This Monday, Can Casals officially closed its doors. GEN-GOB, the entity that has managed the space for the past four years, has left the property after the City Council of Eivissa confirmed that it
A farewell after the municipal notice of non-renewal
The closure is the outcome of a decision announced in late August, when the City Council notified GEN-GOB that it would not extend the assignment. With this resolution, the consistory puts an end to the stage in which Can Casals has functioned as the headquarters of the environmental group, educational enclave and reference space for workshops, lectures, scientific projects and activities open to the public.
In his letter, sent after Monday’s closure, Palerm summarizes the impact that the project has had: more than 5,000 students have passed through its facilities, in addition to schools, neighbors and local entities. The president of GEN-GOB is grateful for the trust of teachers and professors, the neighborhood support and the collaboration of associations that in recent days tried to prevent the eviction.
A space rehabilitated with European funds
Can Casals, located in the neighborhood of Cas Serres, was rehabilitated in 2020 through European Rural Development Funds (EAFRD) to recover heritage elements -such as the well and the tancón- and destine the property to cultural and environmental uses. A year later, the City Council signed an agreement with GEN-GOB to revitalize it and open it to the community.
Since then, the space has hosted courses, workshops, lectures, scientific campaigns, technical meetings and innovative educational proposals, including the first environmental escape room in the Balearic Islands, focused on posidonia, which has received 2,800 students. Initiatives such as “Fauna pitiusa”, a simulated nocturnal experience for schoolchildren, and the program “Vive la naturaleza! Come to Can Casals!”.
The GEN-GOB Marine Area has used the facilities as a base for monitoring projects of oceanic posidonia, sea urchin studies or Cystoseira sampling.
Concern for the future of space
The farewell letter also expresses concern about the future of the space. Palerm recalls that the European funds committed the City Council to maintain a cultural and environmental use, and hopes that this line is maintained. The president thanks the council for the opportunity to have managed Can Casals, but insists on the need to preserve both the uses and the natural heritage created together with the students and volunteers.
“Today the gardens of Can Casals are full of life,” says the text, which highlights the recovery of species such as sargantanas, scarce when the group arrived at the space.
Change of model: shared municipal use
As explained by the City Council to GEN-GOB, the non-renewal responds to a change in the management model: Can Casals and Can Tomeu will become municipal spaces open to any entity wishing to carry out specific activities, without permanent assignment to a single organization.
GEN-GOB seeks headquarters and denounces lack of educational spaces
From this Monday, GEN-GOB is left without alternative headquarters and will begin the search for a new place to continue its programs. The entity remarks that in the Pitiusas “there are almost no suitable spaces for educational activities outside the classroom” and that the loss of Can Casals is a setback in the environmental education offer.
Numerous entities – such as the Agrupación Astronómica de Ibiza, Amigos de la Tierra, APAEEF, IbizaPreservation, Sa Real, STEI and various educational centers – have publicly expressed their support for the environmental group and their recognition of the work carried out during these four years.
“We hope that Can Casals continues to live”, concludes the farewell letter. In the meantime, GEN-GOB assures that it will continue its environmental work and will keep the public informed about the search for a new space where to continue bringing nature closer to the community.
