Pompeu Fabra University is set to establish a new high-level research hub to develop and implement collective solutions to today’s major societal challenges, focused on youth, justice and resilience. Called the Barcelona Agora for Societal Wellbeing (BASW), its doors are expected to open in early 2028. The initiative, promoted by UPF, connects knowledge, institutions and citizens, and will occupy 8,000 square metres of the Antic Mercat del Peix in Barcelona. UPF's new building, located within the new research and innovation complex – with an emphasis on biomedicine, biodiversity and social wellbeing – will house over 100 researchers and require an investment of €20 million.

The Barcelona Agora at UPF stands to become a one-of-a-kind facility in Europe, designed as a Do Tank (“thinking and acting”) that breaks with traditional models by merging research, technology and social action. Each project stems from the intersection of a social challenge and course of action. Examples include developing a basic income policy model for young people in precarious situations or creating a laboratory for equal access to housing. “The future Agora building is not just another facility,” argues the rector of UPF, Laia de Nadal, “but a public service tool available to the entire population.” “We live in a turbulent and rapidly changing world, and traditional ways of doing things no longer provide an adequate response. That is why we are creating a new meeting point for developing and implementing collective solutions to major societal challenges,” she adds.

The building will play home to innovation spaces devoted to the application of technological tools such as artificial intelligence (AI) and data analysis. In a time of growing misinformation and polarization, the aim is to strengthen the role of science and knowledge in modelling the impact of public policies, simulating the effectiveness of social programmes (such as a basic income for young people) and generating a scientific evidence base for public decision-making.

One of Agora’s most distinctive features is its openness to the public. The building will provide flexible and accessible areas specifically designed for co-creation. Here, citizens and stakeholders will be invited to take part in workshops, qualitative data collection sessions and pilot testing, to ensure that the solutions respond to the real needs of society.

Programmes and connectors, the core drivers of Agora

The programmes outline the social challenges targeted for change and are organized into three main blocks:

1. Youth: identifies emerging issues and needs affecting young people (20-40 years old), including housing, work and future prospects.
2. Justice: reimagines the system of rights, duties and resources to reduce economic, social and access-related inequalities.
3. Resilience: explores ways to strengthen society’s ability to withstand and adapt to multiple crises (climate, economic, health, etc.).

The connectors are the practical and methodological mechanisms that drive change, based on:

1. Technology: largely focused on AI and data analysis and aimed at deepening our understanding of social phenomena and modelling scenarios.
2. Community: enables direct citizen participation – through surveys, workshops and open data cohorts – to legitimize and enrich initiatives.
3. Knowledge: fosters alliances and partnerships with regional institutions, research centres and social organizations to implement responses and solutions in the region and with stakeholders.