For the sixth consecutive year, the Lleida region will host the IRBLleida-"la Caixa" Foundation scientific education program, driven by the "la Caixa" Foundation through CaixaBank, with the aim of fostering scientific vocations and raising awareness about biomedical research in the region.
This edition includes 14 scientific workshops, 6 grants for high school students to undertake a one-month internship at IRBLleida, the organization of the Night of Research 2026, the publication of the second issue of the outreach magazine LleidaLab, and the social return event SomRecerca.
The scientific workshop 'Exploring the World of Research' is designed for young people aged 12 to 16, combining an informative session with a practical activity based on the scientific method.
The scholarships for high school students will allow six young people from the region to gain close insight into a research group at IRBLleida. The Night of Research 2026, scheduled for Friday, October 2nd, will offer workshops for all ages.
As new additions, the second issue of the magazine LleidaLab, aimed at secondary education students, will be published, and the VII SomRecerca event will be organized to explain citizen participation in Lleida's biomedical research.
During the 2025-2026 academic year, the program reached over 1,700 individuals, complementing the annual outreach plan IRBLleidaDIVULGA 2026-2027, funded by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT).
The extensive network of CaixaBank offices helps identify urgent local needs and channel aid from the "la Caixa" Foundation. In 2025, over 5,500 projects from nearly 5,200 social entities received support.
The agreement signing was attended by representatives from the "la Caixa" Foundation and IRBLleida, including Geremi Camí Calzada (Director of Institutions Lleida), Diego Arango del Corro (Director of IRBLleida), Eva López Truco (Manager of IRBLleida), Andrés Ríos Lera (Business Area Manager Lleida Centre Representative), and Josep Maria Bosch (Head of Promotion at IRBLleida).
