The "republican idea", the valorisation of the "grei", and attention to popular education are ever-present in his professional and civic life. In 1906, he published the aforementioned Elementos de Corografia aimed especially at elementary school education. Later, as part of the activity of the National Action League, he took part in the first issue of the magazine Pela Grei led by António Sérgio, where he praised the strong "organic construction and remarkable plasticity" of the Portuguese people "who, in spite of everything, resist the disorganisation and incompetence that preside over our administration" (1, 1918, p. 1-10). After a brief and disappointing period in political decision-making—in 1929, he served as Minister of Education for only a few days in a government where Salazar was already asserting himself as the dominant figure—a more reserved Silva Teles emerged. He redirected much of his intellectual energy towards a closer and more detailed study of Portugal, focusing on interpreting the diverse physiognomy of its landscapes. This was the period during which he contributed to the Guide to Portugal and the publication, in 1929, of Aspectos Geográficos e Climáticos [Geographical and Weather Aspects] [of Portugal], prepared for the Portuguese Exhibition in Seville, both works would represent the most sophisticated synthesis of Portugal's geography until the publication in German of Hermann Lautensach's pioneering work.

Active bibliography: A transportação penal e a colonização . Comunicação apresentada, em 24 de Abril de 1901, na Sociedade de Geografia de Lisboa, no âmbito do Congresso Colonial Nacional. Lisboa: Liv. Ferin, 1903; A concepção das unidades geográficas: introdução à antropo-geografia . Lisboa: Centro Tipográfico Colonial, 1904; Elementos de Corografia Portuguesa . Lisboa: Centro Tipográfico Colonial, 1906; Notas sobre Portugal. Introdução geográfica . Lisboa: Imprensa Nacional, 1908; ‘O conceito científico da Geografia’. Sep. Revista da Universidade de Coimbra . Imprensa da Universidade, 1915; Ensino universitário nas colónias: altos estudos coloniais . Actas do II Congresso Colonial Nacional. Lisboa, 1924; ‘Introdução geográfica’. In Guia de Portugal , vol. I, p. 15-30. Biblioteca Nacional (reimpr. Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian), 1924; Rapport sur la climatologie inter-tropicale et les climats des colonies portugaises . Bruxelles: Établissements Généraux d’Imprimerie, 1924; Aspectos Geográficos e Climáticos [de Portugal]. Exposição Portuguesa de Sevilha. Lisboa: Imprensa Nacional, 1929.

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