On June 17, we had the opportunity to visit, for the third consecutive year, the municipality of Aras de los Olmos. Our goal? To learn about the rural development initiatives undertaken in the municipality through the Big History project promoted by the El Olmo Foundation (a public-private partnership). These are sustainable and innovative projects spanning a wide range of fields (ecotourism, archaeology, astronomy, botany…). However, we also went with the intention of spending a day in the countryside. And we had a fantastic day of fellowship to wrap up the academic year.
We are deeply grateful to the El Olmo Foundation, to the entire team working on these initiatives (such as the ecomuseum, the botanical garden, the astronomical observatory…) and to Joaquín Martín (co-director of the MUCD at the University of Valencia and President of the El Olmo Foundation) for their guidance and expertise during the visit. We were able to learn not only about these real-world, down-to-earth experiences, but also about the history of this major project (in which the University of Valencia and the Polytechnic University of Valencia are participating) and the key elements necessary for democratic governance and participation that ensure the sustainability of the initiatives undertaken.
We were able to make this visit thanks to the support of the UPV’s SIRVE Strategic Program.
