The Park Güell is a public park system located on Carmel Hill in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It consists of gardens and architectonic elements designed by Antoni Gaudí. Carmel Hill is part of the Collserola mountain range, and the Parc del Carmel section of the park is located on the northern face of the hill. The park offers visitors landscaped grounds with pathways, steps and structures decorated with ceramic tiles and mosaics.

1. The Park Güell
Carmel Hill, Barcelona
The Park Güell is a public park system composed of gardens and architectonic elements
located on Carmel Hill, in Barcelona, Catalonia. Carmel Hill belongs to the mountain range of
Collserola – the Parc del Carmel is located on the northern face.
- Wikipedia 2017
Written and published by: Steph Harington Maddison Sheahan Esther Stewart Bess Kershaw Callum Was
Spain is a country filled with rich history and vibrant
tradition, yet beyond Spain’s percieved customs a culture
exists that welcomes change with open arms.
Spain’s footballing prestige is common knowledge across
the globe with the national side rarely drifting out of the
top 10 in the FIFA rankings. Some of the most successful
and recognised sporting brands also operate domestically
with Real Madrid and FC Barcelona leading the charge.
Yet a successful football & sporting culture is not enough
to deem a nation worthy enough to host an event such as
the World Cup, so just how suitable is Spain for holding
such an event?
As a powerhouse of the European Union, Spain has been
at the forefront of societal change in an increasingly
interconnected and globalised world. Constanly adapting
in accordance with a globalised standards, acceptance of
everybody regardless of race, gender, age or religion has
been of increased importance and prioritisation within the
Spanish community.
Spain’s toursim media industry remains one of the
strongest in Europe, with an ever increasing amount of
travellers entering the country each year. Even though
stereotypes and gender roles are often missportrayed in
domestic media, Spains culture is always prevalent and
celebrated.
Spain’s culture and society are still developing beyond the
boundaires inforced by their dictatorship political structu
from the 70’s. Their current state may still prove to be
suitable for a FIFA World Cup as the following report
documents.
SPAIN 2026

2. Gender Equality and women in the workforce
Prior to 1975, gender inequality was significantly evident in
Spain due to the dictatorship of Francisco Franco. This
imposed a gender ideology, women were poorly represented in
the workforce restricting their rights and forcing both men and
women into traditional gender roles
(Hernandez Bark et al. 2014, p. 523).
After Franco’s death, societal and gender equality in Spain has
changed drastically and in 2004 Spain’s socialist Prime Minister
José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero promised to enhance the gender
equality in Spain, making it a top priority (Minguez-Vera et al.
2011, p. 2859).
Minguez-Vera et al. (2011, p. 2859) also identified that in 2007,
the Spanish parliament approved a Gender Equality Act that
aimed to encourage greater employment of women, by giving
preferential treatment to companies with higher female ratios
when bidding for government contracts. Since the global
financial crisis in 2008, Spain has faced severe economic
difficulties, resulting in a halt in the progress of gender
equality.
In 2011, it was evident that 50% of women In Spain
worked full time in comparison to 80% of men (Hernandez Bark
et al. 2014, p. 523). In comparison to Spain, countries such as
Germany and the United States have seen a continuous positive
development for gender equality since the 1960’s, and at the
beginning of the 21st century Hernandez Bark et al. (2014, p. 523) s
tates that 45.6% of Germans and 46.9% of Americans in the
workforce were women. Gender equality can generate an increase
in a country's economy and quality of life, and therefore the FIFA
World Cup in Spain may provide a hopeful opportunity for this
avenue.
Immigration and Multiculturalism
In recent years, Spain is a country that has transformed into
a diverse society, due to the shift from an emigrant country
to animmigrant country. Arocena (2011, p. 89) identified
that between 1998 and 2008, Spain attracted over 6 million
immigrants from many parts of the world, creating one of
the largest waves of migration in Europe with the second
largest immigrant population in the developed world after
the United States (Alama-Sabater et al. 2017, p, 1849).
These statistics show that immigration in Spain is not
perceived as a cultural threat. It was seen as an attractive
country due to the strong political stability and economic
growth in this time, and as stated by Gustavoburkle (2015)
a popular destination for Latin Americans due to a common
language and many historical, cultural and religious links.
However, the number of residents in Spain was seen to
decrease after the global financial crisis in 2008, due to the
strong economic downturn and rise in unemployment rates.
In 2016, Arteta (2017) states that Spain has seen a rise in
population for the first time in 5 years as over 300 000
immigrants from countries such as Venezuela, Morocco,
Colombia and Romania have settled down in the country.
The loose immigration policy in Spain is an integral factor
for the foundation of the country, and assists in a strong
social movement to benefit society.

3. Cultural Values and Ethics in Spain
Spain has various cultural and ethical values. Family
orientation is a distinctive cultural value for Spanish
people as they eat lunch or dinner together and on
the weekends those who no longer live at home
return for a family meal (Donquijote 2017). Young
people have close ties to their families and as a result
move out of home in their late twenties and early
thirties as they prepare for marriage
(Fernández Cordón 1997, p. 574).
It is assumed that this importance of living at home
is a result of the once stronger view on religion and
one being chaste until marriage. However, there are
additional reasons for young people wanting to live at
home such as limited rental opportunities, house
affordability and youth unemployment (Fernández Cordón
1997, p. 576).
Another cultural value for Spain is religion. The main
religion in the country is Roman Catholicism. Between
81% and 84% of the population self-identify as Catholics
(Spain Exchange 2017). Due to this high percentage,
CULTURE
Catholicism in Spain is more cultural rather than a religious.
However, Spain’s views on major social issues are more
liberal than in other European countries.
Over 70% of the country is in favor for same-sex marriage
(What Spain 2011). Spain holds liberal views and laws
regarding adoption, abortion, birth control and divorce
which all go against the beliefs of the Catholic Church
(What Spain 2011). These liberal views are echoed in the
neighbouring country of France that has banned religious
garments in order to keep religion out of public life
(S.P 2014).
Political issues
Spanish politics are similar to much of the world's
politics at the moment as they are filled with change,
confusion and vastly different opinions. Mariano Rajoy
is the current Prime Minister of Spain and has been the
first Spanish Prime Minister to testify in a criminal case
(Jones, 2017). This is in regards to his party being
accused of fraud. Rajoy belongs to the People’s Party
which is a centre-right Christian party. Recently the
Popular Party and their long-time Opposition Party the
Socialist Party merged in order to win an election
(Lantier 2015). This has created confusion as two
parties with entirely opposite beliefs and values try to
lead. The main political issues these parties face are
unemployment which is up by 20%, freedom of speech
which is now limited by law, mistreatment of migrants,
violence against women and counter terrorism laws
that have been deemed too harsh by Amnesty
International (Anderson, 2016).
History & traditions & Icons
There are several traditions and Icons in Spain that are
rooted in their history. Flamenco dancing is a significant
Spanish tradition as it was created in Southern Spain and
is a representation of the merging of various Spanish
cultures. (Enforex 2017). Siestas are a key Spanish
tradition that have occurred throughout Spanish history.
Siestas typically occur during a two-hour work break.
They were originally introduced as a means to deal with
the hot working conditions (BBC News 2016). Whilst there
is debate about getting rid of this tradition, it is clear that
it is a key part of the working day and would be difficult to
abolish. Another key element of Spanish history is the
influence of Basque History today. The Basque people group
originated in Spain and France in the Western foothills of
Pyrenees Mountains (Britannica 2017). These people worked
as farmers and held highly religious morals. This is where it is
believed that Spain as a society was originally influenced from
and is the reason that Spain, whilst moving towards a liberal
society is still holding onto religious artifacts, icons and holidays.
What do these cultural values demonstrate?
These cultural values display that Spain is a complex and diverse
people group. Whilst it may appear contradictory that Spaniards
still hold on to religious elements whilst supporting more liberal
views it should be understood that these people have deep
respect for their history. It is evident that Spain is currently in a
time of adapting and transitioning in a complex climate.

4. Spanish Tourism Advertising
Although the increasing unpredictability and terrorism
attacks that Europe has endured over the past years,
the travel and tourism of Spain has continued to grow
largely. This has contributed to Spain's economy with
an increase of 3.1% since 2016, with a generated total
of US$7.6 trillion in the Travel and Tourism sector
(Turner & Freiermuth. 2017, p.1)
Spain's Tourism representation stays strong and
ongoing in the aspect of advertising. In 2011 the
‘I Need Spain’ campaign was released that projected
to the screens of 40 countries.
The campaign distributed a series of television
advertisements that had a central theme of the Spanish
culture and lifestyle.The cultured based campaign strongly
depicted the Spaniards quality of life and what makes up
their culture, including, sport, cuisine, environment and
family values.
This campaign was aimed to reach a variety of cultures
globally, including China and the Middle East.
Each advertisement was specifically designed for a unique
and individual culture, with each series containing
individuals that represent a variety of nationalities.
The Spanish Tourism Office selected a number of “priority
MEDIA
products” to feature in the campaign series that would
display what makes up the Spanish culture, these products
being the sun, beach, nature, city tourism and family
(La Moncloa. 2014, p.1).
Benefits of the World cup in Spain
The World Travel and Tourism 2017 (p.2) report evidently
shows that for six years, the growth of Travel and Tourism in
Spain has outperformed a recorded 116 of 184 countries
that were in the research of economy wide growth. These
other thriving countries included Australia, Canada, China,
Mexico, South Africa and India. Not only was the Spanish
tourism sector booming, it was also coming on top in financial,
public services, transport and retail distribution.
The report stated the tourism sector for 2017 onwards will
remain ‘robust’ and will be at the ‘forefront of wealth’ with
an expected growth of 3.8% for 2018.
This expected growth of tourism and public services shows
positive potential that Spain would be a highly suitable option
to host a global event, such as the World Cup, as it has the
resources and ability to accommodate diversity and meet the
cultural needs of alike countries.
Spanish Gender Representation and Stereotyping in Media
Spain has clear gender representations and stereotypes which are
apparent in their everyday media. A 2015 study based upon
the study of teenage Spanish films revealed that these films clearly
depicted unequal gender images which was represented in both
plot and characters (Hernandez et al. 2015, p.955). It was identified
that there was a clear connection to female characters being
passive and not making direct action unless initiated by a male
character (Hernandez et al. 2015, p.955).
Another media, newspapers revealed that women were the subject
in just 10% of news stories (Matud et al. 2011, p. 254). They were also
only used 20.4% of the time as sources of information. Also In the
media of radio news programs women were found to speak only
18% of the time (Matud et al. 2011, p. 255). It was also found in
these programs that women were represented as victims and
non-experts compared to men who were often represented to be
experts or academics (Matud et al. 2011, p. 255).
Clearly the Spain’s everyday values of gender representations and
stereotypes are clearly depicted through their media. In hosting the
World Cup, it could hopefully help in breaking these gender barriers.
Spanish Regulations to Advertising towards Children
Advertising to children on a global scale attract ethical issues
that range from product concerns and how children, who may
be subjective to these advertisements, will suffer intellectually.
Many global societies are aware of the promotional sphere we
live in; however, it is still a major issue of how these promotional
activities affect children.
European and Spanish public laws have been put in place to
protect children from “influences” and have introduced policies
to address this (Campos et al. 2016).
Food and Beverage advertising is Spain has been a recent topic
of ethical proportion.
Campos et al. (p.801) reports that the marketing of food to
children has become a ‘widespread’ topic as Spanish associations
have found a correlation between watching TV and childhood
obesity. In 2005 (p.802) the European Heart Network found
research that showed majority of food advertisements in Europe
were classified as unhealthy. Spain public health associations
recognised this as a major concern and deemed it necessary to
put in place a regulatory system.
The Spanish Deputy Prime Minister established a self-regulatory
code on the protection of children in 2004 (Hawkes, C. 2006, p.24).
Included in this code was a self-regulatory code for food and
beverage advertising which included two prohibitions:
1. Use in food advertising of characters or personalities
popular with children
2. Product placements for foods and drinks during
programmes directed at children under the age of
12 years’ old

5. The macro environment of Spain in the last century has influenced
and shaped the country. Various cultural and ethical aspects of
modern day Spain have been fundamentally shaped by this
environment. Spain is one of the many countries apart of the
European Union, which is a family of liberal-democratic states
within union that united in result of World War 2 (Cini 2016, p. 3).
The European Union has various treaties, legislations and a set of
common values in human rights, social justice and democracy in
which the states follow by. Although recent years has seen the
European Union face a lot criticism since the 2007 financial crisis
and the Euro zone crisis in 2010 (Cini 2016, p. 3). These crisis’s
heavily affected Spain’s economic environment. At the beginning
of the 21st Century Spain was the fifth industrial power state in
Europe but the financial crisis in 2007 hurt the country. Even
before the crisis Spain had one of the biggest external debts
(Etxezarreta et al. 2011, p.2).
In context of 2017 Spain’s economic environment it is finally on
its way to recovery since the crisis although it has resulted in various
cultural issues. Inequality in class has dramatically increased and has
opened up the new class of ‘working poor’ which has also resulted
in the country having a larger number of emigrants than immigrants
(Eurostat 2017) (Buck 2017). Financially the country is still heavily in
debt, 100 per cent of GDP to be exact (Buck 2017). Clearly the macro
environment of Spain has heavily affected not only the economics in
the country but also immigration and classes. Evidently Spain is still
in recovery from this crisis and may struggle to afford to host such a
large sporting event.

6. Although Spain’s current social climate can still develop to
become more globally acceptable in terms of media representation,
media stereotypes, gender equality and treatment of minorities,
Spain still is a global leader in terms of immigration and
multiculturalism.
And whilst a lot can still be improved in terms of social responsibility
the positive direction Spain is heading in is something to be
acknowledged and celebrated.
The benefits of a World Cup can greatly improve Spain’s social
environment through the cultural celebration that is the world
game.
VERDICT

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