News

'100% renewable'—new documentary on Eivissa and Formentera to hit cinema next Tuesday

Friday, 11 December 2015 15:40

A documentary called Ibiza y Formentera 100% renovables (or, rendered in English, “Eivissa and Formentera, 100% renewable”) will be screened at the local cinema on Tuesday December 15 at 8.00pm. Environment secretary Daisee Aguilera thanked Miguel Ángel Villagrasa, Ulises Petinto and Fani Alonso, who are not only the founders of the nonprofit Camarógrafos por el cambio (“Photographers for change”—TN), but also the film's creators, for bringing it to the island.

Ensuing discussion

The Formentera Council is contributing €800 to a production whose creators want audiences to ask the following question: “Is it possible to make Eivissa and Formentera 100% renewable?” After the screening participants of a roundtable discussion— including CiF environment secretary Daisee Aguilera, Fons de Preservació d'Eivissa's Sandra Benbeniste, Amics de la Terra's Jordi Salewski and members of the audience—will attempt an answer.

First conference organised around promoting positive values in sport

Thursday, 10 December 2015 14:00

Learning communication skills to transmit values is the name of the conference to set take place tomorrow at 7 p.m. under the guidance psychologists Paco Pérez and Pere Serra in the culture department's hall of ceremonies. It is the very first in a series of talks grouped together under the banner Esport és més (Sport is more), an initiative to promote the values inherent in sport. The initiative is being promoted by the CiF's office of sport and between the Council and the Govern Balear will receive 15,000€ in public funding, explained Councillor Jordi Vidal.

From now until June, Formentera-based sports specialists will give conferences on topics tailored to suit different local audiences.

The conferences – intended for all audiences – will be held in the department of culture's hall of ceremonies (la sala d'Actes). Two other talks are also on tomorrow's line-up: Conflict resolution resources for sports professionals by Carlos Murillo and Michael Romero and Solidarity with the Third World by Javier Colomo. Finally, a third event – a seminar entitled Working with values in sport, from start to finish – will round out the agenda for the first round of talks.

Another three talks will be given at Formentera schools. The first – another by Javier Colomo – is titled Helping the Third World through sport. The second is called Sacrifice, the top brass and motivation, the Olympic dream and will be given by Asier Fernández and Mateo Sanz. The last of the three talks, led by Indra Roig, is titled Oral and dental hygiene and why they're important in sport.

On-going encounters will be held on a monthly basis in an effort to provide counsel and resources to sports clubs and team trainers, monitors, directors and athletes themselves. Some of the topics include Coaching and social acceptance at the team and individual level and Conflict resolution resources for sports professionals. These talks will be led by Pere Serra and Michael Romero.

Furthermore, conference organisers will distribute informational material in the form of brochures and bookmarks to students and other attendants and use footage from the events to create a promotional video. The goal, underscored Vidal, is to promote the values like teamwork, respect and effort that are essential in sport. «The same thing that makes Formentera so unique also makes strong values – like those that underpin sport – crucial to the healthy development of each one of us», said the councillor.

Class trip to new rubbish drop-off point

Friday, 04 December 2015 16:03

Visita deixalleria premsa

The Formentera Council's office of the environment has put together a field trip so that local pupils can get a first-hand look at the island's new waste drop-off centre. According to staff specialist Javier Asensio, who went along too, the visit is aimed at helping Formentera kids «learn how [the tip] works and see what garbage – when too big to fit in normal bins – must be brought here».

A total of 34 boys and girls from the Sant Ferran primary school got to see the inner workings of the drop-off centre. A previous field trip had provided a close-up look at the Formentera transfer station and the chance to see rubbish being weighed and compacted. In Asensio's words, the goal of today's visit was to raise awareness about where our waste ends up and the importance of recycling.

Awards for island’s first sport photography competition

Wednesday, 09 December 2015 23:00

Guanyadors concurs foto premsa Earlier today, Jordi Vidal, department head of the Formentera Council’s office of sport, handed out cheques to winners of the island’s first sport photography competition, el Concurs de Fotografia Esportiva. First prize was snagged by José Antonio Arribas, second by Kevin Cabezuelo and third, Beni Marull. The three Formentera natives walked away with awards in the amount of 300, 200 and 100 euros respectively.

A total of 26 submissions from ten participants were received for this first year of the contest. The prints currently adorn the hallways of the Antoni Blanc fitness centre. Councillor Vidal highlighted the broad range of sports represented – entries included everything from motocross to water sports – and encouraged local photographers to «start thinking about next year’s contest».

The jury for the event was composed of painter Robert P. Hawkins; photographer Juan Pica; Obra Cultural Balear rep Marià Castelló; Carmelo Convalia, reporter for local newspaper Diario de Ibiza and Councillor Vidal. The group met last Wednesday, 2 December, to deliberate and choose the winners. The winning photos will be kept on permanent display at the fitness centre. Councillor Vidal also thanked JJ Fotògrafs for contributing six prints used in the decoration for the event.

Formentera asks Madrid and Palma for help tackling housing crunch

Saturday, 28 November 2015 11:32

Foto ple novembre 2015 Members of the Formentera Council (CiF) came together today to celebrate the administration's November plenary session. Unanimous approval was given to a proposal tackling housing issues and evictions electric bill breaks for low-income homes. According to Councillor Alejandra Ferrer of the department of local land management, finding year-round accommodation continues to be the one of Formentera's big quagmires despite the Palma administration's efforts, including the present construction of low-cost public housing.

The Council of Formentera has also attempted to tackle the housing question here locally, through its creation of a legal status for private citizens who rent their homes to seasonal tourists, which Councillor Ferrer points out «could inversely help by highlighting the supply of houses and apartments not for seasonal holidayers». According to Ferrer, such a system opens the door to compiling a list of homes available for year-round rental.

To tackle the problem, plenary attendants green-lighted a motion to urge the Govern Balear to open a local branch of the regional housing office IBAVI (Instituto Balear de la Vivienda). The measure includes putting pressure on both Palma and Madrid to «adopt policies that actively support residents' right to housing and help in paying astronomical electricity bills».

Improving accessibility

The attendants of the plenary also unanimously passed a proposition from Socialistes de Formentera to draft a municipal accessibility plan for local buildings. Transport councillor Rafa González detailed his department's efforts on the issue and assured the Council's commitment to ameliorating a subject «where we all know Formentera comes up short». He assured all new infrastructure in Formentera is made with accessibility in mind. Opposition parties requested the change happen progressively.

Attendants also unanimously accepted a Socialistes proposal to create a digital literacy programme for the non-tech savvy. A proposition from the Compromís amb Formentera group also secured unanimous support. The idea is to create a sports volunteer corps, which, explained Councillor Jordi Vidal, will be overseen by the office of sport.

Smoke-free beaches

Another vote that garnered unanimous support: a proposition from Compromís to look into creating smoke-free beaches. The councillor of environment, Daisee Aguilera, said the administration «will study the legal viability of implementing smoke-free criteria either in specific areas or entire beaches». She stressed, however, that any outreach will be key to whichever course of action the Council takes: «This is especially a problem of education and that is really where we want to be making leaps and strides».

Plenary participants also approved a measure from the PP on illegal dumping. The councillor of the environment commented: «We are in the midst of forming a troupe of inspectors that can target this and other problems». Finally, the councillor of social welfare read out loud the administration's official proclamation honouring the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.