Barcelona Meeting Point

Luis Sanz was born in Valencia (Spain), in January 1952.

Finishing high school he applied and was accepted to an AFS training scholarship to stay for one year in the USA and upon his return he began his higher education at the University of Valencia (Faculties of Law and Linguistics), and in 1973 moved to The Netherlands, where he finished his education in Linguistics and Sociology at the University of Amsterdam.

He worked for five years as a journalist for the International Dutch Radio Broadcasting System, and was Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Modern Languages of the University of Utrecht in the late seventies.

In 1980 he moved to Italy where he began his professional activities in the private sector, as Marketing and Export Manager of an important group of industries in the optical sector.

In 1981 he founded his own consulting company in Italy, focusing on international marketing and import-export activities.

In 1987 he returned to Spain to set-up and develop the Technology Park of Valencia. During this period he was:

• Vice-President of the Spanish Association of Technology Parks (1990-94),
• President of the IASP European Division (1992-96), and
• Member of the IASP International Board of Directors (1992-1995).

In 1995 he was elected International Vice-President of the IASP and in 1996 he was appointed Director General of the IASP (International Association of Science Parks).

In 2001 he was appointed Chairman of the Advisory Council of the IASP.

In 2005 he was elected General Co-ordinator of the World Alliance for Innovation, which gathers the most important national associations of Science Parks and innovation-based business incubators in the world.

Luis Sanz is also President and founder of Perfil Trh. S.L.,an international technology-brokerage company, and Chairman of LU2 Ventures Ltd., a Hong Kong-based corporation operating in the areas of economic development and technology-based investments, with branch offices in Spain and The Netherlands.

He has published a large number of articles and presented many papers on the topic of Technology Parks, innovation, knowledge economy, sociology of globalisation, etc. He is also editing consultant and advisor to economy magazines, and special advisor to Science and Technology Parks in different countries.

Luis Sanz speaks Spanish, English, French, Italian and Dutch, and Portuguese. Since 1982 is also “official interpreter” of the State, in Spain.



PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

Current positions in the Science Parks sector:

• Co-ordinator of the World Alliance for Innovation (WAINOVA) (2005…)
• Economic Advisor to Jinan Hi-Tech Zone [China], (2002…)
• Chairman of IASP Advisory Council (2001…)
• Member, Evaluation Committee Area Science Park [Italy], (2001…)
• Director General of the IASP, (1996…)


Other current positions:

• Chairman of LU2 Ventures Ltd. (2006…)
• President Perfil Trh. Consulting S.L. (1996…)

Past positions:

• President IASP-Europe (1992-1996)
• International Vice-president IASP (1995-1996)
• Editing consultant to “China High Technology Enterprises” (2002-2005)
• Journalist and Radio programmer. Radio 8. Spain. (1996-1999)
• Vice-president APTE. Spanish Association of Science Parks. (1990-1994)
• Vice-President Marketing Valencia Technology Park. Spain. (1987-1996)
• Founder and President of Traduttori e Servizi Riuniti S.r.L. Italy. (1981-1987)
• Marketing and Export Manager. Metaloptics S.p.A. Italy. (1980-1987)
• Assistant Prof. Faculty of Linguistics. University of Utrecht. (1977-1979)
• Economic Journalist. Radio Nederland Wereldomroep. (1975-1980)


OTHER ACTIVITIES RELATED TO SCIENCE/TECHNOLOGY PARKS:


• Chief co-ordinator of International Conferences on Science and Technology Parks: Valencia 1991. Budapest 1995. Singapore 1996. Rio de Janeiro 1996, Madeira 1997. Trieste 1997. Trivandrum 1997. Brisbane 1998. Stockholm 1998. Istanbul 1999, Málaga 1999, Edinburgh 2000, Bilbao 2001, Québec 2002, Lisboa 2003, Bangkok 2003, Bergamo 2004, Beijing 2005, Helsinki 2006, Isfahan 2006. In preparation: Barcelona 2007, Johannerburg 2008, Raleigh 2009.

• Over 100 papers and articles on Science and Technology Parks and Information Society economy in different international newspapers and specialised magazines, as well as in many international conferences and seminars.


• Co-editor of the book “Frontiers of Innovation: Readings on Science Park economics”.

• Director of IASP training seminars on management of Science and Technology Parks in Istanbul (1987), Hungary (1987 and 1988), Málaga (1988), Panama (1999), Barcelona (2002), Bergamo (2004), Buenos Aires (2005), Beijing (2005)

• Expert consultant of the RECA group, in the frame of the EU technical co-operation for the development of the Tecnoparque Internacional de Panamá.


OTHER ACTIVITIES

• Aviation pilot (with the rating of Flight Instructor).
• Chief flight instructor at the flying school of La Llosa. Spain. (1990-1995)
• Vice-President of the Royal Aeroclub of Valencia. (1994-1996)
• Founder and Director of the aviation magazine “Cielo Abierto” (1994-1996)