MADRID IS INTERNATIONAL

Last December 18, a delegation from the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities (CLRA) belonging to the Council of Europe was received by the Madrid City Council in Madrid Rio. The institution is responsible for strengthening local and regional democracy in the 46 member states and evaluating the enactment of the European Charter of Local Self-Government. The institution acts as the voice of the municipalities and regions of Europe and works to promote consultation and political dialogue between national governments and local and regional authorities, through cooperation with the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe.

The delegation was led by Mr. José Benlloch, mayor of Villarreal and President of the Spanish delegation to the CLRA of the Council of Europe. Also attending were Mr. Jean-Paul Bastin, Mayor of the city of Malmedy (Belgium); Mr. Christian Debève, Regional Councilor of the Grand Est region (France); the urban architect D. Etienne Schillers; and Ms. Maren Lambrecht-Feigl, Secretary of the CLRA Current Affairs Commission.

They were received at the Madrid Río Interpretation Center, by Ms. Nieves Vicente, Director of the Manzanares Linear Park and Mr. Ricardo Iglesias, Head of External Relations Service of the Madrid City Council, organizer of the meeting.

During the visit to Madrid Río, Mr. Fernando Porras, architect designer of the project, explained the phases of the Madrid Rio works. The delegation was also interested in the climatic aspects, since they are currently preparing a paper on “Local and regional responses to major crisis situations”. Later, the delegation walked through Madrid Río till the Perrault bridge and saw first-hand the improvements carried out in the park.