The Economic Circle seeks to "wake up" Europe at its 40th annual meeting.
The conference will be held between May 5 and 7 without the presence of the Royal Family.
Once again, the Círculo de Economía is preparing for its annual meeting, which this year marks its 40th edition. The conference, under the theme Europe: Wake-up call? How to respond to a moment of geopolitical disruption They will be held between May 5 and 7 at the Palacio de Congresos de Catalunya (Catalan Congress Palace), with around thirty speakers and the objective, as the title suggests, of "awakening" Europe to the current global context and "the current scenario of uncertainty on an international scale."
This year's meeting presents some new features; first of all, as explained by the president of the Cercle, Jaume Guardiola, and the general director, Miquel Nadal, the objective is to be "more participatory," so they will seek to "bring the debate between speakers and participants closer together" by creating spaces where attendees can address the speakers in question-and-answer sessions. Furthermore, and unlike other editions, this year the Spanish Royal Family will not attend, as the sessions coincide with an institutional trip by the King, according to the Círculo.
In fact, the political presence will be limited. Although the program is not yet fully finalized and changes are possible, the following are expected to attend: the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez; the President of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa; the Minister of Economy, Carlos Cuerpo; the Minister of Economy, Alícia Romero; and the President of the People's Party (PP), Alberto Núñez Feijóo. Also attending are MEPs Javi López (PSC), Diana Riba (ERC), and Adrián Vázquez (PP), while the Mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, will open the event.
The Role of Europe
The Círculo aims to focus its discussions and talks these days on analyzing Europe's role in the current climate of uncertainty and wants to "become the focal point of debate for the country's economic and business community." Therefore, European Commission Vice Presidents Teresa Ribera and Roxana Mînzatu, as well as the President of the European Council, will participate.
"We believe there is a very strong Spanish and European representation, but we also wanted the US and China to participate," Nadal asserts. In this regard, there will be personalities such as Li Cheng, director and founder of the Center on Contemporary China and the World (CCCW) at the University of Hong Kong, as well as Andrés Velasco, Dean of the School of Public Policy at the London School of Economics, among others.
On the other hand, the Círculo assures that there will be a debate on armament and defense in the European Union, with speakers yet to be confirmed. Debates on productivity, Europe's technological gap with respect to the rest of the world, and sustainability, topics that have been present in every debate for several years, will also be present.
However, Guardiola assures that the sessions come at a time when "things are beginning to work in Catalonia" and when Spain "finds itself in a context of economic growth." Regarding productivity, "this is not only a problem for Catalonia and Spain in relation to Europe, but also for Europe in relation to the world," Guardiola said. Likewise, regarding the global context, the president of the Cercle believes that "we could not have imagined it," adding that "we must remember that Europe's problems predate Trump."
