TRANSFORM addresses the challenge of urban mobility from a comprehensive perspective, focusing on the evolution of urban mobility cultures, the triggers of change, and their socio-spatial effects. The project examines specific aspects of the interaction between urban and transport systems, drawing on examples such as the RE-City and TOD-is-RUR projects. Researchers and practitioners from more than 25 institutions included in the network will foster a collaborative approach to urban mobility. The project will train a new generation of researchers in specialized fields related to urban mobility, offering candidates practical exposure to real-world challenges while enhancing the academic framework of their studies.
To examine whether and to what extent transformative practices serve as effective mechanisms for initiating and consolidating transitions in urban mobility cultures and their socio-spatial effects.
To provide a high-quality program that combines a multidisciplinary academic curriculum with practical, real-life problem-solving knowledge offered by the participating institutions.
To share the generated knowledge not only within academia but also with professional sectors traditionally involved in spatial planning practices.
The scientific objective outlined will be implemented through five specific objectives, each designed to address a distinct aspect of the overall research focus. These objectives are supported by tailored methodologies, carefully crafted by renowned researchers from the responsible institutions. Each methodology is grounded in rigorous academic principles and is designed to ensure the reliability and depth of the findings.
To develop a theoretical conceptualization of how transitions in urban mobility cultures operate.
To study how urban space models co-evolve with urban mobility cultures over time and their impact on city configuration and liveability.
To understand how individuals from different social groups and generations explore, learn, value, accept and adopt new behavioural patterns due to transitions in urban mobility cultures.
To analyse governance structures to activate, consolidate and re-direct transitions in urban mobility cultures.
To evaluate the immediate and long-term impacts of transitions and the effects for policymaking.
The Training Programme aims to enhance the skills and career development of the 13 Doctoral Candidates across transportation studies, urban planning, human geography, urban sociology, and psychology. It has a holistic, intersectoral approach, facilitating close collaboration within the network and promoting mobility. To achieve this, it includes active participation from the non-academic sector (including urban living labs), coordination with European training activities, and a strong gender and diversity policy. The programme will offer both online and in-person training, with selected activities open to external researchers and PhD students.
The academic training programme includes local postgraduate courses offered by each partner institution and network activities. Recruited researchers must attend a set number of advanced courses available in the institutions' graduate curriculums and will also participate in other locally organized activities by their host institutions, such as multidisciplinary monthly seminar series or colloquim.
In addition to the local offerings, TRANSFORM will organize three Network Academic Schools, offering a complementary set of advanced courses closely related to the topic of transitions in urban mobility cultures. Each will span two days and be held in Vienna, Frankfurt, and Madrid, with participation from associated partners and renowned academic researchers.
TRANSFORM will organize a Network Non-Academic School, coordinated by WIEN3420 in collaboration with RAFRM and TUW, providing all fellows with advanced courses focused on the needs of the non-academic sector. This training activity will also be open to a limited number of researchers and scientists outside the network.
Additionally, two Non-Academic Training Workshops will be held online to expand knowledge on Living Labs experiences and bottom-up approaches in urban spaces and mobility cultures. Restricted to PhD Candidates, a comprehensive plan for non-academic secondments has been developed focusing on expanding their knowledge of day-to-day experiences.
TRANSFORM will offer to the recruited researchers the development of complementary, transferable skills, which will be provided on a horizontal basis for all fellows. The purpose of these activities is to help the recruited researchers to build communication skills, learn to work efficiently in a team environment and develop leadership qualities.
The recruited researchers will have the opportunity to virtually interact with each other in a bi-monthly virtual seminar series. Each seminar will be led by one recruited researcher to improve her/his organizational skills. The recruited researchers will thereby show research in progress, common concerns, perspectives on an academic career, etc.
The dissemination objective of this research project is to ensure that the valuable knowledge generated throughout the study reaches a wide and diverse audience, including academia, the professional sector, and the wider public. This will involve a strategic approach to share findings through various tailored communication channels, ensuring the relevance and accessibility of the research to each sector.
Academia
To develop a theoretical conceptualization of how transitions in urban mobility cultures operate.
Professional Sector
Professional dissemination will focus on engaging practitioners in urban planning, transport, and policy by facilitating collaboration with non-academic partners outside the network. This will involve specialized workshops and seminar series designed to translate research outcomes into practical solutions for policy and practice. By working closely with non-academic organizations, the project aims to ensure that the research findings are effectively applied to real-world challenges, helping to shape sustainable urban mobility practices and policies.
General Public
Finally, outreach to the wider public will involve a variety of accessible methods, such as media campaigns, academic coffee breaks, podcasts, articles in local or national newspapers and community events, to increase public awareness and understanding of the project’s key findings, their implications for urban mobility, and their potential to contribute to more sustainable and inclusive cities. Fellows will also visit secondary schools and universities acting as MSCA ambassadors.
TRANSFORM PhD Network is funded by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions fund excellent research and innovation, equipping researchers at all career stages with new knowledge and skills through mobility across borders and exposure to different sectors and disciplines. The MSCA help build Europe’s research and innovation capacity by investing in the long-term careers of outstanding researchers.
Additionally, the MSCA fund the development of high-quality doctoral and postdoctoral training programmes, as well as collaborative research projects worldwide. This contributes to the structuring of higher education institutions, research centers, and non-academic organizations. TRANSFORM’s Doctoral Network is specifically funded under the call: HORIZON-MSCA-2023-DN-01-01.
Doctoral Networks provide opportunities for early-stage researchers to engage in interdisciplinary projects, blending knowledge from different fields to address complex global challenges.
MSCA encourages researcher mobility, enabling fellows to work in different countries and institutions, fostering international collaboration and knowledge exchange.
Doctoral Networks offer training programs that combine academic education with professional development, ensuring researchers gain expertise and transferable skills for their future careers.
EU Comission is strongly concerned on addressing societal challenges and fostering innovation by aligning research topics with current industry needs, policy demands, and societal issues.
The TRANSFORM research structure consists of five interrelated work packages, each comprising multiple PhD theses that share a common research objective. While exploring urban mobility cultures from qualitative, quantitative, theoretical, and practical perspectives, the theses within each work package contribute complementary insights toward a unified goal.
Led by DTU (Technical University of Denmark), this WP will develop a theoretical framework for understanding transitions in urban mobility cultures.
Led by LISER (Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research), this WP will focus on the spatial dimension of transitions and the design of policies promoting transformative practices.
Led by BOKU (University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences - Austria ), this WP will analyze the social implications of transitions in urban mobility cultures.
Led by VUB (Vrije Universiteit Brussel), this WP will examine governance structures and evaluate transformative practices.
Led by GUF (Goethe University Frankfurt am Main - Germany), this WP will evaluate the socio-spatial impacts of mobility transitions on life quality and policymaking.
