Chairs at the UdG > UNESCO policies > The chair

The University of Girona – UdG (Spain) and the Technical University of Bolívar – UTB in Cartagena (Colombia) have signed a collaboration and institutional cooperation agreement, with the aim of channelling exchange and knowledge processes. This agreement operates through the Master's Degree in Development and Culture and the Development and Culture Network, which are coordinated by the UTB and the UNESCO Chair of Cultural Policies and Cooperation of the UdG.

As a result of this cooperation, a grant application was made to the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation under the PCI-AECID Inter-University Cooperation and Scientific Research Programme.

This union of academic institutions seeks to establish concrete actions and processes of knowledge exchange, which will result in the design and implementation of projects, promote the exchange of lecturers, researchers and students, organise activities in the fields of science and culture, train cultural managers capable of influencing contemporary processes of development and culture, and expand the study of cultural policies as a conduit for development.

Within this framework, the Ibero-American Laboratory for Research and Innovation in Development and Culture (L+iD) , is being consolidated and presented as a space where the dynamics of networking, and processes of research and investigation, innovation, scientific cooperation and exchange converge.

The Ibero-American Laboratory for Research and Innovation in Development and Culture (L+iD) is a space for the study and exploration of strategies and projects aimed at strengthening the role of culture in development strategies, and contributing to the advancement of local, national, international and multilateral strategies and projects in the field of development and culture.
Aware of decades of work by a large number of stakeholders in different countries, the laboratory's mission is to promote a space for cooperation between specialised researchers or those who incorporate this perspective into their work, in order to exchange lines of research and achieve greater visibility for their studies.
The laboratory aims to generate a process of exchanges and mutual knowledge and collaboration systems in order to build a community capable of contributing knowledge in the face of the challenges posed by increased linkage between culture and development in today's world, and on the agenda of international organisations.
It is made up of researchers, university professors, highly experienced professionals, and experts who bring their knowledge and experience to bear on the generation of research projects, innovation, evaluation and consultancy projects.
It encourages meetings and exchanges between long-standing specialists and young researchers in training.
It is a space for north-south, public-private cooperation, which has two headquarters: the University of Girona in Spain and the Technological University of Bolivar in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, attached to its Institute of Development Studies - Ide.
The laboratory is focused on the theoretical and practical issues of development and on the appropriate policies for overcoming poverty, which is why the Cartagena de Indias headquarters has become a space of particular importance for its research and investigation work.
Its structure guarantees the international mobility of its members, and efficiency in the management and administration of resources for the implementation of initiatives.

To survey the state of research and innovation in development and culture in Ibero-America and internationally.
To research the relationships between development and culture.
To promote processes of innovation and knowledge transfer.
To conceive, develop, incubate and execute research and innovation projects that make it possible to nurture cultural entrepreneurs capable of contributing to the generation of development processes, for example:
Protocols for cultural management in terms of culture and development.
Community entrepreneurs using their cultural roots to overcome poverty and foster social inclusion.
Strategies for social inclusion through culture.
Cultural proposals for the development of tourism.
Proposals for the incorporation of culture in public and private development policies.
Contribute to the exchange of experts, networking and the strengthening of academic programmes.
Offer support for research studies to multilateral organisations.
Advise public and private organisations on policy and project design.
Evaluate the impact of cultural cooperation policies, projects and processes to be developed.
Examine good practice in the sphere of the relationship between culture and development, and analyse what it contributes

An international network of experts with a portal (www.desarrolloycultura.net) for the exchange of information and debate that guarantees the quality of its intellectual production.
An important digital archive that provides an extensive repository of knowledge on bibliographic production, experiences, organisations and experts that enriches the laboratory's work.
The laboratory works closely with communities and social groups it shares a springboard with to promote entrepreneurial initiatives.
Rather like an artist's studio, the laboratory itself is a kind of easel, not only for the observation of reality but also for exploration, creation and innovation.
A space for welcoming researchers and hosting meetings, seminars and training courses.