The opening ceremony was in charge of the UV Vice-principal for Territorial Projection and Society, Jorge Hermosilla; the Regional Secretary of Employment, Enric Nomdedéu; and the Executive Manager of Employment and Education, Rocío Briones.

Nomdedéu expressed the necessity to “work rigorously to include the territorial aspect in the creation and implementation of employment policies”. He assured that in 2019 Labora will finance the creation of specific strategies for each Territorial Agreement. They will count with the technical support and the coordination of the Universitat de València, the Universitat Jaume I de Castelló and the Universitat d'Alacant.

Nomdedéu agreed with Briones in the necessity of promoting the programme «Avalem Territori» that the platform Labora started in 2017. It is a project, which is coordinated by the Universitat de València, aiming to adequate the employment policies to the territorial reality of the Valencian Community. The Universitat Jaume I de Castelló (UJI) and the Universitat d'Alacant (UA) collaborate in the programme. This programme was first focused on finding the Valencian necessities and singularities, as well as promoting innovative and experimental projects. “It is unprecedented. It allows us to obtain systematic and detailed information of the characteristics of the labour market in all the Valencian towns,” explained Rocío Briones.

Jorge Hermosilla highlighted the importance of institutional cooperation and the establishment of strategic alliances: “the only way of creating «intelligent territories» is together. Only by means of cooperation we will improve the quality of life in our region”.

Representatives of the three universities that are responsible of the project «Avalem territori» were present at the event. The UV Vice-principal for Teaching Staff and Academic Planning, Ernest Cano; and the professors of the UV Department of Applied Economics, Josep Vicent Pitxer and Juan Ramón Gallego, were present at the event. Ernest Cano focused on analysing the experimental projects as a tool of the Valencian employment policies.

The social involvement, the strategic leadership in the labour market or the measures in the territory by means of experimental projects were discussed in several panels of discussion. Vicente Budí (UJI), Núria Grané (Vice-principal of the UA) and José Miguel Giner (UA) represented the other universities that collaborate in the project. The Secretaries for Employment of the CEV (Miguel Ángel Javaloyes), CCOO (Ana García), UGT-PV (Pilar Mora) and Federació Adlypse (Pepe Mazón) were present at the panels of discussion. Móncia Bou (Pacte La Plana Baixa), Rosa Fernández (Pacte Convega), Maria José Tortosa (Pacte La costanera-Canal), Román Sánchez (Pacte Maestrat-Litoral) and Javier González (Fundació València Activa) represented the territorial treaties.