Aimed at covering the needs of the local population in La Cerdanya, Bolvir Local Council has come together with the Regional Council to launch a new regional centre of UIC Barcelona’s Experience Campus, with an academic offer aimed at people over 50 years old. The news was announced at the university today, during the signing ceremony for the agreement. The UIC Barcelona Rector, Alfonso Méndiz, welcomed the mayor of Bolvir, Isidre Chia Trilles, and deputy mayor Ángel Maurell Bonet.

The Experience Campus is a UIC Barcelona programme that aims to provide people over 50 with academic training, improving their quality of life. The programme, which was first launched in 2019 in Barcelona, has since expanded with regional centres opened in Penedès, Andorra, and Calonge i Sant Antoni. A new centre has now been added in the municipality of Bolvir, in the region of La Cerdanya. 

Located in the Catalan Pyrenees, La Cerdanya proudly defines itself as a region rich in history and nature. During the visit, mayor and president of the Regional Council Isidre Chia explained that the university and local governments in Bolvir and La Cerdanya aim to provide the older population in the area with a curriculum that encourages interest in new fields of knowledge. The goal is to encourage older people to continue their personal development and adapt to their social environment at this stage of life.

The programme will start off with an introductory module that will run from 10 October to 14 November. This introduction to the Experience Campus is aimed at anyone who wants to get a closer look at the activities on offer at the centre. It is not mandatory to have completed this module in order to enrol in the three-year Senior University Programme in Culture, Science and Society, which includes modules from different subject areas. The first year of the course begins on 28 November, and will end on 9 June 2025. 

The Bolvir centre offers modules in the fields of history, philosophy, philology and communication, and microbiology, with the aim of gaining deeper insight into current culture, science and society. Classes will be held from 3.30 p.m. to 4.30 p.m. and from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. every Thursday. In addition, the centre will also run cultural outings, optional workshops, field trips and even a summer school for seniors. 

The teaching methodology during the course is based on active participation, with different projects carried out in teams that encourage group research, activities and an improved of quality of life. There are no exams. Teachers start the modules with two in-person classes, then they teach the following sessions online from the offices of Bolvir Local Council. Students who have successfully completed both courses will receive an unofficial Diploma for the Senior University Programme in Culture, Science and Society at UIC Barcelona (Bolvir-Cerdanya centre). 

The new project will officially kick off on 19 September, from 4 p.m. to 5.30 p.m. in the conference room at Bolvir Town Hall, which will host the classes of the new centre.