'castells'

How can you reach out and touch the sky with your fingers? Is it better alone or together with others? Ram Devinevi and Cano Rojas give a clear answer to this question in their documentary which shows how three different cultures -the Catalan, the Indian and the Chilean- all with a common aim: to build the highest human constructions. A formidable challenge which can only be achieved thanks to the huge effort of three hundred bodies climbing and the technical guidelines of an experienced coach.

The Barcelona-raised sociologist Manuel Castells has received the 2012 Holberg International Memorial Prize in Bergen, Norway. This award is considered to be the equivalent of a Nobel Prize in the field of sociology. The jury considered his book ‘Communication Power’ to be “essential for a new understanding of politics”. Castells holds the Wallis Annenberg Chair at the University of Southern California, he is Research Professor at Catalonia’s distance-learning university (UOC) and Professor Emeritus at the University of California (Berkeley).

During last year 8,217 human towers built. According to latest data, just 3.5% of the total number of human towers collapsed.

‘Castells’ or the traditional human towers originally from Southern Catalonia and generally built during town festivals were included in the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO last year. An exhibition at the Palau Robert in Barcelona will celebrate this first anniversary. It reflects on the tradition’s cultural and social value, and its role as one of Catalonia’s best known symbols.

The UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage declared the Catalan tradition of human castle building, or ‘castells’, as an element of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This recognition was also awarded to the Mallorcan ‘Sibil·la’ chant, the traditional dance Flamenco and the Mediterranean Diet.

Human towers are one of the most unique traditions in Catalonia. This week at the UNESCO meeting in Nairobi (Kenya), "castells" may join the prestigious list of world heritage cultural assets.

Antoni Castells considers that the minimum social conditions necessary for consensus do not exist, as the energy model is often used as a political weapon. In the last 5 years there have been large controversies around mergers within the Spanish energy se

Catalan President José Montilla asks for 'solidarity and cooperation' with the Spanish Government in the economic system reform and the labour market. Catalonia represents almost 20% of Spain GDP and it is its main export centre.

This measure is part of a plan to cut the public deficit at all levels of government. It has passed with the only positive votes from the parties in the Government´s Left-Wing coalition.