Dear colleagues,

As the rector of the University of Girona I welcome you to our community.Notice that I do not speak about institution, and even less so about administration, although we are obviously a public organisation, a social and cultural point of reference of the highest order.

I speak to you about community, as you need to know that you have just entered this space made up of a shared history, a feeling of belonging, a group of people who account for much of the talent in our counties.We’ve been a university for more than thirty years and we come from an even longer history of initiatives and efforts that date back to the 15th century, which over the course of the 20th century enabled Girona to regain university studies.

Keeping this tradition in mind is central to understanding what we are and what we want to be.We are a university community governed by a common goal and a special character.That goal is for teaching, research, regional presence, social commitment, international projection, to end up building a better, more equitable and fairer society.The character is coded in the fact that we attain this with a vocation of public service for the common good.

All universities pursue similar goals.Making knowledge advance, being able to transmit it to new generations, becoming a role-model in the defence of democracy and tolerance, becoming an asset for progress and also for social vitality.

They are all similar, but each is responsible to its own environment, to its own origins, to its specificities.In our case, at the UdG, we can speak about ties with the people and projects that make the whole of Girona’s society move forward in values.We can speak about history, of all those who made this reality possible: from the first instigators of the university project to the latest person to join the teaching or research staff.We are all part of a collective idea, about that community that we mentioned.

Now, with your joining us, I ask you for responsibility and pride.Responsibility in the tasks and in the daily construction of the University as a bastion of science, with the consciousness that we associate with a home, our home, which is and must continue to be an ethical beacon and a space for reflection.And pride to be part of a collective with tradition and with the desire of being a decisive stakeholder in drawing the future.   

Kind regards,
Quim Salvi
Rector