The European and Ibero-American Academy of Yuste Foundation commemorates Europe Day, which is celebrated every 9 May, through a compilation of videos and online actions grouped under the title “Committed to Europe”. These videos, which include different visions of politicians, academics, intellectuals, historians, researchers, students and representatives of civil society, will be broadcasted from today through the Foundation’s website, YouTube channel and social networks.
Since it is impossible to celebrate the Carlos V European Award ceremony this year at the Royal Monastery of Yuste on 9 May, the Foundation will continue with the dissemination of general knowledge and enhancement of Europe’s cultural, social, scientific and historical values. This will be done through the campaign “Committed to Europe”, which integrates the messages launched by a broad representation of different sectors of society. Among the institutional representatives, one may find the Minister for Foreign Affairs, the European Union and Cooperation, Arancha González Laya; the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell; the President of the Regional Government of Extremadura, Guillermo Fernández Vara and the former Presidents of the European Parliament, José María Gil-Robles and Enrique Barón Crespo.
The videos have a specific section which counts with the participation of former winners of the Award, such as Felipe González and Sofia Corradi. From the university, the Rector of the University of Extremadura, Antonio Hidalgo, and professors Enrique Moradiellos and Teresa Freixes appear. Some Europeanist messages included are from representatives of European institutions, such as the Director of the European Commission’s Office in Spain, Francisco Fonseca; Members of the European Parliament, Esteban González Pons, Ignacio Sánchez Amor, Maite Pagazaurtundúa and María Eugenia Rodríguez Palop. In this line, the videos include the participation of different representatives of civil society, such as journalist Carmen Romero and the president of Alentejo de Excelência and Vice-president of the Ibero-American Institute of Rural Tourism (IBEROATUR), Enrique Sim-Sim. In addition, the testimonies of students from the Sagrada Familia School in Badajoz, which is part of the ‘European Parliament’s Ambassador School’ educational programme, and from the Almanzor, Sierra de Gredos, Campo Arañuelo and El Pozón schools in Navalmoral de la Mata, which participate in the project “The European Union: a long way towards peace and coexistence”, led by the Foundation, appear. Young people also have a voice in this collection of online messages, with students from Secondary Schools, such as Gonzalo Korreas in Jaraíz de la Vera; Jaranda in Jarandilla de la Vera and Cella Vinaria in Ceclavín, which is also part of the programme ‘Ambassador School of the European Parliament’; as well as the university students of the Erasmus programme who are doing the internship at the Centre for European Documentation and Information in Extremadura (CDIEX), an institution integrated within Yuste Foundation. Despite the variety of ideas expressed in the videos of the campaign ‘Committed to Europe’, all those who participated agree that in the face of current and future problems and challenges, Europe is the solution for the future.
The Carlos V Award Video
Finally, another of the activities planned within the campaign, is the dissemination of a video that will capture the central moments of all the Carlos V European Award ceremonies since 1995. The winners of the Award are Jacques Delors, former President of the European Commission (1995); Wilfried Martens, President of the European People’s Party (1998); Felipe González, former President of the Government of Spain (2000); Mikhail Gorbachov, former President of the USSR (2002); Jorge Sampaio, former President of Portugal (2004); Helmut Kohl, former German Chancellor (2006); Simone Veil, former President of the European Parliament (2008); Javier Solana, former High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy of the European Union (2011); José Manuel Durão Barroso, former President of the European Commission (2014); Sofia Corradi, promoter of the Erasmus programme (2016); Marcelino Oreja, former Secretary-General of the Council of Europe; Antonio Tajani, former President of the European Parliament (2018), and the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe, in which case, the award was received by the Secretary-General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland (2019). Other Activities of the Campaign In addition to the videos, the Foundation will also be actively involved in social networks. It will, thus, publish a small daily questionnaire with questions on the construction and current affairs of Europe; it will disseminate the European publications it has published and give visibility to some of the outstanding sentences said by those who have been awarded the Carlos V European Award, as well as to Yuste’s alumni.
About the Foundation
The European and Ibero-American Academy of Yuste Foundation is a public non-profit-making body of cultural, scientific, research and disseminating nature integrated in the foundational public sector of the Regional Government of Extremadura. Among its objectives it aims to contribute to the promotion and consolidation of the existing links between Extremadura, Europe and Ibero-America under the principles of loyalty, respect for each other’s identity, mutual benefit and solidarity. Furthermore, it supports the promotion of democracy, respect for human rights, the promotion of peace and international harmony as well as the development of all peoples and nations of the world through the promotion of culture, research, dissemination of knowledge and social integration. The Foundation works mainly in five areas: research, dissemination, training, culture and cooperation. Some of its most outstanding programmes are: Campus Yuste, the Emperor’s Concerts, Euro Ibero-American Tribune, Aula Abierta and its publications.
For further information: Committed to Europe
