Ana Botella
inaugurated
the Cities’ Forum
An open and dynamic space for debating the future of cities
Ana Botella, the mayor of Madrid inaugura-
ted last 11 June the “Cities’ Forum”, a space
sponsored by FCC Aqualia and FCC Me-
dio Ambiente to showcase the most inno-
vative corporate initiatives. The mayor was
accompanied by Eduardo González and
Félix Parra, chairman and managing direc-
tor, respectively of FCC Aqualia. FCC Medio
Ambiente was represented by its managing
director Jordi Payet.
“Making progress in environment-related is-
sues is essential in order to achieve a more
competitive economy and sustainable deve-
lopment model”, the mayor of Madrid said at
the inauguration of the Forum.
FCC Aqualia participated in the round-table
discussion entitled “Cities, entrepreneurship,
and innovation” with May Escobar, the coor-
dinator of the Spanish Network of Smart Ci-
ties (RECI, Spanish acronym) acting as the
moderator.
Antonio Pousa, the director of the Studies
Department of FCC Medio Ambient partici-
pated in the “City, waste management and
recycling” round-table discussion.
In this context, FCC Aqualia and FCC Medio
Ambiente are committed to a new manage-
ment model as demanded by citizens as well
as by the administrations. The two compa-
nies, leaders in their sector, offer synergies in
a large catalogue of citizen services.
At the end of the seminar, Pedro Rodríguez,
the manager of FCC Aqualia’s Corporate
Development department, participated in
A moment during the inauguration ceremony. From left to right: José María Álvarez del Manzano,
chairman of IFEMA; Félix Parra, managing director of FCC Aqualia; Eduardo González, chairman of
FCC Energía; Ana Botella, mayor of Madrid, Jordi Payet, managing director of FCC Medio Ambiente,
and Jesús Medina, manager of FCC Medio Ambiente’s Zone III.
Pedro Rodríguez, manager of FCC Aqualia’s
Corporate Development, during his speech at
the round-table discussion.
the debate “Cities, entrepreneurship and in-
novation”, mentioning the increasing impor-
tance of cities and how, because of this cir-
cumstance, it is necessary to reflect on the
role of the various administrations. He also
mentioned that competing to attract talent
will mean that it will be necessary to promote
non-conventional capabilities, more focused
on the quality of life and sustainability rather
than merely on economic development.
Lastly, he mentioned the importance of the
investment in infrastructures which, he said,
“means more resources and I don’t think
that this is the time to talk about the savings
for citizens, which should not be the key
point when talking about smart cities. If we
earmark resources now, it is possible that in
the future we may be able to save on water,
electricity, etc.”
