The dean of the University of Barcelona’s Faculty of Economics and Business, Elisenda Paluzie, has unveiled the first plaques on the Alumni Wall. This space at the Faculty now displays plaques bearing the names of all the alumni who made donations in a test run of the funding programme. “This project is a way for the University of Barcelona and the Faculty of Economics and Business to underscore the value of what we do. We’re the leading institution in the Catalan university system. We often engage in self-criticism, but rarely sing our own praises. We need to focus more on the value of what we do,” said the dean during the unveiling ceremony.
In response to the first appeal for donations, issued last February, 44 alumni donated a total of €6,375 through the Verkami crowdfunding platform. The donations were used to fund a grant for the doctoral student Athina Raftopoulou, who is completing a thesis on obesity and social inequalities in Spain. “The Alumni Wall is a sign of the vitality of the University of Barcelona, an institution that combines tradition and modernity,” said Paluzie.
The unveiling was also attended by Andreu Mas-Colell, the former Catalan Minister for Economy and Knowledge, and one of the Faculty’s donors, who said it was “an important approach at the world’s great universities. Alumni get really engaged in supporting their alma maters.” The former minister stressed that “the fact that more and more alumni understand the value of this approach can only be a good thing. It’s bound to have a positive effect on the activities the Faculty is able to carry out.”
“It’s an excellent initiative. I’d encourage everyone who trained in our classrooms to give back to the Faculty through the Alumni Wall project,” said Joan Tugores, former rector of the University of Barcelona and former dean of the Faculty of Economic and Business Sciences.
The dean of the Faculty also presented a new web platform to facilitate donations, which can be directed entirely to the specific programme selected by the donor: internationalisation and attracting talent, funding research and trainee researchers, or improving equipment and infrastructure.