Universitat de València, through Chair for a Sustainable Economic Model of Valencia and its Surroundings (MESVAL), has reinforced its role as a referent in the social training in emergencies within the municipal plan València + Segura. This initiative, developed together with Valencia City Council, aims to instruct citizenship on how to act effectively and coordinately when critical situations such as flooding, fires and power outages.
The project is officially presented by Principal M. Vicenta Mestre and directed by professor José Manuel Pastor. The project originates from the recommendations of the committee in charge of the recovery after the DANA. The Universitat de València and the council have designed a comprehensive programme that has encouraged self-protection and social co-responsibility in the face of emergencies. Its main objective was to promote self-protection and co-responsibility, in order that citizenship know how to act before and after an emergency. With an inclusive approach, the plan has adapted its content to different groups and it has put special attention to minors, elder people and people with disabilities.
To date, the MESVAL Chair has carried out training activities in more than 500 centres, neighbourhood associations and community spaces. The programme will extend to 538 school centres, 70 neighbourhood associations, 51 elder centres, 20 associations of people with disabilities, 31 headquarters of the Universidad Popular, 15 headman municipalities and 6 day centres. Furthermore, 40 information stands have been placed in different parts of the city. In these stands, professional teams and university volunteers have guided citizens on how to act in emergency situations. More than 100 volunteers, including teachers, firefighters, police and university students have taken part.
More than 200 teacher have received specific emergency training within the València + Segura plan. Once trained, professionals have included these contents into their lessons, helping students to know how to protect themselves and how to response to different types of emergencies.
During the summer and autumn months, the Chair for MESVAL, has acted directly in some districts, prioritising the ones that were more affected by the 2024 flooding, such as La Torre. In these areas, students from the Faculty of Economics, coordinated by Rocío Navarro and Gloria Aronson, have accompanied citizens in practical sessions on how to act in different types of emergencies, what to include in an emergency kit, and how to interpret official alerts.
The plan is organized around three strategic objectives that promote communitarian coresposibility, the reduction of pressure on emergency services and resilience after disasters.
With a municipal grant of €60,000, Chair for MESVAL, conducts complementary researches on economic and social sustainability linked to the impact of extreme weather events. In this way, the University of Valencia consolidates its commitment to the city by offering knowledge, training and social support in the face of the challenges posed by climate change.
