The congress aims to share knowledge about the relationship between Communication and Diversity with the objective of establishing a diagnosis of the current situation and presenting public policies proposals on this domain, which is crucial on the Spanish and European reality and on the international cooperation, especially on the Ibero-American and Mediterranean cultures.

The term Diversity was coined by the UNESCO and universally ratified thanks to the massive sign of the United States and the European Union itself in the 2005 Convention. In this lustrum, it has become the main focus of communication and culture and of the public policies, national and international ones, on these fields.

Thus, not only is diversity closely linked to democracy and citizen participation, but also to sustainable economic development and creativity and the innovation of societies. And it is understood not only for the majorities, but also for the support and diversity of the minorities (ethnic groups, genders, cultures, languages), on a multilateral and global scale, as an essential dialogue amongst societies, their cultures and their creativity, through social communication.

How this diversity is displayed in the media, communication technologies and cultural industries will be one of the priorities of the debates that will take place during the three-day Congress. This is vital at a time when multimedia convergence, digital transformation and globalisation constitute the present of communication processes at all levels.

The inauguration will take place on Wednesday the 28th of October at 9:30 am in the assembly hall of the Universitat de València, and will count on the presence of the principal of the Universitat de València, María Vicenta Mestre; the general secretary of the Official School of Languages (EOI), Mariano Jabonero; representatives of the Valencian public administrations, such as the Valencian government, the Provincial Council of Valencia and the Valencia City Council; and the president of the AE-IC, Enrique Bustamante, and the president of the Organiser Committee, Miquel Francés. The ceremony will include the tributes to the researchers Néstor García Canclini, Margarita Ledo y Ramón Zallo in recognition of their work and research on culture, diversity and public communication policies.

The three-day agenda will be carried out through plenary sessions focused on democracy, development and creativity; several parallel sessions and numerous communication sessions where academics and experts from all over the world will present their latest research. Amongst other, are expected to participate: Emili Prado, from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; Tristan Mattelart, from the University of Paris II; Immacolata Vasallo de Lopes, from the University of Sao Paulo; Miquel de Moragas, from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona as well; Divina Frau-Meigs, from the University Sorbonne Nouvelle-Paris 3; Marianne Kneuer, from the University of Hildesheim; Guillermo Orozco, from the University of Guadalajara; Javier Marzal, from the Universitat Jaume I de Castellón (UJI); Lorna Chacón, from the University of Costa Rica; Claudia Mellado, Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso; Carmen Peñafiel, from the University of the Basque Country (EHU); Mª Trinidad García Leiva, from the University Carlos III of Madrid; and Carolina Moreno, from the Universitat de València.

In addition, some special panels and webinars have been prepared in order to interpret the indexes of impact and quality on the communication publications. Carlos Closa, from the Spanish State Research Agency, and Tomàs Baiget, from the scientific journal El profesional de la información (EPI), will take part in the event, amongst others. The different meetings of the sections and Work Groups of the AE-IC will be carried out too, as well as an Ordinary Assembly and an Extraordinary one on Friday the 30^th of October in which it is expected to hold elections within the organisation.

The closing ceremony will take place on Friday the 30th of October at 6:30 pm in the assembly hall of the Universitat de València, and it will count on the attendance of Amparo Ricós, dean of the Faculty of Philology, Translation and Communication, of the president of the AE-IC and the one of the Organiser Committee. The inauguration, as well as the closing ceremony, can be followed live via streaming.

Amongst the supplementary activities that will be held in parallel with the Congress we can find the TVMorfosis/CONTD (Contents for Digital Television) conferences, which celebrate their XIII edition in Valencia. The thematic axis of this year is Audiovisual communication in times of pandemic. TVMorfosis is an initiative of the Asociación de Televisiones Educativas Iberoamericanas (ATEI) that has a different format from the classic conferences or congresses. It is an audiovisual format where several live programmes led by experts on the communicative domain are combined.

Amongst many other participants, the Congress will count on Gabriel Torres, president of ATEI; Carlos Scolari, from Pompeu Fabra University (Barcelona); Alejandro Piscitelli, from the University of Buenos Aires; Alfred Costa, César Martí y Raquel Ejerique, from the Valencian public television À Punt; Martha Blanco, from the TV channel Antena 3; Alberto Rodríguez, from the University of Mar de Plata; Edorta Arana, from the Basque broadcaster EiTB; Armando Casas, from the Canal 22 (Mexico); Patricia Corredor, from the University Carlos III of Madrid; Guillermo López, from the Universitat de València; Francisco Javier González, from RTVE, an Spanish broadcaster; and Marta Cerame, from the Agencia EFE TV, a Spanish news agency.

TVMorfosis/CONTD conferences will be closed, as usual, with the pitch session, a presentation of the audiovisual projects done by the students of the last edition of the Master’s Degree in Audiovisual Contents and Formats of the Universitat de València, which will be assessed by a panel of experts from the main Spanish and Ibero-American televisions. The event will also be used to hold a meeting of the Board of Directors of ATEI.

To guarantee the safety of the participants and the different activities attendees, and taking into account the limited capacity of the halls due to the COVID-19 situation, the AE-IC International Congress has prepared a videoconference system apart from the classic presence-based modality. It will be possible, therefore, to participate and attend virtually for the first time.

VII International Congress AE-IC: https://aeicvalencia2020.org/

TVMorfosis/CONTD Conferences: https://tvmorfosis.com/en/