University brings together more than 150 listed companies to discuss sustainability, technological innovation and regulation

More than 150 representatives of listed companies in Spain participated this Tuesday in the workshop on corporate sustainability co-organized by the association Emisores Españoles and Chapter Zero Spain, of which the University of Navarra is the host in Spain. The meeting addressed in round table format the main strategic challenges of the present and future: geopolitics, decarbonization, artificial intelligence and the new European rules and regulations on sustainability, with the participation of leading experts from the financial, regulatory and technological fields.

The event was addressed by the Vice President for research and Sustainability of the academic center, Paloma Grau, who stressed the urgency of promoting technology transfer in Europe as a driver of economic autonomy and industrial leadership. "Spain ranks 12th in scientific production worldwide. But the challenge is not only to do more research, but also to ensure that this knowledge generates industrial and economic development ," she said. In his speech, Grau stressed that "we have researchers and scientific capacity on a par with powers such as the United States, but the technological innovation developed in Europe ends up being exploited industrially in other countries". He also pointed out that "only 10% of the technologies needed for sustainable Economics are ready to be applied on a large scale today. The remaining 90% depends on investment, talent and public-private partnership . Therefore, the Vice President called for a greater public-private partnership , and greater involvement and investment from the private sector: "Without that partnership, we run the risk of seeing our innovations end up being developed in China or the United States".

She was joined by Albert Andreu, director of the Master's Degree in Sustainability at the University of Navarra, who pointed out that "when we talk about sustainability, we are talking about three aspects: efficiency, competitiveness and economic sustainability in the medium term". Andreu stressed the need to understand sustainability as a transversal axis that affects both the strategy and operations of companies.

The workshop, which took place in the Alumni building on the Madrid campus , was attended by representatives of the CNMV, the team that drafted the European Commission's CSRD Directive, and sustainability and investment managers from some of the country's leading companies. With initiatives such as this, the University of Navarra reaffirms its commitment to promoting an ecosystem of innovation, training and dialogue aimed at the major global challenges.