Catita

Ana

Catita

Validated Lead Expert

Generic Skills

B.1. Understanding of integrated and sustainable urban development:

Ana Catita has a University (Licentiate) degree and a Master of Arts (MA) degree in Geography, both including urban geography courses, particularly on understanding and planning urban systems and urban centres. In 1978/79, she was responsible for a course on Urban Geography in the School of Architecture and Planning of the University of Lisbon. Her MA thesis presented in 1981 at the University of Maryland focused the relationship between industrial location and city size. She started her activity as a land planning consultant in 1988 with the conception and development of Municipal Master Plans and other regional development and land use plans, in which she addressed the role of cities, the rationale of the urban system and the criteria for a sustainable development of urban areas within the municipal territory and in articulation with the rural environment, as well as orientations for urbanization/renewal of urban areas to meet sustainability objectives. In 2005-2012, as advisor to the Secretary of State for Spatial Planning and Towns and, later, as Deputy Director General in the Directorate General for Spatial Planning and Urban Development (DGOTDU), she collaborated in the design, implementation and supervision of the Portuguese Urban Policy and followed the preparation of the European orientations for urban development. Currently, she is an international consultant in spatial planning and urban development with job references in Portugal, Angola and Mozambique.

B.2. Understanding of exchange and learning processes at transnational level:

Ana Catita participation in European projects dates back to 2002/2003 when she was Team Leader for the implementation of Action 2 of the ADERE project co-financed by the EU EQUAL Initiative. During the period she served with the Secretary of State for Spatial Planning and Towns (2005-2009), her role as responsible for the implementation of EEA Grants 2004-2009 in Portugal included transnational work, particularly the interaction with the managing units in the other beneficiary countries, comparing experiences and implementation methodologies, in close cooperation with the EEA Grants Office in Brussels and the Donors. Since 2010 transnational experience has intensified. As Deputy Director General of Spatial Planning and Urban Development (2010-2012), she supervised the transnational activity in which the Directorate General was involved regarding policy design and project implementation. Since 2012 to date, transnational projects have been the core of her activity as consultant and Member of the Board in RCDI. This organization, co-founded by her, is a not for profit association involved as project partner in several transnational partnerships (www.rcdi.pt), in which she had intense participation: 2BPARKS (MED Programme, 2012-2013); capitalization project MEDLAND 2020 (MED Programme, 2014); PROGRESS IN WHITE (DG-Employment, 2013), not concluded by the Lead Partner; and +RESILIENT, iBLUE and WETNET, ongoing projects co-financed by the Interreg MED Programme.

B.3. Proficiency in English:

Ana Catita took her Master (MA) degree in an American university. This involved 2 ½ years residence in the United States (August 1979 – February 1982). All the studies and assignments were in English, including the MA thesis. During this period she held positions as Teaching Assistant and Research Assistant in the Department of Geography of the University of Maryland. In addition, her international consultancy work is mostly in English, either developing European projects or in the context of projects financed by the African Development Bank and other international organisations in Angola and Mozambique, which include reporting and presentations in English.

Expertise for the design and delivery of transnational exchange and learning activities:

Summary Expertise for the design and delivery of transnational exchange and learning activities:

Ana Catita has been involved in transnational projects since 2003 (team leader in ADERE, a local development project financed by the EQUAL Initiative) and technical coordinator of MED projects since 2012 to date. She is co-founder of RCDI, a non-profit organisation with a focus on territorial cooperation that has been partner in several transnational partnerships. An experienced international consultant, she has also developed projects in Angola and in Mozambique. Her learning and transferring competencies are evident in all transnational projects she participated, including the adaptation of methods and tools to specific local conditions. Organizing/facilitating meetings to exchange knowledge is a common activity for Ana Catita (e.g. a recent technical meeting organised in the context of the WETNET project to discuss an innovative tool for territorial governance and the organization of the EEA Financial Mechanism final conference, in close cooperation with the Embassy of Norway in 2009). Her leadership skills and strong conciliation and negotiation ability are particularly appreciated in the context of the approval of land use plans (PROT, PDM, environmental plans). She often acts as the driver of the most stressful jobs, as it happened with the preparation of the Urban and Territorial Development Inter-ministerial Meeting during the Portuguese Presidency of the EU 2007. Experienced speaker in conferences and seminars, does regular thematic publications.

Thematic expertise:

Theme / Policy:

Urban Strategic Planning

Summary Thematic expertise:

Ana Catita expertise in Urban Strategic Planning covers the analysis and development of regional urban systems, urban-rural relationships and urban planning. These thematic areas are dealt by Ana Catita in the preparation of regional and municipal master plans, since 1992, including the ccordination of more than 20 PDM (in Portugal and Angola). Her transnational experience has also tackled these issues, particularly sustainable territorial development, valorisation of local resources and governance. Evidence can be provided by the many project deliverables she produced. Ana Catita also has policy making experience in these areas, acquired through her work as advisor to the Secretary of State for Spatial Planning and Towns (2005-2009) and Deputy Director General in the Directorate General for Spatial Planning and Urban Development (2010-2012).

Theme / Policy:

Local Economic Development

Theme / Policy:

Local Governance

Summary Thematic expertise:

Ana Catita expertise in Local Governance (participatory processes, integrated territorial management, multi-level governance) started with the bottom up processes she adopted in the preparation of Municipal Master Plans, conducting meetings with local actors and promoting public consultation. Regional development plans (PROT) require multi-level governance which was always a concern of Ana Catita in all the plans in which she participated, promoting the articulation of the public authorities involved at national, regional and municipal levels. In the strategic analysis she carried out in 2016/2017 for the preparation of a Concept Note on a Local Development Porgramme in Mozambique, governance issues analysed were decentralisation versus deconcentration of public services/policies and community participation for development. Multi-level governance was also a responsibility of Ana Catita in 2017/2018, during the preparation of the Angola National Development Plan 2018-2022, in which she conducted a series of meetings with the 18 Province authorities to integrate regional strategies into the national plan. Since 2016, she is coordinating WETNET, a governance project aiming at the sustainable management of wetlands. She organises the stakeholders’ participation and direct contribution to a shared action.

Theme / Policy:

Environmental Issues

Expertise support to local authorities and other stakeholders in designing & delivering integrated and participatory policies

E.1. Knowledge on participatory methods and tools for co-production and implementation of local polices :

The WETNET project (Interreg MED n. 1002) is being developed in close cooperation with the Grandola Municipal Authority. In 2010, the Municipal Council attempt to create a protected area in the Melides wetland was rejected by the local actors, particularly the farmers. In the context of WETNET, Ana Catita has been working with all stakeholders to guarantee the sustainability of the wetland. Instead of imposing a protection status, the Municipal Council is now collaborating in the project to promote shared management of the area. Ana Catita implemented a participatory process to share and assess intervention scenarios. Proposals and contributions from local and regional actors are now being incorporated into an action plan, which represents a shared commitment of the stakeholders to one another regarding the sustainable development of the territory. See document in http://www.rcdi.pt/_uploads/WETNET_DEL3.3.2_Sharing_Assessing_Scenarios_EN_RCDI.pdf

E.2. Knowledge on integrated approach for the design, delivering, monitoring and evaluation of urban strategies/policies:

In 2010/2011, as Deputy Director General for Spatial Planning and Urban Development, Ana Catita designed and supervised a project to create a monitoring system for land use and urban development (Sistema Nacional de Indicadores de Ordenamento do Território). The project involved interaction with the 5 Regional Planning Commissions and the relevant departments of the Autonomous Regions. The monitoring system was conceived as a hierarchical structure of indicators at local, regional and national levels to measure the degree of accomplishment of land use and urban development goals set in the different planning levels. Several domains were focused: natural resources and values; sustainable use of land; urban systems; urbanised areas; metropolitan areas; rural areas; coastal areas; tourism areas; territorial connectivity; cultural heritage; risks; governance. (Reports in https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1IJyucfxNqpI9eTAcgdFEsp5x6_unnWky?usp=sharing ) An internal task force was in charge of the production of all project documents under the supervision of Ana Catita.

E.3. Awareness of the main policy and funding schemes for sustainable urban development at EU and national level:

As a consultant in spatial planning and urban development, Ana Catita follows the development of the relevant policies both at national and European levels, including the associated financial mechanisms. Participation in conferences, workshops and other events (for instance, open days, book presentations, etc.) allows knowledge up-dating. With over 20 years’ experience, Ana Catita maintains a network of relationships with former colleagues and peers, researchers and public administration officers (in DGT – Directorate General for the Territory, in ADC – Development and Cohesion Agency, in all 5 Regional Planning Commissions and in other sectoral institutions). This network favours professional interaction and constant knowledge up grading. Ana Catita is co-founder and Member of the Board of RCDI, a non-profit association with a focus on territorial cooperation. RCDI core activity is twofold: international projects, particularly transnational exchange, and technical assistance to development projects funded by the ESIF. This provides the context for a permanent effort to keep up to date with the relevant tools.

E.4. Ability to understand specific local situations and adapt tools and content to different local realities:

The WETNET project (Interreg MED n. 1002) is a good example of how methodologies have to be adapted to the specific local situations. With a focus on the governance of wetlands, the project establishes a common framework for the implementation of wetland contracts in 9 pilot areas distributed by 6 countries. Each pilot area has its own characteristics (physical, cultural, social and economic). Hence, not only the tools and methods have to be adapted, but also the goals of the wetland contract vary according to the critical issues in each area. As coordinator of the project in Portugal, Ana Catita was free to create a specific strategy for stakeholder involvement, to produce the necessary tools for the participatory process, including specific content related to the pilot area key issues. For this reason, some of the project deliverables are in local language. English summaries are produced to allow for comparison of results and integration into common outputs at transnational level. Consistency is ensured by common guidelines and transnational meetings. Examples in http://www.rcdi.pt/projecto_wetnet?m=c17

Summary Expertise:

As development and planning consultant, Ana Catita has a large experience in supporting local authorities and engaging stakeholders, particularly in the context of municipal master plans and as one of the main lines of work of RCDI. A recent example of this type of work is WETNET, a transnational governance project coordinated by Ana Catita, involving the Municipality of Grândola, local economic operators and sectoral entities in Alentejo. A different example is a project coordinated by Ana Catita as Deputy Director General for Spatial Planning and Urban Development, on a monitoring system for land use and urban development (Sistema Nacional de Indicadores de Ordenamento do Território), involving the 5 Regional Planning Commissions and the relevant departments of the Autonomous Regions. To keep up-dated in regard to urban policy at EU and national level, she frequently participates in conferences and seminars, and maintains a network of relationships with former colleagues and peers, researchers and public administration officers (in DGT, in ADC – Development and Cohesion Agency, in all 5 Regional Planning Commissions and in other sectoral institutions). Being co-founder and Member of the Board of RCDI, a non-profit association with a focus on territorial cooperation that operates international projects, particularly transnational exchange, and technical assistance to development projects funded by the ESIF, she has to keep up to date with the relevant tools.