The president of Conference of Rectors of Spanish Universities (CRUE), Juan Romo, together with the president of Banco Santander and Universia, Ana Botín, and the rector of the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), José Capilla, participated in the Universia Shareholders Meeting held in the city of Valencia as part of the Meeting. During his speech, Romo highlighted the important role that lifelong learning, entrepreneurship, innovation and interconnection, the event topics, play in execution of the university’s mission.

The president of Universia, Ana Botín, stressed that “challenges bring opportunities” and that the university “more than ever will become the centre for solutions, for answers as well as for learning what questions we must ask ourselves.” Botín remarked that Spain’s progress in recent years “has been tremendous” and that the university’s contribution thereto has been “fundamental.” “We have done many things well and the university has played a major role in the transformation of this country,” she stressed.

Three days of discussion under the slogan “University and Society”

Under the slogan “University and Society,” the Fifth International Meeting of Universia Rectors became a space for three days of discussion in which attendees talked about keys that will once again turn the university into an engine of societal progress and sustainable growth. This event was organised by Banco Santander and gave continuity to the previous meetings held in Salamanca (Spain) in 2018, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) in 2014, Guadalajara (Mexico) in 2010 and Seville (Spain) in 2005.

On Tuesday, 9 May, the President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez, together with the President of Banco Santander and Universia, Ana Botín, participated in the International Meeting of Universia Rectors, which was held during the International Meeting of Universia Rectors in the City of Arts and Sciences of Valencia. The meeting brought together nearly 700 rectors, from 14 countries, including our rector, Alfonso Méndiz. The rector was also able to share experiences with relevant figures from different fields, such as Tim Berners-Lee, scientist and scholar, inventor of the World Wide Web; Larry Summers, chief economist for the World Bank and former Secretary of Treasury under President Bill Clinton; Ignacio Cirac, 2006 Prince of Asturias Award for Scientific Research; or Pilar Manchón, head of the conversational artificial intelligence research strategy at Google AI, among other internationally renowned experts.

Conclusions from the International Meeting of Rectors are reflected in the Valencia Declaration, read by the rector of the Universitat de València and president of CRUE-Academic Staff, Mavi Mestre. The document reflects the commitment of the rectors so that the university advances, from several specific lines of action, in its purpose to continue contributing to societal progress

The meeting in Valencia aimed to find answers, generate synergies and strategies around three themes of special interest for many challenges of today's society in which the university can have a significant impact: lifelong learning, entrepreneurship and innovation, and networking and interconnection between universities, companies, governments and other institutions.