The main objective of the SPLACH research programme is the production of a comprehensive and coherent body of development control and transformative planning policies, implementation mechanisms, planning models and decision support systems, able to feed and guide Portuguese planning practice including both the public and the private sectors, at the plan making and the licensing stages - towards a rapid and effective transition to a low carbon and social inclusive urban system. In recent years the entire legal and regulatory basis of the Portuguese Planning System underwent an ambitious and far reaching reform. However, today like in the past, the major effort in the production of new legislation and regulation was not accompanied by a similar effort in the production of planning doctrine, here understood as a vast and coherent set of planning policies and implementation measures, able to improve, from a technical and scientific point of view and under an evidence based approach, not only the quality of planning practice but also, and foremost, its proactive role, incorporating new and emerging topics and societal challenges and concerns, promoting change and opening new transition avenues into the future. This proactive role of planning, advocated here, contrasts with its traditional conservative standing in Portugal (and in other EU Member States), of looking backwards and passively accommodating, if not slowing down, change and the social and physical reform of our cities and metropolises.

Nevertheless, the SPLACH research programme, aims to balance the social and the physical dimensions of our urban systems. It aims to bring together new and emerging societal challenges to turn spaces into places, in and within our cities and metropolises, fostering identity, inclusion, innovation, participation, locality, liveability, self-sufficiency and resilience, through the promotion of decentralized, efficient and renewable energy systems, environmental services, bio cycle communities and the circular economy.

One of the main goals of this research programme is to study the two Portuguese Metropolitan Areas (Lisbon and Oporto) and the Medium Size Cities, approached through a series of case studies, covering the Portuguese territory, including the Madeira and the Azores archipelagos. Together these two metropolitan areas and the set of medium size cities encompass over 70% of the total Portuguese population and constitute the most relevant nodes of the entire Portuguese Urban System.