The Ministry of Industry, Energy, and Mining (MIEM) and the Uruguay XXI Institute, with the support of Universidad ORT Uruguay, the Rome Consulate in Montevideo, and the company Valore Italiano, are organizing this conference as part of their efforts to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurship.
From Wednesday, October 29, through Friday, October 31, students and industry professionals will gather at the Universidad ORT Uruguay School of Design.
“For us, incorporating knowledge and adding value to Uruguayan production has been, for years, our guiding principle for how to move Uruguay forward,” said Dr. Jorge Grünberg, Rector Universidad ORT Uruguay, during the event’s opening session.
“We are aware of the shortcomings our country faces in this area; we have a production sector to which we need to add value, and design is one of the ways to add value, creativity, differentiation, and originality,” he continued. “In that regard, since 1995, design has been one of the disciplines where we have sought to develop further and contribute to Uruguay.”
For his part, Gustavo Fernández, Director General of Industry, Energy, and Mining, stated that the Ministry “is pleased to participate in the organization and funding of these conferences.” He emphasized that “they will enable the development of an extremely important educational initiative, which is unprecedented in our field.”
“Two workshops will be held, and the project will continue for another four months of ongoing interaction between the Italian teachers and the students,” he said. In addition, a videoconference on woodworking will be held, also featuring Italian experts.
Meanwhile, Andrés Peláez, director of Uruguay XXI, highlighted the work the institute has been doing with cooperatives and, more broadly, with social and solidarity economy enterprises. “In this case, we are working with self-managed ventures, such as CTC Olmos. The idea is to strengthen Uruguayan design and creative capabilities so we can present a high-quality, domestically designed product at Expo Milan.”
The ceramics design workshop was led by Italian experts Bárbaro and Vicenzo Messina of Studio Le Nid Messina, while the leather workshop was taught by designer Gabriele Calderoli.
