About Asturias

Asturias is an Autonomous Community with only one province located at the North-West of Spain. It borders the Cantabrian Sea to the North, the Autonomous Community of Galicia to the West, Cantabria to the East and Castille-Leon to the South. Its surface comprises 10,600 km2 and its population amounts to around 1 million inhabitants: around 100 people per square meter.

Its relief is very sheer, with mountain ranges that separate it from the rest of the Iberian Peninsula. The humid and mild climate of the region benefit a green natural environment of great quality, which has been popularized by the slogan "Asturias, Natural Paradise". In fact, the region has six great areas that are part of the Global Network of Biosphere Reservations of the UNESCO. The abrupt coast of Asturias, which extends itself throughout 345 km, presents numerous beaches, coves and cliffs.

The Asturian territory shows a clear duality between the urban and rural zones, whose differences have been decreasing. 80% of the population of Asturias is found at the central area of the region: more precisely, in the triangle formed by the cities of Gijón, Oviedo and Avilés, alongside the surrounding areas, such as the mining communities of the Nalón and the Caudal rivers.

From an administrative point of view, the region is divided into 78 local entities, known as councils, which are equivalent to the municipalities of other Spanish communities. The competences of the Autonomous Community are regulated through a legislative organ -the General Council of the Principality- and the are executed by the Governing Council and its President.

The thousands of years of Asturian history are made visible in a rich cultural heritage, of which there are noteworthy samples in the Paleolithical Rock Art and the Asturian Pre-Romanesque Art. Furthermore, the region maintains a rich ethnographical heritage and its own linguistic variant: the Asturian language.

An outstanding resource: the University of Oviedo

The University of Oviedo is the public institution of higher learning and research of the Principality of Asturias. Its history dates back to more than 400 years ago and it currently has a complete offer of Undergraduate Degrees adapted to the European Higher Education Area in all the fields of knowledge. The University conducts 80% of the R&D&i of Asturias and has the most advanced services and equipment to promote the transfer of knowledge to the productive tissue of society.

Alongside culture, tradition and a privileged natural environment, Asturias enjoys from a positive reputation as a destination for tourism and leisure, with a wide offer for recreation and relaxation, as well as one of the most celebrated cuisines of the country. It is a place of the world that has a lot to offer to its visitors.

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Universidad de Oviedo

UbiCamp: Integrated Solution to Virtual Mobility Barriers
Project No 526843-LLP-1-2012-1-ES-ERASMUS-ESMO
Contractor University of Oviedo

This Project has been founded with support from the European Commission.
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