It will be held on 3 June, and is the main event of the ‘Smoke Free Week’, an initiative of the Spanish Society of Family and Community Medicine, of which the Park is a member

Tibidabo Amusement Park is celebrating the smoke-free party, with the objective of raising visitors’ awareness on how important it is not to smoke. The Park has joined—along with other businesses and associations—the Smoke Free Week, an initiative of the Spanish Society of Family and Community Medicine. The main event, which will start at 10.45 am at the main entrance to the Park, will include representatives from the Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO) and Sant Joan de Déu Hospital, also involved in this day.  At the event, Tibidabo’s new slogan will be presented ‘Fill your lungs with life and get carried away by emotion’ in line with the values of a healthy lifestyle without any tobacco. This slogan was selected from among the 31 proposals presented during the ‘Smoke Free Class’, a prevention programme that the Barcelona Public Health Agency (ASPB) does each year among the pupils at the French Leisure Association in Barcelona. The prizes for the drawing competition based on the Smoke Free Week will also be awarded, which will be exhibited at the Park throughout the week. The participation of the ICO and Sant Joan de Déu Hospital will consist of their doing activities to raise awareness via lung age tests and carboximetres (measuring the content of carbon monoxide in the air exhaled). Boys and girls can also can also take a game disc workshop that they can personalise with images and drawings of healthy habits, and they will have an interactive game in which they have to identify which are healthy habits and which damage our health. The Smoke Free Party will be completed with different activities throughout the day, during which highlights include a batucada, by the group Piusao, and a group Zumba class in Dream Square. Moreover the Park will reinforce—via strolling animated characters—the dissemination of this positive message for living with healthy habits. 

This space has some 50 water jets that alternate with different lighting, sound and colour effects

The Tibidabo Amusement Park has restored an unused space, and converted it into an interactive water game area for the whole family, with free entry that is open to the public every day. The new interactive water fountains are located around the Sky Building with the aim of energising the surroundings and offering visitors new activities to do during their time with us. With this project, we are responding to our guests’ requests with regard to updating and maximising the activities that the park can offer them.  PATSA president and the councillor of the Sarrià-Sant Gervasi district, Daniel Mòdol, celebrated the start-up of the new interactive water fountain games and stated that ‘this space for play will equip the Tibidabo Amusement Park with a more extensive entertainment offering that is open to everyone’ and that ‘visitors to the park will especially enjoy them during the summer’. This new water games area has some 50 waterspouts distributed over 300 m2 of natural stone paving, which will alternate different light, sound and colour effects. The installation is made up of a system of small interconnected nozzles with a continuous operating programme, which will let visitors interact via different types of sensors.  Moreover, there is also a new picnic area that improves the infrastructure of the spaces offered by Tibidabo, for eating in the open air. The fountains will be a game, environmentally sustainable and integrated into the surrounding area. Since they are located on the Sky Walk, a leisure space open to all visitors to the park, they can be enjoyed year round. Further, the plan is for the fountains to be programmed with different effects during the day that will surprise and amaze visitors, without need to interact, as well as complementary effects such as the lighting. The water effects will be discovered progressively as you ‘play’ and interact with the fountains, through body movement and interaction with the environment itself.  The new interactive fountains area is a work by the renowned architect Dani Freixas, honoured with several awards including the 2001 National Design Prize from the Ministry of Science and Technology, and the National Architecture and Public Space Award from the Catalan Autonomous Government in 2007, to name just a couple. Freixas has already created several works at the park, such as the well-known attraction Miramiralls (hall of mirrors).  One of the innovations of this season The start-up of the interactive water fountains is one of the new features this season at the Tibidabo Amusement Park. In this new period, the public can also soon enjoy the re-launch of the remodelled Airplane, and at the launch of the season there will be two new rides for the littlest family members, the Choo-Choo Train and the Mini Hurricane, as well as screenings at the Dididabo, the four dimension cinema, and new opening and street performances, under the slogan ‘Emotions on High’.  Another new feature this season is that Tibidabo will provide free tickets for holders of the targeta rosa (‘pink card’ for pensioners and people with disabilities), and will give summer camp scholarships to boys and girls with special needs, after the end of the school year. 

The Barcelona Zoo has invited some 50 kids to spend a very special evening at the park with their families

This Friday, the Zoo is hosting the eleventh edition of ‘Dreamnight at the Zoo’, a charity event at which the Zoo invites boys and girls suffering from chronic diseases or disabilities, who are receiving treatment at hospitals in Barcelona or surrounding towns, to a special evening at the Zoo. The children, accompanied by their families, Zoo volunteers and collaborating companies, can enjoy a unique experience, with the Zoo grounds closed and exclusively for these kids after 6.30 pm. This experience consists of a guided tour through the Zoo’s facilities, different workshops and a tea-dinner. The party will have live entertainment at the hands of the Pallapupas clowns, magicians from the Spanish Magic Society and the animation group De Moment Fantàstics. All people and companies participating at the event are doing so voluntarily and free of charge.  ‘Dreamnight at the Zoo’ is an initiative that was started at the Rotterdam Zoo (Holland) in 1996, and has been joined by 282 other zoos in 39 different countries. This is the eleventh consecutive year that the Barcelona Zoo has participated, and in 2016 nearly a half million people participated in Dreamnight at zoos around the world.

Fisidabo is a motivational and pioneering activity with experiments proposed, designed, built and conducted by the students themselves 

Tibidabo Amusement Park is celebrating the seventh edition of Fisidabo, an activity for physics experiments done this year by a group of international higher secondary scholarship students from the programme ‘CELLEX Sciences and Maths’ and the Sa Palomera School in Blanes. Students will use the Park’s rides to conduct different physics experiments that they themselves have designed and built in the last months of the school year, under the guidance of the professors from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, Luis Carlos Pardo and Artur Paz. Among other experiments, the students will verify the effects of a crash on the human body using a dummy—the dolls used in car safety tests—and will use Diavolo to detect the presence of exoplanets.   ‘Safe Crashes’ (11.00 am-noon) for crash cars The purpose of the ‘Safe Crashes' experiment is to investigate the effects of a car crash on the human body. To do so, students will use a dummy and will fasten it into one of the crash test cars. Using a high speed camera, they will record side, front and rear crashes. Then they will employ the film to determine and calculate the movement of the different parts of the body.  ‘Exoplanets' (12 noon-1 pm) in the Diavolo chairs The purpose of the ‘Exoplanets' experiment is to determine the radius and period of a flying chair on the ride Diavolo, on which they have installed a speaker that emits a sound at a specific frequency. When the chair passes behind the main column of the ride, the volume of the sound should decrease due to this obstacle. This method, called eclipse, is one of the methods to detect planets outside our solar system. The experiments will start at 11.00 am and will conclude at 4.00 pm

The purpose of this exhibition is to raise awareness on the importance of the right to play and to disseminate children’s rights 

‘Play! You’ve got the right!’ This is the message of the UNICEF photography exhibition that is displayed in one of the rooms at the Tibidabo Amusement Park, which can be visited between Saturday 3 June and Sunday 17 September.  With this action, the Park and UNICEF Catalonia Committee consolidate five years of alliance with the aim of publicising children’s rights.  The purpose of the exhibition is to raise the awareness of visitors, young and old, on the importance of the Right to Play, contained in article 31 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child ‘every child has the right to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts’. The exhibition contains photographs of children around the world playing, doing sports, cultural activities and resting.  The images are accompanied with messages to raise awareness on issues such as inclusion, the respect for traditional games and cultural diversity and equal conditions among children.   This is one more of the tasks of raising social awareness that the Tibidabo Amusement Park does throughout the year and through which it wants to disseminate messages of tolerance, solidarity and respect among all of its visitors, especially among the youngest ones.   Anna Folch, president of UNICEF Catalonia Committee and Rosa Ortiz, director of the Tibidabo Amusement Park, were in charge of inaugurating this exhibition on 28 May, on the International Day of the Right to Play.

Marta Labata Salvador replaces Ignasi Armengol Villà, at the head of management of the municipal company B:SM. Mr Villà is leaving the post to pursue a new career project

Marta Labata (Tarragona, 1975), married and mother of two children, has a degree in Law from Rovira i Virgili University (1993-1998), and a Master’s in Human Resources Management from EADA (2000-2001) and in Management Development Programme from IESE (2012). Marta Labata has extensive experience in operations and management in different areas of public service companies with a great social impact, and has participated in projects aimed at improving the quality of life of Barcelona citizens. In 2004 she was hired at Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB), and since that time has held posts of responsibility in different company departments. Since 2014 and until the present day, she has run the bus network of TMB, which transports some 190 million travellers every year. The appointment of the new B:SM director was the result of consensus among all Board members, after being put forth by President Jaume Collboni, and is part of the new generation of directors who are providing their experience and knowledge to the service of the city of Barcelona.  Barcelona de Serveis Municipals (B:SM) is a public company of the Barcelona City Council that was created in 2002 with the aim of unifying the provision of municipal services into a single company. At present, the endeavours that B:SM manages are varied and range from mobility related matters to leading cultural, entertainment and leisure and biodiversity facilities. 

Coinciding with the celebration of International Biodiversity Day, on Monday 22 May different city institutions talk about their activities related to protecting local biodiversity and their commitment to the European campaign ‘Let it grow’. There will also be different activities in which the general public can participate

The ‘Let it grow’ campaign, in which 233 institutions participate, is jointly promoted by the European Network of Science Centres and Museums (Ecsite), the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums (EAZA) and the Botanic Gardens Conservation International association (BGCI), with the objective of raising awareness on the importance of local biodiversity and encouraging citizens to value and protect it. This three associations are joining forces to work together to contribute to the application of the Aichi Convention on Biological Diversity, especially its Target 1, which reads: ‘By 2020, at the latest, people are aware of the values of biodiversity and the steps they can take to conserve and use it sustainably’.  In Barcelona, several city institutions and some members of these organisations have joined the campaign to develop projects jointly. This group of institutions is made up of the Natural Science Museum of Barcelona (Ecsite and BGCI), the Barcelona Zoo (member of EAZA), the Barcelona City Council via its Department of Environment and Urban Services-Urban Ecology, the Barcelona Science Programme of the Barcelona Institute of Culture (Ecsite) and the Botanical Institute of Barcelona (BGCI). Activities on local biodiversity On 27 and 28 May, the second ‘Let it grow’ weekend will be held at the Barcelona Zoo. On Saturday, the activity ‘Care for it well’ will be done, so that visitors understand the responsibility involved in taking care of animals; a chat on reintroducing animals and the conservation of species—specifically on the Dorcas gazelle project in Senegal—and other activities, including ‘The why of ants’, the ‘Urban garden’ and ‘Cuisine from heaven' with birdfeeders. On Sunday there will be a talk on the history of the Aquarama and three activities involving seahorses: ‘The magic box’, ‘Hide’ and ‘Unexpected father’.  Further, this same weekend the 2017 Science Festival will be held at Ciutadella Park, with a series of informative days on biodiversity in cities and climate change. The activity is being hosted by Barcelona Science and the Barcelona Institute of Culture, along with other city institutions. The purpose of the festival is to involve citizens in protecting local biodiversity and in building insect hotels. Last weekend, 20 and 21 May, Bioblitz Barcelona 2017 was celebrated and well received at the Historic Botanical Garden. A group of expert scientists took part in this initiative, who invited families to participate in the process to identify all the organisms in a specific area, with nature walks and participation in taking inventory of the diversity in the local natural world. The day was organised by the Natural Science Museum, the Botanical Institute, the Barcelona City Council and the Barcelona Metropolitan Area.  In addition to these scheduled activities, institutions participating in the campaign carried out numerous long term actions related to local biodiversity, ranging from scientific to raising awareness. Some concrete examples include those on seed packets ‘Wild plants of Barcelona’ available to citizens who want to plant native species on their balconies or in their gardens (Barcelona Natural Science Museum); the project to study invasive plants on Montjuïc (Botanical Institute of Barcelona); the programme of activities to raise awareness by the libraries and community centres to explain the objectives of the campaign ‘Let it grow’ (Programme of Barcelona Science, part of the Barcelona Institute of Culture); the programming of diverse educational activities on local fauna and the environment (Barcelona Zoo); and the naturalisation of reservoirs, installation of different structures to favour urban fauna, and diverse actions to connect citizens to nature, such as the virtual map ‘Barcelona +sustainable’ (Barcelona City Council’s Environment and Urban Services-Urban Ecology). More complete information on these actions is available in the attached document.

The Zoo works for the fauna of the Sahel and participates in repopulating the Dorcas gazelle (Gazella dorcas osiris)

Following the instructions of the coordinator of the European Endangered Species Programme (EEP) for the Dorcas gazelle (Gazella dorcas osiris), in May of last year a young male of this species arrived at the zoo from Africa, with the mission of renewing the genetic line of the population living in European zoos. The ‘Asturian’ as the caretakers call this new breeding male—because he was born at a breeding centre in Asturias—has already become a father to four males and two females. The new babies live with the rest of the group, made up of their father and another 17 females, who will bear the names of their caretakers.  These new births took place 10 years after the first transfer of gazelles to Senegal, as part of the project to recover this species, carried out by the Almeria Arid Areas Experimental Station of the Higher Council of Scientific Research (CSIC by its Spanish acronym), with the support of several European zoos and close collaboration with the Barcelona Zoo, which has provided funding and veterinary and educational assessment to the individuals project.  The future of the Dorcas gazelle, which has a vulnerable status in its original habitats—the deserts and steppes of North Africa—is now more promising. There are plans that the new specimens born in European zoos, including the Barcelona Zoo, will soon be used to repopulate more of the original lands of this species in Senegal. Exploring new projects on the ground The so-called ‘Spanish Team’, made up of the Almeria Arid Areas Experimental Station of the Higher Council of Scientific Research (CSIC) and the Barcelona Zoo, which already did successful work together on the aforementioned project to reintroduce the Dorcas gazelle at Ferlo National Park (Senegal), was recently contacted by the FAO with a proposal to reproduce the same management system at the Koily-Alpha Reserve, in the Mbula region in the north of the country. On this occasion, the objective is to restore local flora and fauna at this site, which is managed as a community reserve by the local population to promote eco-tourism, as well as the reintroduction of animal species that already disappeared, such as the Mhor gazelle (Nanger dama mhorr), the Dorcas gazelle (Gazella dorcas), the white oryx (Oryx dammah) and the African spurred tortoise (Geochelone sulcata), and trees including the baobab and the Koily (Mitragyna inermis), for which the reserve is named.  The project is part of the pan-African programme entitled the ‘Grande Muraille Verte’ (Big Green Wall), which covers the entire Sahel, from Senegal to Eritrea, and whose purpose is to stop the advance of desertification.  In February, the Spanish work team—made up of Conrad Enseñat and Hugo Fernández, respectively mammal conservator and veterinarian at the Barcelona Zoo, and team manager Teresa Abáigar from EEAZ/CSIC—were invited by the FAO to participate in a workshop in Senegal, along with all other project partners, including representatives from the local community, the Fulani ethnic group. The visit let them speak of the actions to undertake, as well as to study the characteristics of the small existing enclosure and the possibilities of permanently fencing the reserve, with a potential area of 2500 ha, in an area highly exploited by livestock, which has led to heavy disintegration of the land and the disappearance of species. The exploration of the reserve, with participation from local eco-guards, consisted of a study of local flora (bushes, trees, herbs) and the identification of fauna by using tracking and the placement of camera traps. Areas of particular importance for the project were also studied, such as temporary flood lands and of scenic interest. Determining the precise current situation of the area is essential for moving forward with the project. The signing of the agreement with the FAO for this ambitious project is expected to take place this year. As mentioned, it is not limited to the reintroduction of some animals, but also involves restoring animal and plant biodiversity with the involvement of the local population, which will be both financially and culturally benefited with the revival of these traits of their identity. For now, the installation and maintenance of the fence is already generating work and the country’s flora and fauna are starting to be protected: a first step! To obtain more images, click here.

The campaign to select the best images and videos of visitors' experiences at the park will be open until 31 May

The Tibidabo Amusement Park is part of the memories of many citizens of Barcelona, and over the course of the years has become—for generation after generation—an indispensable leading player of its centenary history. For this reason, during May there will be a campaign to collect images, with the aim of having everybody who wants to collaborate with historic records—both in digital and in other earlier formats—participate in the history of Tibidabo. The park wants everyone to be able to be the star of the new audiovisual, which will be screened at the Sky Building attraction, after it is ready, and will offer visitors the possibility of participating in it and being able to 'make history'. A campaign to collect the best historical images and videos of the experiences of park visitors has been started up, with the aim of selecting the best ones to make an audiovisual piece that will contain the best and most magical images of this iconic space in Barcelona. If you would like to participate in this new documentary, you must: 1. Find images and memories of Tibidabo with family, friends or with your school mates that are testimony of a fun, laughing and exciting time experienced at the park Park managers will select the best images that are received and will give priority to those that are from the 60s, 70s, and 80s, given that this is the period in which Tibidabo has less graphic materials  2. Go to the website www.documentaltibidabo.cat, enter your personal details and upload the images or videos. If you do not have digitised images or the video is in a format other than that which is demanded by the website, interested parties may connect with the Amusement Park by ringing 93 211 79 42, or by sending an email to tibidabo@tibidabo.cat. Everyone who wants can submit their images or their videos until 31 May 2017, the date on which there should be enough audiovisual materials to edit and create the new audiovisual piece. It’s that easy to become one of the stars of the new documentary on the history of the Tibidabo Amusement Park. At present, visitors to Tibidabo can watch the documentary ‘100 Years Fly By’, a piece with great sentimental and historical value, which is 12 minutes long and goes through the more than 100 years of the park, linking it to the history of Barcelona, and that the park will continue screening at the Sky Building.

The report is an annual summary of the company’s lines of business and is part of the transparency requirement taken on by B:SM 

The Barcelona Serveis Municipals (B:SM) Sustainability Report is now available on the company's corporate website, which also details the social, economic and environmental challenges that the company took on during 2016. The report this year reviews the main projects finished by the different company divisions, such as adhesion to the United Nations Global Compact, making its principles part of its own strategy and culture. The consolidation of the new Customer Care Division—fully integrated at B:SM head offices—has become a basic care centre for Barcelona citizens. The growth of the Civic Officers Unit, which has expanded its competences and scopes of action in accordance with its vocation of public service at B:SM in order to provide service to citizens. The new milestone proposed by B:SM also merits mention: The implementation of an Integrated Management System, which will incorporate quality, the environment, health and CSR in all company processes.  The publication of the report is the response to the commitment taken on by B:SM in the scope of the strategy of Corporate Social responsibility and a tool for transparency of the company’s lines of business. It is published in a versatile and interactive online format, which favours its reading on any device. Click here to go to the report