Brais Suárez is a researcher working at the intersection of Ecological Economics and Political Ecology, with a particular focus on post-growth transitions. He is currently a member of the Post-Growth Innovation Lab at the University of Vigo and a collaborator at the Research Centre for Territory, Transport and Environment at the University of Porto.
His research began by downscaling planetary boundaries to the local decision-making level and examining the limits of the circular economy in addressing today's multiple global challenges. He then expanded his work to explore what circular futures might look like and how societies could move towards the most desirable pathways. This interest led him to investigate how sustainability transitions are enacted and steered, paying close attention to the complexity of transition dynamics and the power relations that shape them. More recently, he has focused on the role of public participation in transitions, particularly on how participatory processes interact with post-growth agendas.
His work has been shared through international conferences, seminars and workshops, and translated into practice through technical reports, policy briefs and public-facing dissemination outputs. He also contributes to public debate through outlets such as The Conversation, media engagement, and the coordination of a range of science communication and outreach events.
In recent years, he has coordinated several participation-based projects, including citizen science initiatives (POSTGROWTH S.A.), multi-stakeholder engagement actions (COBLUE), citizen participation processes (PLATAFORMA ODS), and dissemination activities (T·I·A·S). He has led work packages in projects such as ARCA and ExPliCit, and has contributed to national and international projects including PROSPERA, JUST2CE, Ecociencia Con Lógica, and CODELISO. His international experience includes over 30 months of postdoctoral stays at the University of Sheffield, the Universität de Barcelona, and the University of Porto, as well as contributions to international networks, including the supporting group for the International Degrowth Conferences.
His interdisciplinary approach also shapes his teaching across bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes. He combines concise lectures with active and participatory methods, and has experience supervising master's dissertations and doctoral researchers, as well as delivering training courses for teachers, bringing his research commitments into dialogue with learning, collaboration and real-world challenges.
