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This master’s dissertation analyzes the vision of the municipal leaders of the Lisbon Metropolitan Area on public participation in urban planning. Based on 12 interviews with municipal officials from 18 municipalities of the AML, the study shows that public participation is recognized as an ethical and legal imperative, but that, in practice, it often assumes an instrumental and reactive character. Although it is considered an important tool, participation tends to occur mainly in the formal periods required by law. In some municipalities, it is seen more as a procedure for complying with legal requirements than as a true moment of collective construction. The reports also indicate that many citizen participations are focused on private interests, to the detriment of a strategic vision of the city. This fact highlights a conflict between private interests and the public interest, placing municipal technicians in the role of mediators between individual expectations and legal, environmental and territorial constraints. The research also identifies a structural barrier associated with the technical complexity of planning instruments. Specialized language and extensive documentation are often pointed out as factors that drive away ordinary citizens and can lead to participation based on misinformation. This difficulty is associated with a planning culture that is still not well established and a decline in civic enthusiasm that marked the post-April 25 period, especially among the younger generations. From a methodological point of view, the study observes a transition from traditional exhibition models to more interactive approaches. While digital platforms facilitate the submission of contributions, face-to-face sessions are still considered essential to foster dialogue and clarify misunderstandings. Experiences such as guided tours of the territory with 3D visualizations, thematic workshops and games emerge as strategies to bring planning closer to the lived reality. As for the impact on the decision, participation is seen as limited in the strategic options, already defined when the plans reach public discussion. Even so, citizens' contributions are valued for identifying local problems and allowing relevant adjustments in projects. In conclusion, this study reveals that the future of urban planning in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area depends on a systematic commitment to education for citizenship and the territory. There is an almost unanimous defense of the need to instill a participatory culture from school age, transforming public intervention from an act of individual complaint into an exercise of co-responsibility for the common good.