Teresa Heitor, born in Lisbon, Portugal, in 1959, is a Full Professor of Architecture at the University of Lisbon’s Instituto Superior Técnico (IST). She holds a degree in Architecture (1982, Escola Superior de Belas Artes de Lisboa), a Master’s in Urban Design (1984, Oxford Brooks University, UK), a PhD in Territorial Engineering (1997, Instituto Superior Técnico), and habilitation in Architecture (2007, IST). Currently, she chairs the Architecture Department at IST and directs the CiTUA (Center for Innovation in Territory, Urbanism, and Architecture), a multidisciplinary research unit. Over the past 20 years, she has led both undergraduate and postgraduate teaching at IST, overseeing the IST Master’s Program in Architecture (1999-2003, 2005-08, 2010-16) and the Doctoral Program (2008-13) while supervising numerous PhD theses and Master’s projects.

Her research expertise centers on spatial analysis within the “space syntax” framework, exploring the interaction between people and their built environments. Her current research investigates socio-spatial aspects of urban learning environments, emphasizing technology-enhanced active learning and research spaces. Teresa Heitor also leads the Space-use Analysis module in the IST Doctoral Program, examining spatial design impacts in complex settings like schools and workplaces. As a contributor to the OECD’s CELE, she has conducted extensive work on educational facilities, co-leading the International Pilot Study on Quality in Educational Spaces (EQES). She is also an active member of the International Space Syntax Symposium network, chairing the 11th Symposium in Lisbon (2017), and serves as a strategic consultant for higher education and research assessments across Europe.