Society

The 27th edition of the Electric Vehicle Symposium (EVS) –the benchmark world congress for this sector- will take place in the Catalan capital, taking over from Los Angeles in organizing the EVS27. Barcelona beat Paris and Geneva in the fight to organise the event, which is a chance for local electric mobility companies to create international synergies.

Catalan universities are present at the Annual Conference and Expo of the Association of International Educators (NAFSA), which is the world’s largest event of its kind. The conference is organised in the United States and this year’s edition is being held in Houston (Texas) until Friday June 1st. The website www.studyincatalonia.com has been presented and aims to promote the studies offered by Catalan public and private universities worldwide. The presence of foreign students in postgraduate and master courses at Catalan universities increased by 34% in the last school year (2010-2011).

The death of a Guinean intern in the Immigrant Internment Centre (CIE) in Barcelona last January, plus the recent prohibition by the Spanish Government’s Delegate in Catalonia to allow the Catalan Ombudsman to visit the facilities of the centre, a month ago, has increased the feeling of distrust towards this type of institutions where immigrants without their residence permit are preventively held until they are sent back to their original countries.

Unicef has released a study revealing that children and youngsters are some of the most vulnerable people hit by the crisis. The study stresses that they are the future of any society. Between 2008 and 2010, child poverty in Catalonia increased by more than 5 percentage points. In Spain as a whole, child poverty jumped from 24% to 26.2% in the same period.

Teachers, administrative staff, students and parents have protested against budget cuts by the Spanish and Catalan Governments affecting primary, secondary and university education. The protest was organised throughout Spain. In Barcelona, 25,000 people according to the police and 150,000 people according to the organisers demonstrated through the city centre. Protests were also organised in other Catalan cities, such as Girona, Lleida and Tarragona.

From May 21st to 25th the First International Congress about Management and Disclosure of Protected Volcanic Landscapes, Volcandpark, is taking place in Olot, in Central Catalonia. The event will project the Garrotxa Natural Park's Volcanic Zone.

The centre received the ‘Gold Level Award’ from the Global Network for Tobacco Health Care Services, thanks to its fight against the effects of smoking. The jury emphasised the training given to both hospital workers and patients in order to give up smoking and the achievement of a strict non-smoking area in this health centre’s facilities. Only ten hospitals around the world have this distinction, among them another Catalan institution: Sant Joan de Déu Hospital in Manresa, in Central Catalonia.

The Catalan town of Sant Sadurní d’Anoia aims to deploy agents to counterbalance prejudices and stereotypes concerning its foreign residents, with the aim to prevent conflicts and promote mutual understanding The foreign community represents 9.3% of the population.

The 15-M Movement, also known as ‘The Indignados’, ‘The Outraged’, or ‘the Spanish Revolution’, which occupied squares throughout Spain in May and June 2011, celebrates its first anniversary. Last summer protesters abandoned the squares and the movement was kept alive in neighbourhood assemblies. One year after the first square occupation, the movement has taken to the streets and squares once again. After a massive demonstration on Saturday May 12th, protesters set up a camp in Catalunya Square in Barcelona, which they will leave on Tuesday. Also in other Catalan squares. They will organise assemblies and debates to gather further support for their programme that aims to change the current system.

The Catalan capital proposes an Art Nouveau pavilion in the former Sant Pau Hospital, located near the Sagrada Familia, as the organisation’s headquarters. The former St Pau Hospital pavilions will host in a few months several international organisations, such as an institute of the United Nations’ University and the European Forest Institute.

The BBVA bank rewards La Fageda with the 4th Integra Prize for offering quality employment for people with intellectual disabilities and mental disorders. Moreover, La Fageda carries out some care activities, like an occupational therapy service, assisted apartments for the workers, and different leisure activities. Nowadays, of the 287 people who work in La Fageda, 157 have some disability. The Catalan brand is famous for its quality dairy products.

The Federation of Blood Donors in Catalonia wants to reach the young population and to raise the number of donations. Besides, the Catalan pharmaceutical company Grifols asked for a change in the law in order to pay for giving blood. This measure would be an incentive to increase the stock of plasma.

Barcelona City Council is concerned about being able to maintain the current public kindergarten model taking into account the budget cuts announced by the Catalan Government to reduce public spending. While in 2011 the Government contributed €1,600 per child, next year the quantity might be reduced to €1,000.

After a year of trials, Barcelona’s court of first instance number 37 will work only with computer files, eliminating the use of paper. The Catalan Government, in charge of managing the court’s offices in Catalonia, has developed an IT system that will enable court staff but also citizens to carry out every process in a faster and more efficient manner. The plan to develop the system began in 2006 and its development has had a cost of €5 million. The Government’s plan is that by 2019 every court in Catalonia will be fully digital.

Despite initial fears of violent incidents the European Central Bank’s Governing Council meeting has been held peacefully. 8,000 police officers guarded the event by literally occupying the city. Besides, the ‘indignados’ movement demobilized their forces, and no anti-system protests took place.