Design&Drinks is a monthly series of talks that brings together different design schools to share experiences, ideas, and perspectives on the role of design today. The meetings take place on the last Thursday of each month, at 6 pm, at Exploratório — Headquarters of Porto Design Biennale, a dynamic space dedicated to exhibitions, talks, workshops, and events that bring design closer to the community.

Each session features a conversation, followed by a get-together at the bar, providing an informal space for networking among participants.

In this session, the speakers are designers Heitor Alvelos, Susana Barreto, Paulo Colaço and Mattia Ronconi from FBAUP (Faculty of Fine Arts of Porto). Together, they will present the Doctor Tiger project and share their professional experiences and perspectives on design.

We count on your presence to strengthen this space for sharing, reflection, and socialising, bringing together the academic and professional design community in Portugal.

Doctor Tiger Editions

This is an ongoing editorial project that has been running since 2015, coordinated by Heitor Alvelos and Susana Barreto as part of the ID+ initiative. Doctor Tiger is developed by students enrolled on the PhD in Design programme at the University of Porto, addressing a wide range of challenges in doctoral research. The volumes—six to date—compile and summarise accounts, documents and recommendations from the authors and coordinators.

Heitor Alvelos

He is a Full Professor of Design at the University of Porto and Director of ID+ Pólo UPorto. He is Vice-President of the European Academy of Design (since 2023), and a member of the Academia Europaea and the European Science Foundation. Director of the PhD Programme in Design at the University of Porto, 2011–2024; Chair of the Scientific Council (CSH), Foundation for Science and Technology (Portugal), 2016–2022; Outreach Director, UTAustin-Portugal Digital Media Programme, 2010–2014; Senior Tutor, Drawing Studio, Royal College of Art, 1999–2001. He has coordinated national and international research projects since 2007, including “Anti-Amnesia” (2019–2021) and “An Infodemic of Disorientation” (2022–24). Consultancy work for the Ministry of Science (Portugal), the Arts and Humanities Research Council (UK) and the New European Bauhaus (European Commission).

Susana Barreto

She is an Associate Professor with tenure at the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Porto (FBAUP) and a researcher at ID+ — Institute for Research in Design, Media and Culture. Her research focuses on the intersection between design, crime and security, an area in which she is involved in the I.Placing project: Spatial, Visual and Social Analysis of Urban Security in Traffic Environments. A PhD graduate of Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London, she is Executive Director of the European Academy of Design (EAD) and Chair of the international conference Trust_Distrust, to be held in Porto in May 2027. She is also a member of the International Advisory Board of the International Academic Forum (IAFOR) and the communications team responsible for the development of the European Association of CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design).

Paulo Colaço

He is a PhD student in Design at FBAUP, an FCT scholarship holder and a member of ID+. He turned to academic research whilst studying for his Master’s degree in Design and Product Development (ESD-IPCA), following professional experience as a product designer and project manager. The author of publications exploring collaboration between product designers and predominantly artisanal production, he investigates the capacity of the product designer to act as an agent in promoting productive craftsmanship.

Mattia Ronconi

He is a PhD student in Design at FBAUP, and a member of the ID+ research group, where he is conducting a research project on design methodologies for documentary animation of graffiti in Porto. He is co-editor of the special issue “Inscribed Frames: Hybridizations of the Moving Image” of the GSA – Graffiti and Street Art Scientific Journal. He holds a degree in Product Design (UNIFE/PUCPR) and in Illustration and Animation (IPCA).