Alfredo Rocafort, Professor of Financial Economics and Accounting at the University of Barcelona, Board Member of the Fundación Independiente, Numerary Member of the Royal Academy of Economic and Financial Sciences (RACEF) and Numerary Member and President of the Governing Board of the Royal European Academy of Doctors (READ); Carlo Morabito, Vice-Rector of the Mediterranean University of Reggio Calabria and Corresponding Member of the RACEF and the READ; Federico González Santoyo, Director of the Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo and Corresponding Member of the RACEF and the READ; Constantin Zopounidis, Professor at the Technical University of Crete and Corresponding Member of the RACEF and the READ; and Michael Metzeltin, Professor Emeritus at the University of Vienna, Corresponding Member of the RACEF and Emeritus Member of the READ, took part between 18 and 20 November in the 20th edition of the Barcelona International Seminar of the RACEF, held under the general theme “A New European Project for a New World Order.”
Rocafort presented the lecture “Towards European Leadership in the 21st Century”, in which he defended the premise that Europe is not a geography but a consciousness, and called for building a future grounded in the democratic values that have shaped the continent, demonstrating that intelligence and ethics can prevail over the force that characterises the current international order. Morabito, for his part, contributed the paper “Fair Nael: an innovative project for Next Generation EU”, reflecting on this emblematic initiative within the European Union’s Next Generation programme aimed at repairing the economic and social damage caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and building a greener, more digital and more resilient future for Europe.
González Santoyo addressed in “The replacement of fixed assets under uncertainty as a business development strategy”, with the participation of Ana María Gil, Numerary Member of the RACEF and Supernumerary Member of the RAED, a multifunctional analytical model applicable to resolving Europe’s inherent complexity. Zopounidis presented together with Georges Atsalakis, Professor of Technology Forecasting at the Technical University of Crete, a model of humanistic governance in “The New European Project: Strategic Autonomy and Value-Driven Global Governance.” Lastly, Metzeltin focused on shared values and the search for a distinct European identity based on historical and cultural references in his lecture “The European Union from the Economic to the Political: Visions, Obsessions, Solutions.”
Other Numerary Members of the Royal Academy of Economic and Financial Sciences also took part in the sessions, including its president, Jaime Gil Aluja, who delivered the opening and closing speeches, and Enrique López, Professor of Financial Economics and Accounting at the University of León. Numerous foreign Corresponding Members and international experts also joined the seminar, among them former Prime Minister of Romania Petre Roman; former Algerian minister Mohamed Laichoubi; former Prime Minister of Moldova Corneliu Gutu; Gilles Grin, Director of the Jean Monnet Foundation for Europe; and former Member of the European Parliament for Luxembourg Erna Hennicot-Schoepges. Beyond the scientific sessions, participants visited the DFactory innovation centre in the Barcelona Free Trade Zone, a hub for Industry 4.0 where innovative projects in robotics, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and advanced manufacturing are developed. They also travelled to the town of Porrera to meet with Salus Álvarez, President of the Regulatory Council of the Qualified Designation of Origin Priorat.
