Students, professors and colleagues from Full Professor of Urbanism of the University of Navarra Carlos Martínez Caro accompanied the professor in the tribute paid to him by the University of Navarra. School of Architecture. In a statement, he said that in his classes he has always tried to train "architects for the city, who take into account the needs and tastes of people".

Carlos Martínez Caro graduated in 1955 in Madrid and in 1968 he obtained the Chair degree in urban planning at the University of Seville. In 1970 he was appointed director of the department of Urbanism of the technical school of Architecture of the University of Navarra, which he directed until 1995. After 30 years of teaching, he understands urban planning as "the introduction of order in the city, based on certain priorities and always at the service of society".

This architect has directed many urban plans for Spanish cities; the last one, that of Guadalajara in 1999. "I am meeting especially satisfied with two plans: that of La Carolina and that of Olite. The population of Navarre had not grown outside its walls since the 12th century until 1950. At that date it began to develop, so it had to be allowed to grow, but in an orderly fashion. "There was the challenge to preserve its medieval flavor, a goal that I think we achieved".

In his opinion, nowadays citizens are asking for "the city as always, that is, a city where they can live comfortably, where there are good communications, beautiful landscapes, places to rest, etc. Faced with the problems of modern society - greater distances, noise, less time, etc. - urban planners must continue to offer orderly solutions, such as parking lots, leisure centers, etc.".

At the tribute ceremony, several of Professor Martínez Caro's colleagues outlined some of the features of his personality and professional work. Alfonso Vergara, a disciple of Martínez Caro and president of the Taller de Ideas and the Metrópoli Foundation, from which he recently developed the Eco-city of Sarriguren for Navarra, stressed that "he learned from him that architects have the responsibility to actively intervene in the construction of the city and the territory".

Professor Vergara referred to the concept of city-region, so present in urban planning today, which was analyzed by Martínez Caro several years ago. "At no time in the history of mankind," he said, "have large cities been transformed with the current intensity. Professor Vergara pointed out that perhaps one of the most interesting contributions of the honored professor was "the broad and open vision of urban planning and the accurate vision of the different scales of the territory.

For his part, Manuel Ribas, Professor Emeritus of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, stressed that in the thinking of Professor Martínez Caro "the city not only emerges as a machine for inhabiting, but also as a work of art. In his opinion, the veteran architect has been able to fulfill the goal of every urban planner, which is "not to dazzle or dazzle, but to serve our contemporaries". "We devise, project and build the best possible world through the use of space, for the progress and enjoyment of the people."

José Mª Ordeig, who took over from Professor Martínez Caro at the head of department of Urban Planning at the ETS of Architecture of the University of Navarra, where he is still director, pointed out that "Carlos Martínez Caro represents a flag in Spanish urban planning that has never been lowered". He also emphasized that "in the face of syncretist postures, he has maintained the prominence of architectural conditions in urban planning".

Finally, the School's director , Juan Miguel Otxotorena, presented Professor Martínez Caro with a tribute book, which under the title degree scroll "Forma urbis", contains seventeen programs of study made expressly for the occasion by researchers and urban planners from Spain, Italy and England.

The ceremony was closed by Luis Herrera, Vice President of the University of Navarra, who emphasized the spirit of service and appreciation for the University of Navarra and for Navarra that lies discreetly behind the thirty years of uninterrupted trips from Madrid to Pamplona to exercise the teaching of which Professor Martínez Caro has been the protagonist.