congress

The Spanish government’s vice president, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, urged the Catalan government’s president, Carles Puigdemont, to outline the proposal of celebrating an agreed referendum before the Spanish Congress. She said it was an “invitation” for the “dialogue and debate to be carried out in parliament”, which, according to the Spanish vice president, would allow addressing the celebration of the referendum “where it belongs, in the chamber”. According to Sáenz de Santamaría, her proposal makes sense because, “as of today, only Parliament can decide a matter of this nature”, whereas the Spanish government “cannot authorize nor negociate” the celebration of a referendum. Sáenz de Santamaría also stated that no member of her executive will be present at the conference that the Catalan president, Carles Puigdemont; the vice president, Oriol Jnqueras; and the Catalan Minister for Foreign Affairs, Raül Romeva, will hold in Madrid on Monday.

Barcelona’s car show, which has brought the main novelties of the automotive sector to the Catalan capital for nearly a century, has reinvented itself. The new ‘Automobile Barcelona’ fair opened its doors this Thursday focused on innovation, said the fair’s president, Enric Lacalle. During the next ten days, more than 90 companies, 30 car brands, and 108 speakers are expected at the Fira de Barcelona, including Tesla and other companies related to the new technologies such as Google or Facebook. Volkswagen is a notable exception. Catalan President, Carles Pugidemont, welcomed the “partnership” between connectivity and the car industry but insisted that the main challenge is that everyone be able to enjoy this combination and not just a select few.

The 2017 edition of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) registered a record participation of 108,000 visitors from 203 countries worldwide, 7% more than last year’s edition, according to figures released this Thursday by the event organisers GSMA. Those who passed through the MWC’s main venues at L’Hospitalet Gran Via and Fira de Montjuic were mostly senior executives, including 6,100 CEOs. The economic impact in Barcelona and its metropolitan area is estimated to reach €465 million and over 13,200 temporary jobs have been created due to the MWC. 2,300 international companies, which went beyond just the mobile phone industry, including firms from the automotive, financial and health sectors, presented their novelties at the world’s most important cell-phone and internet-related exhibition. 

4 Years From Now (4YFN), is the start-up business platform launched by the Mobile World Capital Barcelona that enables start-ups, investors and corporations to connect and launch new ventures together. During its opening this Monday within the Mobile World Congress, in Barcelona, Catalan Minister for Business and Knowledge, Jordi Baiget described it as “great showcase” and emphasised its growing influence. “It has become a reference point in Europe”, he said. Indeed, this year the 4YFN has seen its surface area multiplied by 8 in comparison to its first edition, three years ago. Thus, it has gathered together a record 600 start-ups and 700 investors. In line with this expansion, the 4YFN promotors announced that the platform will also be launched in San Francisco.

From the 27th of February to the 2nd of March, the Catalan capital will host the 12th edition of the Mobile World Congress (MWC), the world’s largest event of the mobile and cell phone-related industries. Last year’s edition surpassed its record and registered 101,000 visitors, which passed through the 2,200 stands distributed across two different venues, L’Hospitalet Gran Via and Fira de Montjuic. This year due to the international terrorist alert, the security measures will be strongly increased. For the first time ever, some of the access will be protected with bollards and concrete fences to prevent vehicles from bursting in the facilities. The security measures will go beyond the MWC’s venues and extend to the neighbouring areas and those aimed at holding parallel activities. The number of security officers in the public transport will also be increased during the MWC’s week.

The number of Catalan companies which will attend the 12th edition of the Mobile World Congress (MWC), to take place from the 27th of February to the 2nd of March in Barcelona will be higher than ever. There will be 105 Catalan businesses represented at the world’s largest event of the mobile and cell phone-related industries, exceeding for the first time the threshold of 100, explained Catalan Minister for Business and Knowledge, Jordi Baiget. 68 of these companies will be located in the Catalan Government’s pavilion, which will be set up at the centre of Fira de Barcelona. Barcelona’s Mayor, Ada Colau, emphasised the “good understanding” between the public administrations which share the organisation of the MWC: the Catalan Government, Barcelona’s City Hall and the Spanish Government.

Autonomous vehicles or a device capable of detecting free parking spaces, intelligent lights that monitor traffic, headphones designed to facilitate the mobility of blind people in cities and charging spaces for mobile phones that take advantage of the structure of the old telephone booths. These are some of the technological innovations that visitors can see at the sixth edition of the Smart City Expo World Congress (SCEWC), taking place between this Tuesday and next Thursday. The event is the showcase of smart cities and this year celebrates its largest edition yet, with 600 cities participating, 576 exhibitors, 412 speakers and a forecast for 14,000 visitors. Along with this event, the Gran Via Exhibition Centre is hosting three more: the Circular Economy Summit, iWater and European Utility Week, which turns Barcelona into the world capital of sustainable development.

170 international companies will take part in the second edition of the Internet of Things Solutions World Congress (IoTSWC), twice the number of participants from the first edition. Moreover, 160 speakers will discuss as to what extent the Internet is "radically transforming" the industry. The event, held in the Fira de Barcelona facility on Gran Via, kicked off this Tuesday and will continue to offer the latest developments in this sector until next 27th of October. Although the principal focus is the application of the Internet of Things in the Industry, the Catalan Minister for Business and Knowledge Jordi Baiget pointed out during the inauguration ceremony the multiple uses of the IoT, that “it has to do with the industry, but also the daily life of individuals and society, and we have Catalan companies at the event presenting solutions regarding cybersecurity, measurement and data transmission, mobility control and applications in health and agriculture". 

Over 50 speakers from all around the globe are to attend this week the Second World Gaudí Congress. From the 4th to the 7th of October the Historic Building of the University of Barcelona is hosting this biennial event organised by the Gaudí Research Institute (TGRI) and the University of Barcelona, ??where Antoni Gaudí received the title of architect in 1878. One of the main attractions of the congress is the thesis that the Blessed Sacrament Chapel of the Church of Sant Joan de Gràcia, in Barcelona, is a work by Gaudí, an idea defended by the biographer of the Catalan architect, Josep Maria Tarragona. This second edition has as a novelty the incorporation of the three-day session in Shanghai, which took place between the 21st and the 23rd of June, in collaboration with several Chinese universities of Tsinghua and with the support of the City of Shanghai. 

Liberal ‘Convergència’ (CDC) will be from now on named the ‘Catalan Democratic Party’. This is what 871 people voted for at this weekend’s 18^th Congress of the party, while 657 opted for the other final option, the ‘Catalan National Party’. The aim of the Congress was to reinvent CDC, which ruled in Catalonia together with Christian Democrats ‘Unió’ for nearly 30 years, and adapt the party to “the new challenges ahead”. The ‘Catalan Democratic Party’ is defined as a pro-independence party instead of sovereigntist, which CDC used to be. Catalan President, Carles Puigdemont, celebrated that the new party “is at the Government’s, Parliament’s and Catalan society’s disposal” to help him achieve the task which he was entrusted with, that is to say putting Catalonia at the gates of independence.

Liberal Convergència (CDC), the party which ruled in Catalonia together with Christian Democrat ‘Unió’ for nearly 30 years,wants to reinvent itself. CDC, currently led by former Catalan President Artur Mas, has reinforced its pro-independence component since it split from ‘Unió’ and now aims to “create a new instrument” in line with “the new challenges ahead”. The party also aims to renew its board and Mas suggested a tandem formed by himself and Catalan Government spokeswoman, Neus Munté to head it. All these questions will be discussed this weekend at the 18^th CDC Congress and the new steps to take will have to be voted upon by more than 3,000 people.

The Spanish King has signed this Tuesday the decree calling an early election in Spain. The main political parties have been unable to reach an agreement to form a stable government and so for the first time since the restoration of democracy, the Spanish Congress will be dissolved only five months after a general election. The calling of early elections has been an open secret since last week, when the King already said that he was not going to offer the leader of any political party the task of trying to form a government. Neither conservative Mariano Rajoy nor socialist Pedro Sánchez have the necessary support to win an investiture debate. Sánchez tried to achieve the support of Congress for a government led by him and C’s but was defeated. Rajoy, the current president, did not even try.

The 2016 edition of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) registered a record participation of 101,000 visitors, 6% more than last year’s edition. The 2,200 stands distributed across two different venues, L’Hospitalet Gran Via and Fira de Montjuic, constituted an exhibition of 110,000 square metres where the latest news in the mobile phone-related industry was unveiled. Presentations on virtual reality held the spotlight throughout the week, with newly unveiled gadgets and discussions on how virtual reality will change how we live and communicate.Despite the mobility problems, mainly derived from the metro strike which diluted the opening of Barcelona’s new L9 underground line, GSMA CEO John Hoffmann confirmed that the MWC will stay in Barcelona until 2023. The 2017 edition will take place from the 27^th of February to the 2^nd of March.

Sharing Academy connects students with other peer tutors at different universities. Through the app, students can sort through a marketplace of tutors that can help them in various course subjects. According to Jordi Llonch, the CEO and creator of Sharing Academy, the idea for the app came from a personal struggle with one of his classes. After struggling to pass a course in university, Llonch sought the help of a friend studying the same course at a different school. Since the largest Mobile World Congress (MWC) to date opened its doors on Monday, much of the presenters at the event have focused on a few key topics. By 2020, industry leaders hope lead their users into a new generation of technology that can connect more devices at once, allowing for more advancement in other industry sectors outside of mobile such as health, automotive, and telecommunications technology.

From this Monday until the 25^th of February leading brands in the mobile phone-related industries such as Samsung, LG and Sony will present their latest wares and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and F1 driver Lewis Hamilton will be amongst the speakers. A record figure of 100,000 visitors are expected and 2,100 international exhibitors have confirmed their attendance at the fair, consolidating Barcelona as a true meeting point for the sector. The 2016 edition of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) will take place amid major security measures due to the terrorist attacks in Paris last November and will also be affected by the metro strike, whichTransports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB) will carry out on the key days of the MWC. Thus, the recently opened new metro line, the L9, won’t contribute as much mobility as expected.