The first edition of the Athenaeum winter school – Ateneo

The University of Manresa hosted on February 3 and 4, 2026 the first edition of the Winter School of the Network of Cooperative Universities of Catalonia (XAC)which brought together more than a hundred people from the country’s 14 cooperative universities with the aim of taking a step forward in the technical specialization of the teams and strengthening coordination and networking between territories.

The activity also became a place to return and exchange experiences following the formative and inter-cooperation visit that a representative of the XAC had made the previous March in Lizarra, in the Basque Country. In this context, a dozen cooperative members and people who are experts in cooperatives from Euskal Herria participated in the training sessions held in Manresa, contributing their experience and knowledge.

The program addressed several key areas for the activity of cooperative universities, such as the transversal application of the intersectional approach, leadership and team management, cooperative support, transformative communication, the new cooperative laws and methodologies for promoting inter-cooperation. The meeting was supported by the Generalitat de Catalunya and the City Council of Manresaand reinforced the consolidation of the Network of Ateneus Cooperatius de Catalunya, active since 2016.

Gisela del Rey Laguía