Letter from the Director

Since the Foundation was set up in 1999, 2008 has been the only sad year in its history. The reason was the death of our President and Founder.

Behind us now are the difficult years after the accident whose consequences he bore with the fortitude shown by great men. At no time did he cease to concern himself with the Foundation and to take care of it. He always took part in designing its activities. All of us who have worked at the Foundation have constantly benefited from his experience, abiding counsel and mastership. And, above all, from his unequivocal commitment to excellence in the performance of the Foundation’s activities. The letters from the President and the Director included in the 2007 Annual Report made very clear our grief and feelings about the death of Rafael del Pino.

As Rafael del Pino wrote in the Foundation’s first Annual Report, that of 2001, organisations “like buildings or roads, are built step by step, with some haste and above all, without interruptions”. Faithful to this commitment, on 21 July 2008 the Foundation proceeded to elect a new President - María del Pino, the then Vice President - with the intention that neither the day-to-day activities nor the pace of progress at the Foundation should be affected.

The past eight years have been years characterised by enthusiasm and creative work; and also by the evolution of ideas. After his voluntary retirement from running Ferrovial upon reaching 80 years of age, Rafael del Pino decided to devote all his energy to contributing to improving the knowledge of Spain’s leaders of the future and to improving the wellbeing of his fellow citizens. After his accident, he decided to add to his concerns his wish to contribute to helping people who have had the misfortune to suffer a spinal cord injury and to assist in the fight against cancer. 2008 was a year marked by the impact of the economic crisis which has affected organisations and businesses. The Foundation has also felt this impact due to the negative performance of the securities market in yields on fixed-income securities and equities.

The Foundation decided to turn this situation into an opportunity that has permitted it to reconsider its objectives and its conduct. The first reaction was to further accentuate the already strict control of expenditure, and to strengthen the objective of efficiency as a guide in the process of project selection. In addition, being aware of the consequences of the economic crisis for the Foundation’s finances, at the May meeting of the Board of Trustees it was decided to cut the budget expenses approved by the Board in December 2007. This meant that it was not possible to carry out some projects, but it is fair to point out that many beneficiaries of the Foundation programmes contributed to the cut in costs. The end result was the dampening of the impact of the financial crisis.

In fact, despite the effects of the economic crisis, the Foundation strengthened its programme of master lectures and expert meetings, and maintained its training for leadership and research programmes, including significant initiatives such as the series of lectures on climate change, the Enlightenment and Liberalism 1788-1814 Exhibition, and the major research commemorating the bicentenary of the Cádiz Parliament and the Constitution of Cádiz.

With these references, special mention should be made of the following innovations introduced into the Foundation’s programming of activities.

First of all, the concern for the return of talent. After many years of devoting a significant portion of the Foundation’s resources to providing post-graduate scholarships, it was decided to combine the programme with another whose objective is to attract academic and research talent. In this way, the process of training Spanish students at the world’s best universities and research institutions will be complemented with the return to Spain of Spanish academics and researchers who do their work at such establishments.

Secondly, the use of a portion of the Foundation’s resources to finance programmes aimed at improving the living conditions of people with spinal cord injury and fighting cancer. In point of fact, in accordance with the Founder’s initiative, the Board of Trustees resolved to devote a portion of the resources to research and to the advanced training of specialists in the field of oncology. At the same time, it decided to promote initiatives directed at improving the quality of life of people with spinal cord injury, one of which is the construction of the Rafael Pino Sports Centre adjoining the National Paraplegics Hospital at Toledo, which in due course will be donated to the Autonomous Community of Castile-La Mancha, financed by an extraordinary contribution from the Founder.

Lastly, mention should be made of the great honour it has been that the Spanish Association of Foundations should award its Medal of Honour to the Rafael del Pino Foundation in recognition of the work it has done since it came into being.

As stated in the 2008 Report of the Spanish Association of Foundations, the Medal of Honour “also rewards the extraordinary work of the Board of Trustees, the management team and all the Foundation staff”. Words which can only be reciprocated with gratitude and with even greater enthusiasm for our endeavours, if that is possible.

Amadeo Petitbò Juan
Director