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Mission

The Centro de Ciencias de Benasque Pedro Pascual (CCBPP) operates as an advanced research institute located in the heart of the Spanish Pyrenees. The aim of CCBPP is to offer an agreeable atmosphere for professional researchers to meet and carry out their work.

Basically, the CCBPP runs on a proposed topic for a period of time that ranges from one to three weeks. Discussion groups and talks are organized by scientific advisors and by participants themselves. The CCBPP is designed to attract around 160 researchers at a time. Upon request, some collaborating teams are accepted.

The CCBPP offers some basic infrastructure that includes seminar rooms, plenty of blackboards, desk space, a full secretariat service and computer facilities. Participants are encouraged to bring their own notebooks and connect via wifi.

The organization takes care of hosting and maintaining the web for each working sessions. It also centralizes the accommodation of participants. The CCBPP is a non-profit institution entitled to handle any extra funds obtained by organizers.

The center is financially supported by MINECO, CSIC, Gobierno de Aragón, DPH, Ayuntamiento de Benasque and Universidad de Zaragoza.

Further questions can be mailed to info@benasque.org or to the fax number +34-974 55 14 75


History

In this page we give a brief summary of the activities of the center since its foundation in 1994.

Origin

In 1994, the Benasque Center for Physics was created as the result of the effort undertaken by the Spanish physicists Pedro Pascual (Univ. Barcelona, Director), Manuel Asorey (Univ. Zaragoza, coordinator) and José Ignacio Latorre (Univ. Barcelona, coordinator) and the mayor of Benasque, Mr. José Marión, to create an advanced summer institute where researchers could carry out their work in a nice location in the heart of the Spanish Pyrenees. The Center was designed in close but modest analogy to the Aspen Center for Physics, which remains one of the leading centers to attract high quality scientists and trigger collaboration among them.

In contrast to big conferences and workshops, the Center was organized as a place to work. Participants were offe#f56a6a a desk and a computer account. A maximum of two talks per day were scheduled, leaving plenty of time for discussions and individual work. The Center was physically laid out in the former elementary school of the village of Benasque. Classrooms provided desk space, the gymnasium was turned into a computer room and talks were held at the mensa. The secretariat and a larger conference room was located in the Casa de la Cultura, next to the school.

Status

In order to improve and expand the activities of the Benasque Center of Physics, a new institution, with the name Fundación Centro de Ciencias de Benasque (FCCB), was created on July 15, 1999. The act of creation is contained in the public document number 253 in the presence of the Notary of the College of Zaragoza Mr. Javier Santos Lloro. The patrons of the new Institution patrons were the City Council of Benasque, the Diputación General de Aragón, the Diputación Provincial de Huesca and the University of Zaragoza. It is inscribed as a non profit Institution in the Boletín Oficial de Aragón of February 16, 2001. The fiscal identification number of FCCB is CIF G.22217905.

In the first meeting of the board (March 19, 2002), the mayor of Benasque was appointed President and Prof. Pedro Pascual director and manager.

In 2006, the board accepted two new members: the Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia (MEC, that later delegated his dutties in the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación MICINN) and the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC). The new members promoted the construction of a new building, properly designed to host high level meetings. It was also decided to change the name of the center to "Centro de Ciencias de Benasque Pedro Pascual" in honor of Professor Pedro Pascual who passed away later in November. Prof. José Ignacio Latorre was appointed as Director-Gerente and Prof. Manuel Asorey was appointed as Director-Coordinador to run the renewed center. Specific contracts between the center and the administrations were signed to guarantee a minimum financial support to carry all scientific activities.

Inauguration

The new building of the "Centro de Ciencias de Benasque Pedro Pascual" was inaugurated on the 14th of July 2009 by the "Ministra de Ciencia e Innovación" Cristina Garmendia.

Sessions

Until 2022 the center has hosted 265 sessions. The details of the past activity can be found in the previous section of the website.

Participants

The total number of participants attending the 265 ordinary meetings held up to the end of the year 2023 amounts to 16925 from 79 countries. The detailed distribution of participants depending on their home institution country is:

Algeria7
Argentina52
Andorra7
Armenia6
Australia108
Austria478
Belgium217
Brazil151
Bulgaria3
Cameroun2
Canada276
Colombia12
Costa Rica1
Cuba2
Chile63
China204
Croatia47
Cyprus3
Czechoslovakia133
Denmark144
Egypt3
Finland81
France1077
Gambia2
Germany1725
Ghana1
Greece29
Guadalupe1
Guatemala1
Holland284
Hungary58
India66
Indonesia1
Iran16
Iraq1
Ireland42
Israel179
Italy635
Iceland3
Japan200
Kazakhstan10
Luxembourg8
Malaysia2
Malta2
Mexico84
Morocco21
Mongolia1
Nigeria2
Norway26
New Zealand13
Palestine1
Pakistan3
Peru5
Poland225
Portugal129
Puerto Rico2
Romania36
Russia128
Serbia2
Singapore137
Estonia4
Slovakia17
Slovenia10
South Korea111
South Africa14
Spain5949
Sweden160
Switzerland485
Syria1
Taiwan20
Thailand1
Tunisia9
Turkey20
UAE34
United Kingdom1271
USA1634
Uzbekistan1
Ukraine19
Uruguay7


Structure

Patronato de la Fundación Centro de Ciencias de Benasque "Pedro Pascual"

- Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidad
- Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
- Gobierno de Aragón
- Universidad de Zaragoza
- Ayuntamiento de Benasque
- Diputación Provincial de Huesca

Scientific Commettee

- Diego Blas (ICREA/IFAE)
- Luis Martín-Moreno (INMA, Zaragoza)
- Román Orús (DIPC, San Sebastián)
- Antonio Pich (IFIC, Universidad de Valencia-CSIC)

Director - Gerente

- Manuel Asorey (U. Zaragoza)

Director - Coordinador

- José Ignacio Latorre (TII, Abu Dhabi - NUS, Singapore)


Funding

Institutional long-term financial agreements

The Benasque Center for Science Foundation has signed agreements to provide long-term financial support with the following institutions:

  • CSIC
  • period: 2007 - 2010

  • MICINN
  • period: 2009 - 2010, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022

  • Gobierno de Aragón
  • period: 2006 - 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022

  • Universidad de Zaragoza
  • period: 2007 - 2008, 2011, 2013 - 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022

  • Diputación Provincial de Huesca
  • period: 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022

  • Ayuntamiento de Benasque
  • period: 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022



    Private long-term financial agreements

    The Benasque Center for Science Foundation has signed agreements to provide long-term financial support with the following institutions:

  • Fundación BBVA
  • period: 2002 - 2004, 2005 - 2007, 2008 - 2010

  • Session Sponsors
  • Some sessions profit from extra funding granted by private and public institutions, e.g. ESF, UE, NSF, MICINN, CSIC.


    People

    Directors

    Director coordinador:Manuel Asorey

    Manuel Asorey - Director Gerente
    Catedrático de Física Teórica (U. de Zaragoza)
    e-mail: asorey@unizar.es
    Director gerente:José Ignacio Latorre

    José Ignacio Latorre - Director Coordinador
    Catedrático de Física Teórica (U. Barcelona - TII, Abu Dhabi - NUS, Singapore)
    e-mail: j.i.latorre@gmail.com

    Secretariat


    Secretaria:Tracey Paterson.

    Tracey Paterson - Secretariat
    Phone: +34 974 551 475
    e-mail: info@benasque.org
    Secretaria:Anna Gili.

    Anna Gili - Secretariat
    Phone: +34 974 551 475
    e-mail: info@benasque.org
    Secretaria:Judit Benaiges.

    Judit Benaiges - Secretariat
    Phone: +34 974 551 475
    e-mail: info@benasque.org
    Secretaria:Iluminada Sanchez.

    Iluminada Sánchez - Secretariat
    Phone: +34 974 551 475
    e-mail: info@benasque.org

    Tech Support


    System Manager:David Fuentes.

    David Fuentes - System Manager
    Phone: +34 974 551 475
    e-mail: support@benasque.org
    Tech Support:Robinson Vergara.

    Robinson Vergara - Technical Support
    Phone: +34 974 551 475
    e-mail: support@benasque.org

    Cleaner Personnel


    Personnel:Claudia Rojas.

    Claudia Rojas - Cleaner Personnel
    Phone: +34 974 551 475
    e-mail: info@benasque.org
    Personnel:Clara Barrueco.

    Clara Barrueco - Cleaner Personnel
    Phone: +34 974 551 475
    e-mail: info@benasque.org

    Transparency

    Activity reports arxive:
    2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023

    Economic reports arxive:
    2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023