Joan Clos i Matheu
Encyclopedia : J : JO : JOA : Joan Clos i Matheu
Joan Clos has been the mayor of Barcelona since September 1997. In 1999 he was elected for a four-year term, and was re-elected in the municipal elections of 25 May 2003.
Joan Clos was born in Parets del Vallès on the 29 June 1949. He graduated in medicine, in the first graduation year, at the Universidad Autónoma in Barcelona. He continued his studies at the Hospital de Sant Pau, the modernist jewel in Barcelona. After practising as an anaesthetist for a while, he decided to make a change and moved to epidemiology, community medicine and the management of health resources, which he studied in Edinburgh, Scotland. He was involved in anti-Franco movements in his profession and in the renovation of health services. In the period of political transition, he worked in CAPS, the Centro de Análisis y Programas Sanitarios (Centre for health analysis and programmes) with the group of doctors who defended the political transformation of the country.
Clos is convinced that cities have a significant role to play in world equilibrium, because it is in the city where people and groups co-exist, where they consolidate democracy, and where there is most participation. It is in the city where the problems which directly affect people must be resolved, and where there are social welfare guarantees. It is the municipal government which is closest to the general public.
With this conviction, Joan Clos has strengthened the role of Barcelona as a leader among world cities. It was as the representative of cities that he spoke to the general assembly of the UN, to request more involvement of city governments in building peace, in the spread of democracy and in the application of equal opportunities. In recognition of this continued effort, Barcelona has been elected as the permanent headquarters for the United Cities and Local Governments, the organisation of cities from around the world, uniting existing cities organisations.
For the cities to take on this positive role, it is important that they have a solid project for the future. In the case of Barcelona, Joan Clos has led the transformation of the industrial city of the 19th century to the "City of Knowledge " of the 21st century. Because of its excellence in the new economy, in innovation and in quality services, Barcelona can compete in the globalised world, and so ensure a future city of social welfare, cohesion and opportunity, a city to be the natural leader in southern Europe.
In the consolidation of the economic, cultural and welfare capacity of Barcelona, there are two critical elements. The first is the size of the metropolitan area of the city, which gives it equal weight with other major European cities, with which it has a good relationship. Secondly, the clear will for any benefits to reach all corners of the city, bringing all neighbourhoods up to the same level, and giving the same opportunities and services to all Barcelona citizens.
The Forum of Cultures in 2004 put the city at the service of dialogue and co-existence between cultures, languages, realities and beliefs, with the aim of building awareness between people, and respect for diversity, sustainability and peace. It gave the city the opportunity to complete the reformation of the sea front and to integrate the major infrastructure within the city, so converting an area with very little, into a new centre for development.
New urban renovation projects - the future neighbourhoods of Zona Franca and Besòs, and the area of Sagrera for the arrival of the high-speed train, the AVE - will make access to housing easier for those with less resources. They will create quality urban areas, with life and people, in what has up to now been obsolete industrial land. This "recycling" of land allows building without consuming land, and at the same time improves the offer of services and facilities, so that the increase in capacity of Barcelona is sustainable.
Commitment to the city
His ideas on factors which affect social well being began at the start of his professional career. Having graduated in medicine and specialised in the field of medicine at the University of Barcelona and in the United States of America, he went on to study Public Health and Epidemiology, in 1977, at the University of Edinburgh (Scotland). This gave him the extra dimension of public health. Between 1981 and 1991 he was president of the Sociedad Española de Epidemiología (Spanish society of Epidemiology) and the Sociedad Española de Salud Pública y Administración Sanitaria (Spanish society of public health and health administration).
Continuing this process of deepening involvement in public management, in 1979 he joined the Barcelona city government as director of Health Services. In 1983 he was elected councillor to the Barcelona City Council as a member of the Catalan socialist party PSC. He was chosen to preside over the Area of Public Health.
In 1987 he was named councillor of the district of Ciutat Vella. Here he pushed forward the regeneration of the historic heart of Barcelona, following a global project which combined urban intervention, economic and social changes, and improvement of facilities, both cultural and service, to open up the district and improve the quality of life of the residents.
Four years later, in 1991, he was made second deputy mayor, with direct responsibility for Organisation, Economy and Inland Revenue. He put in motion a major re-organisation of the economic and financial structure of the city council, to achieve a budget equilibrium, and, at the same time, a programme of consistent investment for new projects, in the post-Olympics period.
The focal points of Joan Clos as Mayor of Barcelona are:
- Quality of life and welfare for its citizens . With the neo-industrial future of the city defined, and the construction of the basic infrastructure needs for Barcelona begun, the priority of the Mayor is to improve the general quality of life. The dynamic economy is a guarantee of the constant creation of jobs and of the increase in range and depth of services, which makes Barcelona a city of opportunities for all, and for all ages.
- Co-existence and public-spirited behaviour . The success of Barcelona as a city – which includes its attraction for tourists — must not interfere in the quality of everyday life of those who live in the city. A characteristic of Barcelona is the number of people who use public spaces, and it is necessary to ensure that the equilibrium of co-existence is not upset. Barcelona must continue to be an intense city, friendly, variable and multiple, rich in opportunities for both residents and visitors. Above all, it must be a city where public-spirited behaviour establishes the ground rules, and social cohesion is a reality lived every day.
- Answer to challenges of the globalised world . The integration of immigration and the improvement in education to stimulate cohesion are two of the challenges Barcelona must face to be consolidated as a city of opportunities. It is important to strengthen culture as part of its identity, its own culture and that from elsewhere, with special attention to Catalan language and culture, for which Barcelona is the capital.
Joan Clos wants a cohesive, open, strong city, sure of its position in the world. A public-spirited city, committed to peace. A city, above all, where everybody can develop as a person, and where they have all the necessary support to move forward. A city where being happy is not a utopian dream..
|- style="text-align: center;"
| |
|
|---|---|
| ... · Bartomeu Robert i Yarzábal · ... · Manuel Rius i Rius · Antoni Martínez i Domingo · Lluís Duran i Ventosa · Juan José Rocha i García · Manuel Morales i Pareja · Antoni Martínez i Domingo · Ferran Fabra i Puig · Josep Banqué i Feliu · Fernando Álvarez de la Campa · Dàrius Romeu i Freixa · Joan Antoni Güell i López · Jaume Aiguader i Miró · Carles Pi i Sunyer · Josep Martínez i Herrero · Joan Pich i Pon · Francesc Jaumar i de Bofarull · Ramon Coll i Rodés · Carles Pi i Sunyer · Hilari Salvadó i Castell · Víctor Felipe Martínez · Miquel Mateu i Pla · Josep M. Albert i Despujol · Antoni M. Simarro i Puig · Josep Maria de Porcioles i Colomer · Enric Massó i Vázquez · Joaquim Viola i Sauret · Josep M. Socias i Humbert · Manuel Font i Altaba · Narcís Serra i Serra · Pasqual Maragall i Mira · Joan Clos i Matheu | |
External links
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.