The UC and UIMP explained to the most important representatives of the 17 members within CCI the progress they have made in order to reach international teaching excellence, research and transfer. The members of the project showed CCI their unanimous support and made a commitment to boost its continuity.
The Representative Board of Cantabria International Campus (CCI) met today in the University Main Building to analyse the results achieved in the first two years as an International Campus of Excellence for the University of Cantabria (UC), Menéndez Pelayo International University (UIMP) and the 17 members of the project.
Representatives of the UC and UIMP participated in this ceremony, as well as important representatives of the 17 members of Cantabria International Campus.
Among those who took part in the meeting are Ignacio Diego, President of Cantabria Government; José Antonio Cagigas, President of Cantabria Parliament; Iñigo de la Serna, Mayor of Santander; Ildefonso Calderón, Mayor of Torrelavega; Miguel Ángel Serna, Minister of Education, Culture and Sport in Cantabria Government; Eduardo Arastí, Councillor for Innovation, Industry, Tourism and Commerce; Alfredo Salcines, President of CEOE-CEPYME Cantabria; Antonio Mazarrasa, Secretary General of the Chamber of Commerce in Cantabria; José Joaquín Sieso, President of Santander Port; Miguel Cabetas, Delegate Counciller of Sodercan; Ignacio del Moral, Director of Valdecilla Virtual Hospital; Enrique Martínez, Representative of the Higher Board of Scientific Research; Pablo Abaunza, Director of the Oceanographic Centre in Santander; Fátima Sánchez Santiago, Director of Education in the Botín Foundation; Clemente Río, Director of Caja Cantabria; and Carlos Hazas, Director of Santander Bank in Cantabria.
On behalf of the UC and UIMP were Federico Gutiérrez-Solana, Rector of the UC; Ángel Pelayo, Vice-Rector of UIMP Cantabria Campus of Excellence; and José Carlos Gómez Sal, Vice-Rector for Research and Transfer in the UC. The UC members of the rectorate team also attended the meeting.
Members of CCI International Assessment Council also attended the meeting, as well as Carmen Vela, researcher and entrepreneur in biomedicine and José Antonio Villasante, General Director of Santander Universities.
Evaluation made by CCI members
Representatives of CCI members have had the opportunity to assess the actions carried out in the two years the Project has lasted and of suggesting new actions to be carried out within the CCI framework. Thus, Ignacio Diego positively assessed the consensus achieved by the UC and UIMP and showed a commitment by the Regional Government in the steps taken by the University. On his behalf, José Antonio Cagigas expressed support to CCI by the three parties represented in Cantabria Government and the consensus achieved among its citizens. Iñigo de la Serna referred to the fact that CCI has a lot to do with the way of Santander and recalled the exceptional implication of the University in public services within the city. Ildefonso Calderón said that it is necessary to maintain everyone’s support to CCI and highlighted the support that CCI has in the city of Torrelavega, José Antonio Villasante positively assessed the social commitment achieved within CCI and congratulated the CCI management team on its achievements.
Federico Gutiérrez-Solana recalled that this is a regional project and Ángel Pelayo showed UIMP’s satisfaction on the results of the actions carried out until now by CCI.
Different funding
During the meeting, progress achieved within the two years of CCI was explained, within each of its areas of excellence and other transversal actions. Besides, results from an assessment by the international commission which has carried out a follow-up of Spanish campuses of excellence were also commented.
Data from May 2011 shows that more than 52 million Euros have been used in the framework of Cantabria International Campus. 87% of this amount corresponds to induced public and private funding and the other 13% corresponds to funding achieved in the official announcements of the Campus of Excellence in the Dept. of Education and Depts. of Science and Innovation (MICINN). CCI has encouraged involvement from various funding agents, central administrations as well as autonomous and local ones, and the rest of its members and thus they have been able to set up joint activities for the progress of Cantabria.
The most prominent part of the 52 million Euros corresponds to actions to improve teaching; scientific improvement and knowledge transfer; transformation of the university campus; adaptation to the European Area of Higher Education; interaction with society; and other transversal programmes.
The presentation also highlighted the fact that CCI has achieved funding for a total of 22 million Euros in the two years of official announcements for the CIS programme in the Dept. of Education and MICINN. In the official announcement for 2011, it was the second Campus of Excellence which has obtained most funding in the official announcements, with 6.7 million Euros.
CCI Progress
The six CCI areas of excellence have made significant progress during the last two years on its way to excellence.
In the area of Biomedicine and Biotechnology, we should emphasize the bio-sanitary cluster in Biomedicine and Biotechnology Research and Education in Cantabria, taking advantage of the high scientific quality and possibility of transfer in the Institute of Biomedicine and Biotechnology in Cantabria (IBBTEC), Marqués de Valdecilla Institute of Education and Research (IFIMAV) and companies within the sector. For this reason, the Coordination Board of Biomedical Research in Cantabria was set up, which is formed by the Health Board and the University of Cantabria and has formed a unique nucleus in biomedical research.
Besides, the inauguration of IBBTEC is also expected. This joint Institute, formed by the UC, CSIC and the Government of Cantabria is made up of 300 researchers and technicians. On the other hand, IBBTEC has contracted a world-wide high level scientist, with his team of collaborators through the Augusto González Linares Programme to attract international talent, set up within the CCI framework.
Valdecilla Virtual Hospital has also been integrated within the Campus of Excellence, boosting collaboration with the Universities of Harvard and MIT:
In the area of Water and Energy, the Sea of Innovation Cantabria Cluster has been created, a public-private aggregation made up of 50 entities which make up the first group specialized in renewable energies in the marine environment within Spain.
Besides, the new Environmental Hydraulics Complex has started up, establishing itself within a Joint Institute with more than 150 researchers, developing 180 transfer projects in 20 countries and 75 research projects in the last three years.
We must emphasize the Cantabria Coastal and Ocean Basin within this complex, a singular scientific-technical installation (ICTS), which already has experimental work contracted for the next two years. Besides, “Idermar” the Spin-off of marine renewable energies has developed and carried out the project for three floating instrumental buoys, a reality at sea nowadays.
A world-wide high level scientist has also joined this area of excellence, together with his team of collaborators through the Augusto González Linares Programme to attract international talent, set up within the CCI framework.
In the area of Banking, Finance and Entrepreneurial Activity, the strength of alliances with strategic members such as the Santander Bank, has brought about the signing of the agreement by which the Santander Financial Institute will be created, strengthening the development of joint programmes with the Wharton School in the University of Pennsylvania.
In order to set up the UC Institute of Finances with Santander Bank and through the Augusto González Lineares Programme, a public announcement has been launched for two world-wide high level researchers in finance to join work in the institute with their collaboration teams.
Besides, an international network to analyse SME’s (FAEDPYME) has been set up and the International Master´s Degree in Banking has been extended to Brazil, as well as an International Doctorate Programme in Entrepreneurship with TEC in Monterrey, Mexico.
In the area of Heritage and Language, programmes in the International Centre of Higher Studies in Spanish within the Comillas Foundation (CIESE) are already being taught, essentially in education for the Teaching of Spanish as a Foreign Language. Through the Augusto González Linares Programme, an American researcher with a consolidated career in the teaching of Spanish has recently joined CIESE.
The Semantic Web of Heritage in Cantabria is being carried out together with the Botín Foundation, will allowing immediate access to digitalized Heritage in Cantabria from anywhere in the world.
The Master’s Degree in Emotional, Social and Creativity Education has been set up together with the Botín Foundation,
In the area of Technology, there are three important initiatives of particular singularity in progress. The first one, SmartSantander and Outsmart, two of the most important projects within the EU VII Framework Programme, for research and development of the European programme of smart cities. These projects, in which the UC collaborates with multi-national companies such as Telefónica, as well as public administrations such as Santander Town Hall and the Government of Cantabria, lead to new achievements in scientific and technical development and show the value of excellence and internationalization within the city of Santander.
The second one is the creation of the Santander Fire Research Center, in collaboration with Santander Town Hall.
In third place, the bases are being set out to launch an Institute for Information and Communication Technologies (IDITIC) with huge entrepreneurial participation.
In the area of Physics and Mathematics, fundamental actions include the renewal of the SuperComputation Node and its installations in the Scientific-Technical Park, with public-private collaboration, integrated within the Spanish SuperComputation Network, renewal of the UC Computation Centre (IFCA) and collaborative activity with the new Santander Bank Date Processing Centre.
A world-wide high level scientist has also joined IFCA, together with his team of collaborators through the Augusto González Linares Programme to attract international talent, set up within the CCI framework.
Transformation of the campus
Within the CCI, key actions have been set up in the area of Santander, with important support from the Government of Cantabria, as well as Santander and Torrelavega Town Halls. It should be highlighted in this area that a new Director Plan for Las Llamas Campus has been defined with Santander Town Hall. Besides, this plan also includes the future inauguration of the Three Towers Building, a student university home; the creation of various social learning spaces; allocation of Juan de la Cosa university lodgings; and the inauguration of new buildings in the Torrelavega Campus, where there are also other future projects such as the construction of new buildings which will house a business incubator.
UC Collaboration and UIMP
Cooperation between the two universities which CCI, the UC and UIMP coordinate has allowed projects to be set up, whose results will appear in 2012 and which will be of international relevance. This is the case in the creation of the UC-UIMP International Post-Graduate Centre, the International Centre for Technology and Port Authority (CITAP), or the Encounter of Nobel Awards which will take place in Santander next July.
La cooperación entre las dos universidades que coordinan CCI, la UC y la UIMP, ha permitido poner en marcha proyectos cuyos resultados podrán verse en 2012 y que serán de relevancia internacional. Tal es el caso de la creación del Centro Internacional de Posgrado UC-UIMP, el Centro Internacional de Tecnología y Administración Portuaria (CITAP), o el encuentro de Premios Nobel que se celebrará en Santander durante el próximo mes de junio.