Miquel A. Pericàs, Director of the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST) and of the Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ) is part of the collaboration to turn Tarragona’s Banc d’Espanya into a knowledge-dissemination centre.
Miquel A. Pericàs, Director of the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST) and of the Institute of Chemical Research of Catalonia (ICIQ) is part of the collaboration to turn Tarragona’s Banc d’Espanya into a knowledge-dissemination centre.Tarragona’s Banc d’Espanya, an architectural landmark in the heart of the city, will soon become a knowledge-dissemination centre. Francesc Roca, Tarragona’s councillor for Education, Employment and Economic Development, announced it this week in a press conference. ICIQ, one of the BIST centres, among the three main research institutes of Tarragona (ICIQ, IPHES and ICAC) collaborating in this ambitious project. The Directors of the three institutes (Miquel A. Pericàs of ICIQ, Robert Sala of IPHES, and Joan Gómez-Pallarés of ICAC) will provide content and materials, as well as act as advisors during the whole creation process.
The new space will be an interactive centre, not a conventional museum, to share the excellent research carried out in Tarragona. Prof. Miquel A. Pericàs, ICIQ Director, imagines ‘a space with hands-on laboratories, exhibitions, an auditorium, and of course a café as the main meeting-point for citizens.’ Prof. Pericàs expects the new centre to be ‘an innovative space, an experience hub that will become an inspirational model.’
The Banc d’Espanya was built in 1928 by architect Joan de Zavala Lafora and it’s currently considered historic heritage of the city and an asset of cultural interest by the Catalan Government. Its more than 2800 square meters have been empty since late 2013, but now Tarragona’s City Council has set aside €300.000 of this year’s budget for this new, challenging project.
More information on the ICIQ website.