With Science, Against Nationalism, For Europe

In recent years, ALDE group liberal MEP Teresa Giménez Barbat, founder of Cs in 2004, who acceded to the European Parliament through  UPyD's candidacy in the 2014-2019 legislature, which is now coming to an end, has always acted, in fulfilling her mandate, to promote the values of reason, enlightenment and humanism, and has never ceased, as a Catalan, to denounce in Brussels and Strasbourg the identitarian and exclusionary project of Catalan independence. In addition, she has led what is probably one of the best individual initiatives of a Spanish MEP within the institution since Spain's accession to the EU in 1986: Euromind.

The objective of this forum is to enable science to enter into public debate and influence political decision-making: leading scientists and intellectuals from Spain and the rest of the world participated and supported it: Richard Dawkins, Steven Pinker, Jean Bricmont, Mark van Vugt, Peter Turchin, Harriet Hall, Joaquim Soares, Nicola Graham-Kevan, Arcadi Espada, Elvira Roca Barea, Robin Dunbar, Frans de Waal, Camilo José Cela Conde, Adolf Tobeña, Julian Baggini, Michael Shermer, Manuel Arias-Maldonado, Robyn Blumner, Sissela Bok, Bjørn Lomborg, Juan Abreu, Sophie Lecheler, Hugo Mercier, Enrique Echeburúa, Jordi Bernal, David Schmitt, Robert Whitley, Victoria Carmichael, Steve Stewart-Williams, Brian Earp, Rebecca Steinfeld, Benjamin Hine, Claire Lehmann, Roberto Colom, Ambrosio Gracía Leal, Maryam Namazie, Nigel Warburton, Yolanda Gómez Sánchez, Alexander Yakobson, Philip T. Hoffman, Julian Baggini, Michael P. Lynch, Manuel Toharia, Matteo Motterlini, José Miguel Mulet, Sissela Bok, Félix Ares, Dalibor Sternadel, Elseline Hoekzema, Miles Brundagel, Olle Häggström, Thomas Metzinger, Susan Pinker, Miriam Tey, Ignacio Morgado, Pedro Insua, Maarten Larmuseau, A.C. Grayling, Karin Bojs, Juan Luis Arsuaga, José Rosiñol, Gabriel Tortella, Carsten De Dreu, Paul Cliteur, Susana Martínez-Conde, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, David Galadí-Enríquez, Pilar Ruiz Lapuente, Robert Redeker, Iban Warraq, Francisco Sosa Wagner, Alejo Vidal-Quadras, Javier Nart and Luis Garicano.

In recent years, Euromind has been a platform for the dialogue between science and politics at the frontiers of knowledge, with the potential to transform society. Its basic principals are four:

1. A Third Culture 
To facilitate a conversation between scientific and humanistic cultures. Even though science alone can’t guide society, we think that this conversation will help the governments to adopt wiser decisions for the benefit of citizenship.

2. Scientific Skepticism
The systematic practice of questioning all claims and proposals that are not supported by empirical, verifiable and reproducible research. Many political notions clearly unsupported by the scientific scrutiny – fueled instead by ideological preferences or personal interests –, are not only wrong, but harmful for the interest of public well-being.

3. Academic Diversity
We are committed to the promotion of freethought and academic diversity to ensure that all options and enquiries are represented in the process of science as the more advanced way of dealing with social issues.

4. European Commitment
A compromise with the construction of a Common European Identity, opposed to exclusionary nationalisms and fundamentalisms, and favorable to the promotion of a secular humanist thinking, respectful towards the cultural and religious (or nonreligious) plurality of all citizens.


We, the undersigned, would like to express our gratitude to Teresa Giménez Barbat for her initiative and to offer her our support so that she can continue to promote and fuel Euromind forum.

Brussels-Barcelone-Luxembourg, 5 April 2019

Giovannini