Economist and geographer

With a professional background in local economic development since 1994, initially as a private consultant for public authorities in Spain and Latin America, and later, from 2005 onwards, within Barcelona Provincial Council, where he was head of the Technical Office for Economic Development Strategies (2012-2016). Presently, he serves as the general coordinator of the Barcelona Metropolitan Strategic Plan.

In addition, he is the technical coordinator at the Barcelona-UPF Chair of Local Economic Policy, member of the teaching staff at the Ibero-American Centre for Urban Strategic Development and lecturer in the Metropolis Master’s in Urban and Metropolitan Studies at the UAB. He sits on the advisory board of the Barcelona Neighbourhood Plan and the scientific council of the BIT Habitat Foundation, among others.

Articles by Oriol Estela Barnet

Illustration ©Rebeka Elizegi
The city of five millionWhat are we talking about when we talk about the metropolitan region?

The expansion of urbanisation, coupled with the consequent overflow of administrative boundaries, bears a...

Il·lustració © Maria Corte
The futures of workWorking in the post-COVID metropolis

The pandemic has hastened the uptake of remote work and reflections have burgeoned on the changes it is bringing and how it is transforming the city. Many people will no longer...

Il·lustració © Ana Yael Zareceansky. Dues persones es troben assegudes en uns balancins, cadascuna sobre un precipici. Entre les dues persones es veu un pont que aquestes dues persones estan teixint.
Building the metropolisThe era of re-balancing economic policies with global projection

One of the essential questions with which cities like Barcelona are currently grappling is how can we combine economic success in global terms with local prosperity and social...

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