"The university plays an unquestionable leadership role in subject of research, but it is true that there are still avenues for improvement pending," said the president of the Government of Navarra, Uxue Barkos, at the opening ceremony of the XXIII conference of research of Spanish Universities.

The conference, which will take place on December 10 and 11 at the Baluarte Auditorium in Pamplona, are jointly organized by the Sectorial Commission of research and development+I of Crue Spanish Universities, the Public University of Navarra and the University of Navarra.

Uxue Barkos has declared that it is "everyone's responsibility" to encourage openness and improve communication between universities and public administrations, business and private non-profit entities. To this end, she has insisted on the joint work of university managers and the administration.

"It is equally necessary to proceed to a greater internationalization of the university research ," said the president of the Autonomous Community, although "not only in relation to the promotion and knowledge dissemination of research activity, but also in the search for funding".

For his part, the president of the Sectorial Commission of research and development+i of Crue Spanish Universities and President of the University of Cantabria, José Carlos Gómez Sal, commented that the sectorial is an "example" of what the new Crue aspires to, where no distinction is made between public and private universities, but rather between "good and not good".

"There is no real university without research"

Alfonso Sánchez-Tabernero, President of the University of Navarra, explained that public policy "must not only be to invest more, but to invest better", which implies "linking public effort, which comes from private pockets, from the taxes that the State collects, to the achievement of results".

Alfonso Sánchez-Tabernero assured that in the university environment "the progress of others enhances our own", since there is a "culture of solidarity, where we all rejoice in the successes of others, particularly in the field of research". He stressed the importance of "sharing", as the approaches and perspectives of each university "enrich the Spanish university system".

The President of the University of Navarra has affirmed that "there is no real university without research", as also emphasized the President of the Public University of Navarra, Alfonso Carlosena, who recalled that "the research university accounts for two thirds of the Spanish research ".

Alfonso Carlosena insisted on the "importance" of the forum and pointed out three differential elements: the presence of the president of the region, which he described as "a change in the trend in the treatment of the research in Navarra"; the joint work that the two universities of the autonomous community have made in the organization of the event; and the participation in the conference of people who are dedicated to issues of knowledge dissemination of science.