The insular director of Culture of the Cabildo of Gran Canaria, Serafín Sánchez, concluded the XIII Campus of Ethnography and Folklore at the Ingenio Town Hall. Seven young researchers presented their work on Canarian cultural heritage.
The plenary hall of the Ingenio Town Hall hosted the conclusion of the XIII Campus of Ethnography and Folklore on July 17, an event that brought together young researchers to highlight Canarian cultural heritage. The keynote address, delivered by Serafín Sánchez, insular director of Culture of the Cabildo of Gran Canaria, focused on the results of the programme ‘Gran Canaria Singular: Calando Cultura’, an initiative of the insular Department of Culture.
Calado as Intangible Heritage
Serafín Sánchez, also a professor of Administrative Foundations at the IES de Ingenio, explained that the Cabildo's objective was to “make artisanal calado visible as part of our intangible heritage with the intention of passing it on to new generations, but with an interdisciplinary perspective and a forward-looking projection.” The project involved students from two educational centres on the island: the IES de Ingenio and the IES Pérez Galdós in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
Sánchez warned that this traditional manifestation, “a symbol of heritage, creativity, and cultural resistance,” needs to be reactivated to prevent its possible extinction. “Preserving our culture means keeping it alive, making it evolve, and turning it into a tool for identity, knowledge, and social cohesion,” he stated. The insular director recalled that the women who kept calado alive for generations “changed the future without knowing it” and that it is now up to today’s society to do the same.
“If in 30 years a child recognises what a piece of calado is as something their own, we will have fulfilled our mission,” Sánchez declared.
Seven Studies on Tradition and Identity
After the conference, seven presentations were made by young researchers. Ángel Vega presented on the evolution of folía in Gran Canaria; Cristina Rodríguez, aged eleven, defended folklore as a fundamental pillar in her life; and Adrián Jiménez addressed the role of grandparents in the transmission of values. Leire Hernández spoke about the legacy of the harimaguadas, and Mencey Estévez highlighted theatre as the voice of folklore and identity.
Medical student Lucía Pérez presented a study on gender bias in medical research, noting that only 33 percent of researchers are women, which renders female diseases invisible. Finally, Yurima Pérez reviewed the history of the Tefía Concentration Camp in Fuerteventura, a Place of Democratic Memory designated by the Spanish Government.
The campus, promoted by the ULPGC, is part of the 31st edition of the International Folklore Festival of Ingenio ‘Muestra Solidaria de los Pueblos’, which will run until July 28. The festival will conclude on July 25 with a musical show featuring groups from Taiwan, Ivory Coast, Greece, Armenia, Bulgaria, Puerto Rico, and Spain, alongside local groups.
For the residents of Ingenio and the rest of Gran Canaria, this event represents a unique opportunity to rediscover traditions that are at risk of being lost. The festival and the campus demonstrate that folklore is not a thing of the past, but a living tool of identity. Anyone wanting to immerse themselves in Canarian culture has an unmissable appointment until the end of July.
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