Dr. Josep Maria Franquet
Josep Maria Franquet, professor at the National University of Distance Education (NUDE) and at the International University of Catalonia, and a full member of the Royal European Academy of Doctors (READ), was recognized last November 28 with the 8th People to Change the World Award, granted by the Official College of Agronomists of Catalonia. The honoree received the award at a ceremony held at the College’s headquarters in Barcelona, within the framework of its annual General Assembly. This distinction was created with the aim of acknowledging the work and career of individuals who stand out for striving to generate changes that improve the daily life of society and the environment.
The award jury highlighted Franquet’s commitment to the profession and to the College, as well as his career and his contribution through more than sixty books and numerous technical articles that have enriched, among other fields, agronomic knowledge. At the same time, it emphasized his literary, human, and cultural sensitivity, bearing witness to the fact that agronomic engineering can also be a driving force for culture, identity, and hope. Indeed, the academic was the winner of the 53rd edition of the Agrarian Book Award for his work «The Carob Tree», in which he compiles an analysis of the carob sector from a historical and technical perspective, demonstrating his commitment to the development of the sector.
The presentation of the award was carried out by the delegate from Tarragona, Joan Viñas, who introduced the winner and presented him with the statuette and the certificate. “This award is an incentive to continue demonstrating that agronomic engineering is not only about producing food and organizing territory. The Ebro Lands are a living example of this connection between territory and society,” the academic said in gratitude upon receiving the prize.
Born in Tortosa in 1950, Franquet is a consulting agronomist engineer, university professor, writer, and politician. He served as a city councilor of the Tortosa City Council (1995–2007) and as vice president of the Baix Ebre County Council. He has also worked as a professor at UNED in Tortosa, where he was director of the center and of its northeastern campus (Catalonia and the Balearic Islands). His professional career combines teaching, research, and political activity with the management of agricultural holdings in the Ebro Delta. He has been a critical voice in defense of the territory, especially in relation to the National Hydrological Plan, and has chaired the Economic and Social Council of the Ebro Lands. He is a full member of the Doctoral Faculty of the University of Barcelona (1997), a consulting board member of the Official Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Navigation of Tortosa, and a member of the Spanish Chapter of the Club of Rome and other institutions.
Franquet is the author of around forty books or monographs on agriculture, construction, hydraulics, territorial planning, climatology, fish farming, topography, mathematics, and economics, among other topics, as well as numerous articles and technical notes. He is also the author of many poems and works in other literary genres, in both Spanish and Catalan. Notable among these creations are the book «L’immortal i altres poemes,» the children’s story «La nana de Sara,» and the costumbrista work «Trenta-tres jotes tortosines.» Other outstanding works include «Descobreix els sentits,» «Àlbum familiar,» and «Ramon l’immortal.» Together with Juan Mingorance, he published the poetry collection «Sonetos a dúo.»
