Cities from smart to wise – learning with Curitiba

How to connect education, climate, transport, business, digital governance & the civic university? Welcome to this interactive workshop on the most sustainable city in the Global South.

Weds 15th April 2026, 3-5.30

University of Manchester, Humanities Bridgford St, Hanson Room

MUI hosted in April a visiting delegation from Curitiba, Brasil – an international pioneer in sustainable urban transformation, with innovations in education, mobility, green spaces, climate action, circular economy, social inclusion and digital governance –

See the Curitiba – exchange report

The exchange included three main themes –

Transport theme with TFGM: the technical and policy innovation for integrated transport at TFGM are inspiring to many cities in the Global South – this partnership aims towards further learning and exchange on a systematic basis in the near future.
Education theme with MEEN: we had a very practical exchange and in-depth perspective on sustainability education / education for sustainability, in Heald Green school Moss Side
Business engagement with BEKE: there was much to exchange between the Curitiba ‘Unilivre’ model of education for sustainability, and the UOM institutions for advanced business engagement, research spinout, campus ventures etc.

The open workshop then brought these together to explore the potential for a strategic exchange between Manchester and Curitiba, focusing on systemic urban transformation, data interoperability, and sustainable infrastructure.

The overall aim was to explore ideas for a Manchester-Curitiba ‘Collaboratorium’: this builds on the Unilivre model of education for sustainability, the Manchester 2035 agenda as civic university, and the Collaboratorium / Laboratory for collective urban intelligence (‘LUCI’) www.manchester.ac.uk/synergistics/ . Now under discussion is the proposal for UK / Brasil transfer of models and methods for an international LUCI community.

Context

A smart-wise city is where technical & digital systems enable social inclusion, economic livelihoods, ecological resilience & political empowerment.

Curitiba, Brasil, is an international pioneer in sustainable urban transformation, with innovations in education, mobility, green spaces, climate action, circular economy, social inclusion and digital governance. As Curitiba is a winner in the 2026 Global Green Awards, its leaders will be in the UK for partnership and exchange. The Curitiba smart-wise city program includes research / policy / business themes in 6 main areas:

Education for sustainability: schools as a vital link with digital tools and infrastructure (with MEEN);
Transport for sustainability: deploying digital systems for mobility and accessibility (with TFGM);
Climate mitigation & adaptation: ensuring that technology solutions are in synergy with human systems; (with MCCP);
Business development, research & innovation: building the ecosystem as a living laboratory (with UOM-Business Engagement);
City-level governance and public services: digital transformation to enhance democracy; (with MCC);
‘Smart-wise Civic university’: its role as enabler and catalyst for the above and beyond (with the LUCI (Laboratory for Urban Collective Intelligence)

For more see the full Curitiba-Manchester visit program

Convenor:

Joe Ravetz, MUI Lead Future Cities & Governance

From Curitiba:

Marcela de Moraes Batista Simão: Head of Sustainability & Digital Transformation at Unilivre / City of Curitiba.

Celso Kloss, CEO of Unilivre and Director of TECPAR: Erland Manys, Director of Business at TECPAR (Science Park).

Cristiano Cavali, Head of Innovation & Francisco Farah, Superintendent at Unilivre (Institute of Technology).

Cities from smart to wise – learning with Curitiba

Weds 15th April 2026, 3-5.30

Context

Convenor:

From Curitiba:

Links: