Hub 4 - Cities, spaces and mobilities

We support a range of short-term mobility programmes that offer innovative transnational teaching. These programmes bring together students and experts while connecting real-world issues through inter- and transdisciplinary approaches. They cover topics like urban planning, mobility, climate adaptation, or social inclusion. 

This format enables lecturers to experiment with new educational approaches closely aligned with the latest research. Interested in developing a BIP? A call is organised each year in Autumn to propose new BIPs for the following academic year.  

Hub4 offers a catalogue of activities to students throughout the year. Registration for students to join a BIP is organised twice a year.

Courses include:  

• Cities, Spaces, and Mobilities: Collaborative approaches to global challenges 
• Co-creating urban futures 
• Global Migration on the Ground 
• Attractiveness, branding and governance of regions 
• From Art Nouveau to Art Deco: Europe’s Cultural Transformation and Its Lessons for Today 

See the course catalogue

The Sustainable Mobility Programme is a CIVIS asynchronous that supports interdisciplinary approaches in the handling of societally highly relevant topics (mobility as the nucleus of various aspects of sustainability) and strengthens cross-domain cooperation. Students will work on projects that connect mobility with sustainability goals. Organised by the University of Salzburg in collaboration with Université libre de Bruxelles, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, and Université Hassan II de Casablanca, the MA level seminar course and is offered for the first time in the Winter Semester 2025-2026.  

The course emphasises methodological diversity, utilising both qualitative and quantitative perspectives to analyze and address mobility issues. Through case studies, data analysis, fieldwork, and participatory research, students will engage in comprehensive learning experiences that reflect the complexity of real-world sustainable mobility challenges. It is coordinated by Martin Loidl and Dzeneta Karabegovic (both at the University of Salzburg).

This microcredential is a 3 ECTS, fully online asynchronous course that equips learners with the skills to create, promote, and manage culturally sensitive and sustainable travel itineraries.

Blending tourism, geography, and heritage studies, the course emphasizes the use of digital tools and geotechnologies. Through project-based learning, students simulate real-world consultancy work in itinerary design. Interactive modules cover planning, route design, ICT, and marketing strategies. Learners gain hands-on experience while building competencies in entrepreneurship, cultural interpretation, and digital literacy.

Targeted at students and lifelong learners in various fields, including arts, humanities, geography, and tourism, this CIVIS-accredited course fosters professional development in the tourism and geotechnologies sectors. 

The Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Université libre de Bruxelles, University of Bucharest, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, and Université Hassan II de Casablanca are currently developing a doctoral network that fosters inter- and trans-disciplinary research on cities, spaces, and mobilities. It includes three different teaching modules: a seminar series and two doctoral courses designed to promote dialogue, enhance soft skills development, and facilitate networking among doctoral students. 

This joint transnational Bachelor’s programme is being developed by UAM, NKUA, PLUS, and Université de Sfax. It aims to equip students with interdisciplinary expertise in managing tourism sustainably at a global scale. Combining economics, geography, ICT, and cultural studies, the programme integrates theory with fieldwork, civic engagement, and work-based learning. Students will rotate between partner universities and engage in both in-person and online formats. The curriculum addresses macro- and micro-economic impacts of tourism, policy, heritage preservation, and destination marketing. Delivered in multiple languages, the degree emphasizes digital literacy, intercultural skills, and real-world problem solving. Graduates will be prepared for leadership roles in an evolving, globalized tourism industry. 

Programme Coordinator

• Maria del Mar Alonso Almeida, Prof.
• Email

The BIP & Conference ‘Making Visible the Invisible. Research on inequalities and injustices in cities and urban environments’ took place in September 2023 in Brussels. This interdisciplinary conference critically examines the multiple forms of invisibility that shape urban inequalities and injustices. Organized around five thematic strands — (1) hidden urban nature, (2) partial and biased research perspectives, (3) spatial equity, (4) social marginalization, and (5) governance and digital transformation — it brings together scholars from the social sciences, humanities, design, and environmental studies.  

This conference was organised as part of a BIP aimed at MA and PhD students to teach them how to participate in a scientific event by preparing and presenting a poster on their own research. 

 Overtourism in global cities. Impacts, challenges and solutions  

This volume explores the growing phenomenon of overtourism in global cities, analyzing its social, environmental, and economic consequences. Through interdisciplinary contributions and case-based learning, it examines how urban tourism reshapes public spaces, housing, and heritage. The book also offers pedagogical tools and practical strategies to foster more sustainable and inclusive urban tourism models. 

Almeida, María & Giralt, Carmen & Barrado-Timón, Diego A. (2024). Overtourism in global cities. Impacts, challenges and solutions. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. Asociación Cultural y Científica Iberoamericana. 

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Circular Economy in Cities and Territories

This book, edited by María del Mar Alonso Almeida and Carmen Hidalgo Giralt, is the result of the teaching activities developed and the students' work carried out on a real case and what should be its future transformation in connection with the circular economy and the role it should play in the neighborhood. 

Alonso Almeida, M. del M., Hidalgo Giralt, C., Barrado Timón, D. A., Yacamán Ochoa, C., & Escat Cortés, M. (2023). Circular economy in cities and territories: (make visible the invisible). Asociación Cultural y Científica Iberoamericana. 

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PolyCIVIS — Confronting the Polycrisis in Europe and Africa through Research, Policy and Education 

PolyCIVIS is a threeyear EuroAfrican Jean Monnet Network (October 2023–September 2026) supported by Erasmus+ that brings together 21 universities from CIVIS and African strategic partners to address interconnected global crises. It adopts a holistic, multidisciplinary framework combining cuttingedge science with historical insights, linguistic and territorial diversity, and integrated policy, research and teaching strategies.   

LocalPart — Local and translocal African and European traditions of public participation and civic engagement to prevent and mitigate crises. 
 
LocalPart is a research initiative by 6 universities exploring translocal traditions of public participation across African and European contexts. This project investigates how public participation has taken shape across time, geography, and culture. By building a repertoire of case studies, we aim to trace traditional, non-Western, and indigenous forms of collective decision-making and compare them with contemporary Western models. The project was a beneficiary of CIVIS Seed-Funding.

Academic contact point for LocalPart

• Dimitris Gouscos, Prof.
• Email