The director-general for External Action of the Regional Government of Extremadura, Pablo Hurtado, opened the Carlos V European Award – Angela Merkel Doctoral Seminar of Multidisciplinary Studies on Contemporary Europe, entitled “The Fortune of Being United: Securing and Strengthening Europe’s Cohesion”, which is taking place from today until Thursday at the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Yuste. The event is organised by the European and Ibero-American Academy of Yuste Foundation. (23/06/2025)

During his address, the director-general defended European cohesion “as the foundation upon which Europe can build its competitiveness and sovereignty in an increasingly fragmented world”.

He also highlighted the “pro-European vocation” of the eighteen researchers selected for a European research and mobility grant in multidisciplinary studies, as they share a common goal: “to reflect on Europe and to project Europe, in order to redefine Europe”, he stated.

For Hurtado, the doctoral seminar is a space for reflection and research, “for honest dialogue, bold thinking and shared knowledge”, bringing together young doctoral students from different countries and becoming a clear testimony to “unity in diversity”.

During the opening ceremony, the director of Yuste Foundation, Juan Carlos Moreno, also took the floor. He read a message sent by former chancellor and 2021 Carlos V European Award laureate Angela Merkel, in which she affirms that European cohesion remains essential in the face of international threats and crisis hotspots. In Merkel’s view, Russia’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine and the armed conflicts in the Middle East “pose unprecedented challenges that can only be tackled effectively if Europe stands united, as opportunities and advantages multiply when working together”.

In her letter, Angela Merkel highlighted the thematic diversity of the papers presented at the doctoral seminar, covering issues such as cohesion law, pandemic prevention, asylum law, climate protection and digitalisation, as a “valuable contribution because they propose common European solutions to current challenges”.

Regarding the topics of the papers to be presented, Jean Monnet Chair “ad personam” and co-director of the Doctoral Seminar, professor Teresa Freixes, stated that they examine subjects relevant to the current geopolitical context, such as freedom of movement in the process of European integration, the relationship between cohesion and the parliamentary system, the verification of democratic cohesion, the media and institutional trust, among others. Professor Freixes also stressed the international and multidisciplinary nature of the panel of experts, who come from various universities and research centres.

To conclude, professor Jürgen Elvert, Jean Monnet Chair of European History at the University of Cologne, recalled that in her acceptance speech for the Carlos V European Award, Angela Merkel expressed her wish “to build a sovereign and effective Europe capable of upholding our values in the world, for they are the foundation of our credibility and what allows us to exert real influence on other countries”.

The Doctoral Seminar brings together eighteen researchers from Cuba, Spain, Bulgaria and Malaysia, as well as experts from Germany, Belgium, Spain, France, Italy, Serbia, Belgium and Peru, who will now become part of Yuste’s Euro-Ibero-American Alumni Network. This Network aims to facilitate the exchange of projects and information among researchers specialising in European affairs who have been awarded one of the Carlos V European Award Grants. To date, more than 100 researchers have benefited from these grants, and are now working in leading universities, institutions and research centres across various countries, including Germany, Belgium, Brazil, Cyprus, Cuba, Spain, France, Italy, Mexico, Morocco, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and Russia.

The Doctoral Seminar is supported by the Regional Government of Extremadura, the Provincial Councils of Cáceres and Badajoz, Patrimonio Nacional, the University of Extremadura, and the European Parliament Liaison Office in Spain.

Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel.

The European and Ibero-American Academy of Yuste Foundation has organized the Carlos V European Award Doctoral Seminar on Multidisciplinary Studies on Contemporary Europe–Angela Merkel, entitled “The Fortune of Being United: Securing and Strengthening Europe’s Cohesion”, which will bring together eighteen researchers from Cuba, Spain, Bulgaria, and Malaysia, as well as experts from Germany, Belgium, Spain, France, Italy, Serbia, Belgium, and Peru, from June 23 to 26, at the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Yuste. (18/06/2025)

The objective of this meeting is to analyse and debate this fundamental policy in the European Union integration process, to study its economic impact, and its social and territorial dimensions. Subsequently, the papers presented will be published in the “Cuadernos de Yuste” book collection, edited by Yuste Foundation.

Some of the topics to be presented at the doctoral seminar include: the impact of cohesion policy on the legitimacy of the European Union and on freedom of movement in the integration process; how public healthcare systems are preparing to face future pandemics; and the European Union’s cooperation process with third countries on immigration issues.

The seminar programme is enriched by contributions from various professors and experts such as Franco Panciera, head of Public and Institutional Relations at the European Parliament Office in Spain; Jürgen Elvert, Jean Monnet Chair of European History at the University of Cologne; Enrique Moradiellos, professor of Contemporary History at the University of Extremadura and member of the European and Ibero-American Academy of Yuste; Bettina Steible, professor of Public Law at the Open University of Catalonia and member of Yuste’s Euro-Ibero-American Alumni Network; and Éric Bussière, Jean Monnet Chair of European Integration at Sorbonne University Paris IV (France), among others.

The selected researchers become part of Yuste’s Euro-Ibero-American Alumni Network, which aims to facilitate the exchange of projects and information among researchers specialising in European topics who have been awarded one of the Carlos V European Award Grants. To date, more than 100 researchers have benefited from these grants, and they are now affiliated with leading universities, institutions, and research centres in countries such as Germany, Belgium, Brazil, Cyprus, Cuba, Spain, France, Italy, Mexico, Morocco, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and Russia.

The Doctoral Seminar is held in collaboration with the Regional Government of Extremadura, the Provincial Councils of Cáceres and Badajoz, Patrimonio Nacional, the University of Extremadura, and the European Parliament Office in Spain.

Research and Mobility Grants for European Studies

The Carlos V European Award includes the granting of Doctoral Research and Mobility Grants for European Studies, aimed at researchers who are working on a doctoral thesis related to the history, memory, and integration of Europe. These studies must align with the topic chosen by the awardee of each edition and adopt a multidisciplinary approach.

The topic of these grants is adapted in each edition to the curriculum of the awardee, and on this occasion the focus is on cohesion policy as a fundamental pillar for promoting balanced development and fostering solidarity for the stability and advancement of European integration.

Each scholarship has an individual endowment of €2,500, which serves to finance study and research, mobility to carry out said research, and the preparation of the contributions that must be presented within the framework of the Carlos V European Award Doctoral Seminar on Multidisciplinary Studies on Contemporary Europe taking place at the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Yuste; the preparation of the research papers within the framework of the call, which will later be published in a joint volume by the Yuste Foundation; the mobility of the researchers in order to participate in the seminar; and, finally, to attend the presentation of the publication.

 Angela Merkel, Carlos V European Award 2021

The jury of the 14^th edition of the Carlos V European Award, granted by the European and Ibero-American Academy of Yuste Foundation, awarded the prize to former German chancellor Angela Merkel “in recognition of her long political career in the service of Europe, having been a strong supporter of the European integration process and of the important strategic role of Europe in the international scene”.

The former chancellor publicly announced the chosen topic “The Fortune of Being United: Securing and Strengthening Europe’s Cohesion” during her speech at the Monastery of Yuste, urging the continued safeguarding and strengthening of Europe’s cohesion — “a fortune that we must preserve and continue to shape”, she stated.

At that time, she also expressed great curiosity and said she was “eager” to see the work presented by the grant recipients, as she stated her “deep conviction that Europe is a stroke of good fortune for all of us — a fortune that we can, but also must, preserve and shape. This is a responsibility we should be aware of every day”, she concluded.

On 21 June at 1:00 p.m., the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Yuste will host a concert by the string quartet Goldberg. It is a unique opportunity to enjoy classical music in a historic setting awarded the European Heritage Label. (16/06/2025)

The quartet’s programme invites the audience on an immersive journey through Italy’s rich heritage, combining music by composers such as Boccherini, Puccini and Verdi with texts by Leopardi, Angiolieri and Palazzeschi. The experience is further enriched by images of Italian landscapes and scenes drawn from the world of painting, creating a multisensory atmosphere. The aim is to turn the string quartet into a true window onto Italy, allowing the audience to explore its culture, history and beauty through art.

This concert forms part of the activities organised within the framework of the European Heritage Label, an initiative of the European Union that seeks to bring the EU’s motto —United in diversity— to life through cultural heritage. It is supported by the MERITA Platform, which promotes the visibility and mobility of European string quartets in emblematic sites of European cultural heritage. The platform is committed to the sustainability of the music sector, cultural participation, the dissemination of European heritage, and the strengthening of ties between local and European cultures. Funded by the European Union.

The concert programme is available for consultation and download at: https://www.fundacionyuste.org/en/concert-by-cuartetto-goldberg/

Admission is free until full capacity is reached.

More than 300 students from thirteen countries have applied for the 120 grants offered through the Campus Yuste training programme, organised by the European and Ibero-American Academy of Yuste Foundation. Applicants come from Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Spain, the United States, Italy, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, Portugal, the Dominican Republic, and Uruguay. (27/05/2025)

The courses that offer 30 grant each are the following: “40 Years Since Spain Joined the European Economic Community”, taking place from 2 to 4 July; “Preparing Spain’s Transition”, from 9 to 11 July; “The New World Order and the Atlantic Axis”, from 16 to 18 July; and finally, “Health, Illness, and Nutrition During the Reign of Charles V”, from 23 to 25 July. Grants will be awarded through a competitive selection process.

These grants cover the cost of tuition as well as accommodation and meals, with the aim of enabling the participation of university students, researchers, experts, and professionals interested in the Campus Yuste courses. The sessions will be held at the Monastery of San Jerónimo de Yuste this coming July.

The Campus Yuste courses, part of the 26th edition of the University of Extremadura’s International Summer-Autumn Courses, are organised in collaboration with the Regional Government of Extremadura, the University of Extremadura, Patrimonio Nacional, Mafresa, the Provincial Council of Cáceres, and the Provincial Council of Badajoz.

Additionally, Yuste Foundation offers the possibility of attending the Campus Yuste courses in person without a grant. Those interested should send an email to: campusyuste@fundacionyuste.org, stating their full name and the title of the course they wish to attend. Places for this option are limited.

The courses are also available online. To register, participants must complete the following form: https://forms.gle/iJuoxzgy9SVAxVsv9

Yuste Foundation will issue a certificate of attendance for both of these latter options.

The Yuste European and Ibero-American Academy Foundation continues its efforts to foster forums for dialogue and debate on the relations between Latin America, the Caribbean, and Europe. To this end, it has organised the 6^th International Congress on Relations between Latin America, the Caribbean, and Europe at the Andean University of Cusco in Peru. This year’s topic is “Sustainability and Human Rights: Progress in the Euro-Latin American Space” (22/05/2024).

At this forum, topics such as public space as a fundamental right in Peru, sustainability and urban planning in the Euro-Latin American space, human rights and indigenous peoples in the inter-American human rights system, and the Inter-American Democratic Charter were discussed.

The aim of these congresses is to reflect on the interactions between America and Europe over the past five centuries. They seek to prioritise research studying this relationship, which has shaped a historical reality in both regions, evidenced by a shared cultural and material heritage. Moreover, they aim to enhance debate between the two regions, particularly emphasising the participation of young researchers in the fields of international relations and the history of Ibero-America as an area of deep connections between the two regions.

Speakers at the congress included the rector of the Andean University of Cusco, Di Yanira Bravo Gonzales; the regional vice-governor of Cusco, Noely Esmeralda Loiza Livano; the councilor of the Provincial Municipality of Cusco, Maryori Ximena Ríos García; the dean of the Faculty of Law and Political Science of the Andean University of Cusco, Uriel Balladares Aparicio; and the director of the Bartolomé de las Casas Centre of Cusco, Carlos Herz Saenz.

Other participants included Peruvian professor Juan Cosío Muñoz; Peruvian diplomat Germán Vera Esquivel; University of Granada professor Karen Añaños Bedriñana; the congress director Cástor Díaz Barrado; and the congress coordinators: Doctor Sagrario Morán Blanco from Rey Juan Carlos University in Madrid, José Hildebrando Díaz Torres, professor and director of the library and university publishing house at the Andean University of Cusco, and Juan Carlos Moreno, director of Yuste Foundation.

This congress, organised by Yuste Foundation, the Andean University of Cusco, and the Bartolomé de las Casas Centre in Cusco, Peru, was held with the collaboration of the Research Centre for Ibero-American Studies at Rey Juan Carlos University (CEIB) and sponsored by the Provincial Council of Badajoz.

This activity is part of the School of Guadalupe, a knowledge and transfer programme launched by Yuste Foundation for reflection and research on History, Law, and International Relations. Its goals include contributing to academic, social, and intellectual development in the region and providing Ibero-American society with tools useful for socio-economic progress, grounded in the historical relations between Ibero-American countries, the current state of these links, and the search for a common future.

OTHER ACTIVITIES

Yuste Foundation has also sought to strengthen ties with Ricardo Palma University in Lima and has signed a letter of intent, endorsed by the director of Yuste Foundation, Juan Carlos Moreno Piñero, and the rector of the university, Félix Romero Revilla.

Additionally, Juan Carlos Moreno gave a talk entitled “A Quick Overview of Europe”, which was attended by notable figures including the metropolitan councillor of Lima, Déborah Inga Zapata, and the minister-counsellor of the Spanish Embassy in Peru, Concepción Figuerola Santos, and the president of the Association of Universities of Peru, Lida Asencios.

Likewise, Moreno Piñero participated in the “International Discussion on Yuste Foundation and Europe-Latin America Relations”, which was held at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru (PUCP) with Social Sciences professor and Yuste Alumni Network member, Dr. Mayte Anais Dongo Sueiro.