The ministry awards the Torrevieja City Council the distinction of city of science and innovation

Torrevieja has been recognized by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities as a 'City of Science and Innovation'. This distinction, awarded through a competitive process, was granted in the 2025 call for applications to 18 other Spanish towns, of which only 4 belong to the category of cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants, the category in which Torrevieja is included.

In this way, Torrevieja can join the Innpulso Network, along with the 127 other cities that already hold this recognition. Joining this network is contingent upon approval by the City Council.

In the resolution, the Ministry states that this distinction, which was launched in 2010, aims to "recognize and distinguish the municipalities that have made a firm commitment to supporting innovation in their territories," considering "the important role of local entities in promoting their territories as a crucial element that determines economic and social development."

After learning that Torrevieja had been selected as one of the distinguished cities, the Councilor for Education, Ricardo Recuero, emphasized that “this recognition is the result of the work that the Torrevieja City Council has undertaken in recent years in the area of innovation, understood from a cross-cutting perspective as an engine for the development of the entire city.” “The Ministry of Science,” Recuero highlighted, “has recognized how projects such as environmental and blue digital twins, advanced climate and flow monitoring systems, tourism intelligence, the ongoing collaboration with universities through TI·LAB, and entrepreneurship and business innovation programs demonstrate a city model that transforms applied research into concrete solutions for citizens, businesses, and the region.”

The application, which was processed by the European Funds Unit as part of its strategic work to position Torrevieja and improve its conditions for attracting external funding, received the support of numerous entities that are part of or collaborate with the educational fabric of the municipality, highlighting in their support for the candidacy the importance of the innovation undertaken as a practical tool to improve public services, diversify the economy, reduce tourist seasonality and generate new opportunities based on knowledge.

The projects submitted by the cities that were evaluated had to have been carried out within the last five years, and the city had to demonstrate a commitment to innovation budgeted for subsequent fiscal years. Furthermore, they had to adhere to three main areas: Citizenship, Business, and Internal Organization.

INNOVATIVE INITIATIVES THAT IMPROVE SERVICES TO CITIZENS

In the first section, consideration has been given to innovative initiatives that improve services to citizens, whether through the use of information and communication technologies to improve public services, or through projects aimed at improving the environment or those that promote social inclusion.

In this section, the City Council included, among others, projects such as the Calculation of the photovoltaic potential of the city of Torrevieja with the provision of the solar map; the SATRAI projects for real-time alert of air quality control; T-WindPred; the digital twin for the sustainable development of smart protected spaces, CHAN-TWIN; the smart beaches project or those that are planned in the Integrated Action Plan financed by the ERDF in the period 26-29 such as the renaturalization of school playgrounds; digitalization and digital accessibility or innovative sociocultural revitalization.

Regarding the group of projects aimed at promoting economic and business activity, consideration was given to those carried out in support of and promoting the local entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem, such as business parks and support for the creation of innovation and technological development infrastructure. Torrevieja highlighted the work done in conjunction with the Destination Tourism Sustainability Plan, funded by Next Generation EU funds, on projects such as the 'Torrevieja se vive' Product Club, the Digital Transformation and Green Energy Promotion Office, and the Salt Interpretation Center. Also highlighted were investments in video surveillance and signage at the Casa Grande Business Park, the 'LASAL' Open Shopping Center initiative, the Consumer Voucher, the detailed study or taxonomy of the microorganisms inhabiting the Pink Lagoon of Torrevieja, the Blue Economy Promotion Program, and the iHub Torretech as a Center for Technological Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Business Development, among others.

PROMOTION OF INNOVATIVE CULTURE IN MUNICIPAL STRUCTURES

For projects aimed at improving internal organization in local entities (organization block), consideration has been given to actions developed that promote an innovative culture in municipal structures, development of innovative leadership models, creation of innovation improvement groups and virtual and social networks, collaborative platforms, as well as initiatives aimed at modernizing the municipal administration through the establishment of document management processes that facilitate free access to information, good practices in local communication, exercise of information transparency and citizen participation programs in municipal policy.

Several projects have been evaluated for Torrevieja, including the TI·LAB University Laboratory for Smart Tourism; the Laguna Rosa working group; the design and development of dashboards to facilitate informed decision-making, using data analytics tools on the Gestiona platform for electronic administration and the automation of processes through the use of regulated procedures; the issuance of registration certificates through automated administrative action in the Self-Service Electronic Office (Cyber Kiosk); the actions of the PSTD for Tourism Intelligence and Digital Communication and active listening, as well as the supply, deployment and implementation in computer systems of a user equipment protection solution (EDR/XDR) against advanced cybersecurity threats, financed by the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, and the planned City Platform with AI – Systems for data processing and interoperability included in the Integrated Action Plan with ERDF funds.