particularly in the fields of strategic planning and the development of territorially-based innovation strategies.