CSB project at UBI University. The perspective of Prof. Moreira Pinto on "Business&Architecture"

Luis Moreira Pinto, PhD, Professor of Architecture - CITAD Research Center, Lusiada University of Lisbon and UBI University from Covilhã (Portugal), as part of the CSB team, tells his experience in teaching subject related to architecture linked with business and management at UBI University, underlining the importance of the collaboration among project partners for the organization of events and seminars for the dissemination of project results, also during the pandemic which is affecting the world in this period.

At the University of Beira Interior (UBI) - Portugal we carried out several activities associated with the CSB Erasmus project. The involvement of students and some professors was a permanent factor, since all of them were motivated by the novelty of talking about a subject which concerns them and by taking to the university a subject linked with business and management, which is an essential step in any architect's professional career, in the quality of a future businessman.

The profession of architect is very interdisciplinary, since besides the technical issues related to knowing how to make an architectural project, there are also issues related to the business of architecture.

During the year 2019, the first Multiplier Event was held in an art gallery in Covilhã, where the core subject of the CSB Cultural Studies in Business Erasmus Plus Project was discussed for the first time. In this event, which was called "Nights with color", 6 professors from the University of Beira Interior presented varied topics in the area of communication, as well as the importance of colours as a form of business dissemination. National students and Erasmus students from UBI were present, together with professionals and teachers from the local community.

Here the LINK of the article of the event with all details and some pictures.

A second Multiplier Event was held at the local authorities' Head Office in Vila do Carvalho taking advantage of the presence of the international partners who were in Portugal for the 2nd Learning Mobility of our project. Various stakeholders from local society and two architects gave a presentation about the importance of topics related to management and business, which are important in the architects' lives and in parallel, how these subjects are addressed within the UBI's architecture course curriculum.

Young architects were invited who traveled the world and now are back in Portugal working on recovering cultural heritage and abandoned spaces using new methods and perspectives.

Throughout the academic year, themes related to how the future architects have to know how to "sell" their work, how to communicate with the client giving value to an architectural project and making business have been discussed along the development of our Pilot Course.

In the specific case of UBI, due to the fact that involved the Faculty of Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture we organized a series of Online International Seminars for students of the Drawing classes of the second year of the architecture course (https://www.culturalstudiesinbusiness.org/post/creative-business-communication-and-real-estate-economy)

Thanks to the success of the previous ones realised in April, another extra day was held in June with the specific focus on Cross-cultural Communication.

These seminars were based on setting the basis for knowledge and the importance that management and communication have for students and for future architects working in the global era.

Some teachers of other universities involved in the project were present as "guest lecturers" (Prof. Enriko Ceko, Prof. Edit Bregu and Prof. Ivana Bilic), including guests of the UBI University and the local community.

As it was not possible to create a curricular unit on this subject, it was decided to integrate it into the subject of Drawing of the second year of architecture, and at the same time, to open the seminars to the local community, to the professors as well as to the students of the university.

The seminars were held online, due to the pandemic we are currently going through, but even so, there were about 30 students per session and 2 invited teachers, who also presented subjects related to the main subject of real estate evaluations, communication, business, etc. We also had the special participation of a coach in the communication area, who was online directly from Brazil.

The students performed in parallel an exercise, which represented the link between architecture and Karl Marx's thought, besides actively participating in an interdisciplinary dialogue between teachers and guests.

It was a great experience for students and even for teachers because in the architecture case, topics connected with management and the way of doing business, are topics that are not usually addressed in the classroom. Therefore, during the conversations I had with the students and during the seminars, I felt that the topics that were presented, stimulated the students' curiosity and interest.

These seminars and my participation in the Erasmus Plus project have opened doors to a broad knowledge about the features of the various management courses in the business area, and made me reflect on this with colleagues and students.

The support of colleagues from other universities, who are part of this European project, was fundamental, since the knowledge they exchanged was very dynamic and enhanced a good scientific atmosphere.