osé Miguel Soriano del Castillo is full professor of the Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health at the Universitat de València where he gives lessons of Nutrition in emergency situations. He is also director of the University Clinic of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Physiotherapy of the Lluís Alcanyís Foundation, the Gastrolab of the Institute of Material Science and the Food&HealthLab of the VLC/CAMPUS International Campus of Excellence; and co-director, together with doctor Merino Torres, of the Mixed Research Unit on Endocrinology, Nutrition and Clinical Dietetics of the Universitat de València-Institute of Health Research La Fe.

The election of Professor Soriano del Castillo took place in the VI General Assembly of REEDES, organiser of the main Spanish University Cooperation Congress. Titled  ‘La Universidad y los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible (ODS)’ (The University and the sustainable development objectives), the congress had the support of the Universitat de València through the attendance of researchers and students that introduced the recent works carried out in matters of development cooperation and sustainable development objectives. The Vice-principal of International Relations and Cooperation, Guillermo Palao, and the manager of the General Foundation of the Universitat de València, Cristóbal Suria, also participated in this event.

Among the presentations given by the Universitat, which described for the first time experiences in Latin America, Asia and Africa, were emphasised two of strategic interest in the cooperation area: the workshop Universidad-Ciudad-ODS and a cooperation project 0,7 for the training of teachers of Colombia to give lessons to primary students mathematically gifted. 

Regarding the presentation of the posters, it was possible to know the field studies of the nutritional evaluation in India; the use of documentaries in the integration of the education for the global citizenship; the inclusion of health education in the promotion of eating habits in the Kechwas community in the north of Peru; the study of the knowledge about sexual health and HIV in teenagers of San Pedro de Macoris in the Dominican Republic; the strengthening of the scientific cooperation between Spain and Cuba; training, research and dissemination project about the water quality of León (Nicaragua); the dialogue for the strengthening of the Valencian cooperation for the development with the local entities; and the new project of the sustainable development objectives addressed to the society (ODS2).

The development cooperation is a clear commitment of the Universitat de València because of the budget set aside for and the initiatives that implement by the programme 0,7 Una Nau de Solidaritat. Furthermore, it has been organised the next Congress of REEDES at a national level that will be held at the Universitat in January 2018.