€11,226 Sent to Schools Affected by the DANA Storm
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The Fundació Autònoma Solidària (FAS) received and managed relief funds through a dedicated emergency programme. The money was collected as part of Escola Valenciana’s ‘One Euro, a Seed of Solidarity’ campaign. Thanks to the collective action of the UAB community, certain affected schools will receive a €350 voucher from Abacus — a cooperative that specialises in educational materials, books, and school supplies — to purchase educational resources.
17/02/2025
A total of 35 schools across 16 towns affected by the DANA storm — including Aldaia, Albal, Alfafar, Algemesí, Alginet, Benetússer, Beniparrell, Catarroja, Xest, Xiva, Xirivella, l'Alcúdia, Paiporta, Picanya and Utiel — will benefit from this support.
These donations were raised through UAB Crowdfunding, the university’s platform that enables individuals and organisations to contribute to charitable causes.
The amount raised — over €11,000 — came from 136 individual donations and a €1,000 contribution from the FUAB as part of its Christmas fundraising campaign.
Materials Collection Campaigns
In December, the Student Council of the UAB School of Engineering launched an initiative — supported by the Fundació Autònoma Solidària (FAS), the UAB Open Labs, and the School of Engineering itself — to collect second-hand IT equipment. The FUAB responded to the call by donating 75 computers, while individuals contributed monitors, keyboards, and other devices. Engineering students refurbished the donated items, which were then delivered by the FAS to the School of Engineering (ETSE) at the University of Valencia.
Additionally, in coordination with the University of Valencia’s cooperation department, the FAS organised two shipments of furniture and supplies to DANA-affected areas. Office supplies from the UAB’s School of Medicine and Surgery were sent to the Faculty of Education in Valencia, along with 30 chairs from the Faculty of Medicine delivered to the Albal High School.
FOROPEA Hosts Roundtable on Inclusion and Diversity Policies
On Wednesday, 12 March, the Faculty of Arts and Humanities at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona held a roundtable discussion as part of the FOROPEA project, titled Do inclusion and diversity policies work in educational settings? The discussion brought together experts to talk about the challenges and opportunities of inclusive education.
The event served as a space for dialogue and collective learning around anti-colonial and anti-racist education. Students, teachers, activists, and researchers gathered to share experiences and explore innovative approaches to learning and teaching. This initiative was coordinated by the Department of Philosophy and was co-funded by the UAB Solidarity Fund, which is managed by the FAS, as well as the MSCA DEPWAT project. The event featured lectures, networking opportunities, workshops, a panel discussion and a screening of the documentary Itu Ninu. Key speakers included Catherine Walsh, among other leading commentators on the topic.
During the roundtable, speakers such as Miquel À. Essomba, Armando Bautista, Íngrid Agud, Montse Rifà and Guiomar Gude shared various perspectives on the effectiveness of inclusion policies. The need for an intersectional approach that avoids colonial or paternalistic perspectives was highlighted.
Guiomar Gude, a projects officer at the Fundació Autònoma Solidària, spoke on behalf of the UAB Refugee Programme, which works to ensure access to higher education for people seeking refuge and those who have been forcibly displaced. The programme promotes an inclusive approach rooted in Global Justice Education, focusing on raising awareness, increasing visibility, and recognising alternative forms of academic knowledge. It also fosters spaces for exchange on equal footing through peer mentoring. In her concluding remarks, Gude stressed that inclusion cannot be achieved without guaranteeing the protection of rights and recognising the knowledge and expertise that people from the Global South can contribute to universities.
FOROPEA: Towards Truly Inclusive and Transformative Education
Throughout the FOROPEA forum, a variety of free and open activities focusing on education, anti-racism and decoloniality were held. These included lectures, networking opportunities, and hands-on workshops such as Intersectionality at University, led by Mònica Cejas. There were also discussion panels, and a screening of the documentary Itu Ninu by Ittandehui Janses, followed by a talk moderated by Armando Bautista and Elisena Tiradó.
Several prominent speakers enriched the programme with diverse perspectives on social justice and anti-racism. Catherine Walsh, a scholar-activist involved in justice and social transformation movements in the United States, Ecuador, and Latin America, presented the book El género muy otro y su más allá, which she co-edited with Alicia Ortega Caicedo. Eunice Romero, an expert in nationalism, migration and anti-racism, gave a talk entitled Taking the Lead? Challenges, Paradoxes and Lessons from Anti-Racist Practice in Institutions. Fernando Macías, Director General of the Office for Equal Treatment and Non-Discrimination at the Department of Equality and Feminisms of the Government of Catalonia, took part in a session entitled How Can Education Become an Anti-Racist Space?, outlining strategies and policies to ensure inclusive educational environments.
Spaces such as FOROPEA are essential for facilitating debate and the exchange of diverse viewpoints, helping to lay the groundwork for a 'new beginning' and making steady progress towards truly inclusive and transformative education.