Flags of 30 countries, with which academic bonds are kept, were placed on the promenade which is located next to the Plaza del Bicentenario, in the heart of the Campus-. The space was created with the conviction of internationalize the Argentine education and strengthen the bonds of sorority, cooperative work and knowledge without borders. Above all to place peace as a main objective, peace among nations, among citizens and for the world.
The ceremony was leaded by the Chancellor, Daniel Pizzi; the Vice Chancellor, Jorge Barón; the Head of the Secretariat for Research, International Relations and Postgraduate Studies, Jimena Estrella; and the Coordinator of International Relations, Sandra Casabene. This act also gathered professors, students and staff who have fulfilled different academic stays; university authorities and consuls of the Province of Mendoza.
“From now on, the Plaza del Bicentenario will cohabit with the Paseo de la Paz y Amistad giving visibility to a policy of exponential growth in the last 20 years of our University and which has had a particular relevance in our management,” expressed Pizzi.
He also referred to the consolidation of the UNCuyo’s position on the international systems of research and higher education. To this matter, he pointed out that the university internationalization is not a process that occurs by decantation, but a process which has to be promoted, protected and leaded by university policies effectively designed and oriented to cover the total amount of teachers, students and staff.
He concluded with: “today the access to new sources of knowledge may be universal, but the policies of internationalization of higher education are the ones which allow our community to appropriate of such knowledge and integrate it to our research projects and academic programs.”
Jimena Estrella commented that the promenade refers to the bilateral and multilateral relations which the university maintains with more than 30 countries. “We have decided to point out the value of this policy of internationalization with the one we have been working for a long time.”
She also mentioned that the flags represent more than 90 Universities and institutions from all over the world. “These are countries with which we have strengthened and created bonds of long-term duration.”
The promenade was inaugurated with the unveiling of a commemorative plaque and with the hoisting of the flags which were in charge of students, teachers, authorities and consuls. Simultaneously, the Choir of the University sang the “Peace Hymn”.
During the last 6 years, 6000 exchange experiences were generated. We can stand out, among all of them, 5000 students who travelled to more than 20 countries, 500 professors who completed their training abroad, more than 150 members of the staff who trained abroad and more than 200 agreements of international cooperation; apart from the foreigners who arrive to train in a University which is constantly in the search of multiculturalism and multilingualism.
Besides, UNCuyo hosted the first International Exhibition of Argentine Higher Education (FIESA), a meeting which laid down the foundations for the international impact of the Argentine educative system. With more than 1500 participants of 25 nationalities, the exhibition represented an effort to amplify the bonding of Argentine, Latin American and global institutions of Higher Education.
