The Spanish trade union Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT) opens a national expert forum on demographic change and rural development at 15:30 on Monday, 28 September 2026, at the Gran Hotel Balneario by Puente Viesgo (Cantabria). Under the title “El derecho a quedarse”, the programme runs until Wednesday, 30 September, and features 15 expert contributions and a total of 34 invited speakers.
Representatives of politics and local authorities are expected at the opening: María Jesús Susinos, Consejera de Desarrollo Rural, Ganadería, Pesca y Alimentación of the Government of Cantabria; the Delegado del Gobierno in Cantabria; Pedro Casares, the mayor of Puente Viesgo; Óscar Villegas, and Ángel Sainz, president of the Grupo de Acción Local Valles Pasiegos. The union will be represented by UGT deputy general secretary Lola Navarro and the general secretary of UGT in Cantabria, Mariano Carmona.
According to the organisers, the meeting combines academic presentations, political contributions and practical accounts from public administration, business and civil society. Topics include employment prospects in rural areas, mobility and essential services, access to housing, the use of European and national funding, and adaptation to climate change. The aim is to bring together options for action that can slow depopulation and make it easier for businesses and skilled workers to settle in less developed regions. Successful local development approaches, such as those in the Valles Pasiegos, are also to be compared.
UGT presents the meeting as a technically focused exchange at national level, drawing on regional experience for a wider audience. It is expected to assess current obstacles, from inadequate transport links and the provision of health and education services to digital infrastructure. Representatives of local initiatives and local action groups are to present their projects and discuss whether they could be replicated elsewhere.
According to the organisers, a summary and outlook are planned for the closing session on Wednesday. UGT intends to publish the results, recommendations and list of participants after the forum. Whether this will lead to formal decisions or specific funding agreements remains open and depends on subsequent discussions between the institutions involved.
Editor: Mira Cadena (Article created with AI assistance).