Gemma Geis

{{Infobox officeholder

| honorific-prefix = The Honourable

| name = Gemma Geis

| honorific_suffix =

| image = Gemma Geis retrat oficial 2021 (cropped).jpg

| image_size =

| caption = Official portrait (2021)

| office1 = Minister of Research and Universities of Catalonia

| term_start1 = 26 May 2021

| term_end1 = 10 October 2022

| president1 = Pere Aragonès

| predecessor1 = Ramon Tremosa

| successor1 = Joaquim Nadal

| office2 = Member of the Parliament of Catalonia

| constituency2 = Girona

| term_start2 = 17 January 2018

| term_end2 =

| predecessor2 =

| successor2 =

| birth_name = Gemma Geis i Carreras

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1979|11|09|df=y}}

| birth_place = Girona, Catalonia, Spain

| death_date =

| death_place =

| citizenship = Spanish

| nationality =

| party = Together for Catalonia

| otherparty =

| spouse =

| children =

| residence =

| alma_mater = University of Girona

| occupation = Academic

| signature =

| website = {{URL|gemmageis.cat}}

| footnotes =

}}

Gemma Geis i Carreras (born 9 November 1979) is a Spanish academic and politician from Catalonia, former member of the regional Parliament of Catalonia and Catalan minister of Research and Universities of Catalonia between 2021 and 2022.

Early life

Geis was born on 9 November 1979 in Girona, Catalonia.{{cite news |last1=Borràs |first1=Xavier |title=Gemma Geis (JxC): "Si el president fos de la CUP, ara estaria votant la CUP" |url=https://www.naciodigital.cat/noticia/145181/gemma-geis-jxc-si-president-fos-cup-ara-estaria-votant-cup |access-date=27 May 2021 |work=NacióDigital |date=19 December 2017 |location=Barcelona, Spain |language=ca}}{{cite web |title=XII legislatura (17 de gener de 2018 - 21 de desembre de 2020): I. Sra. Gemma Geis i Carreras |url=https://www.parlament.cat/web/composicio/diputats-fitxa/index.html?p_codi=1983&p_legislatura=12 |publisher=Parliament of Catalonia |access-date=26 May 2021 |location=Barcelona, Spain |language=ca}}{{cite news |last1=Fanals |first1=Laura |title=Del claustre de la UdG a la conselleria |url=https://www.diaridegirona.cat/comarques/2021/05/26/claustre-udg-conselleria-52257851.html |access-date=26 May 2021 |work=Diari de Girona |date=26 May 2021 |location=Girona, Spain |language=ca}} Her great-grandfather was a Republican Left of Catalonia mayor of Sarrià de Ter in the 1930s and was later imprisoned by the fascist Franco dictatorship. Her great-uncle was author and composer Camil Geis. Geis and her sister Cristina grew up in the Pont Major neighbourhood of Girona where their parents Martí and Quimeta had a metal workshop. As a child she helped out in the family business.

Geis was educated at Institut Carles Rahola where she was a contemporary of Roger Torrent. She has a degree in law (1998-02) from the University of Girona (UdG) and a master's degree in legal practice from the Barcelona Bar Association (Il·lustre Col·legi d'Advocats de Barcelona).{{cite web |title=Dra. Geis Carreras, Gemma: Plana personal |url=https://www.udg.edu/ca/directori/pagina-personal?ID=2001741 |publisher=University of Girona |access-date=26 May 2021 |location=Girona, Spain |language=ca}} In 2011 the UdG awarded her an extraordinary prize for her 2008 law doctorate thesis "La Ejecución de las Sentencias Urbanísticas" (The Execution of Urban Judgments). For her doctorate she carried out research at the University of Florence, Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne University and Harvard University.{{cite news |last1=Batlle |first1=Eduard |title=La superació arribarà a Harvard |url=https://www.vilaweb.cat/www/elpunt/noticia?p_idcmp=2513047 |access-date=27 May 2021 |work=VilaWeb |date=12 August 2007 |language=ca}}

Career

Geis practiced law at the Bar Association of Girona (Il·lustre Col·legi d'Advocats de Girona) but is currently registered as a non-practicing lawyer. She was a member of the Prague Group of Jurists. She has been teaching at the UdG since 2003 and is currently associate professor of administrative law.{{cite news |title=Gemma Geis, vicerectora de la UdG, serà la cap de llista de JxCat per Girona |url=https://www.diaridegirona.cat/comarques/2017/11/17/gemma-geis-vicerectora-udg-sera-49007824.html |access-date=26 May 2021 |work=Diari de Girona |date=17 November 2017 |location=Girona, Spain |language=ca}} She was vice-rector of Regulatory Development, Governance and Communication at the UdG from 2013 to 2017.

Geis was a member of the Girona monitoring committee for the 2014 Catalan self-determination referendum (9-N). She was invited by Carles Puigdemont to contest the municipal elections in Girona but declined. However, following the 2017 Catalan independence referendum (1-O), she decided to temporarily suspend her academic career and enter politics. She contested the 2017 regional election as an independent Together for Catalonia (JuntsxCat) electoral alliance candidate in the Province of Girona and was elected to the Parliament of Catalonia.{{cite magazine |title=Otras Disposiciones: Juntas Electorales Provinciales - Junta Electoral de Barcelona |magazine=Boletín Oficial del Estado |date=19 November 2017 |issue=281 |page=111442 |url=http://boe.es/boe/dias/2017/11/19/pdfs/BOE-A-2017-13305.pdf |accessdate=10 June 2018 |publisher=Government of Spain |location=Madrid, Spain |language=es}}{{cite web |title=Eleccions al Parlament de Catalunya 2017: Composició del Parlament |url=https://resultats.parlament2017.cat/09AU/DAU09000XX.htm?lang=ca |publisher=Generalitat de Catalunya |language=ca|url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222105244/https://resultats.parlament2017.cat/09AU/DAU09000XX.htm?lang=ca |archivedate=22 December 2017 }} She was re-elected at the 2021 regional election.{{cite magazine |title=Administració Electoral: Juntes Electorals Provincials |journal=Diari Oficial de la Generalitat de Catalunya |date=20 January 2021 |issue=8321A |page=3 |url=https://portaldogc.gencat.cat/utilsEADOP/AppJava/PdfProviderServlet?documentId=891283&type=01&language=ca_ES |access-date=27 May 2021 |publisher=Generalitat de Catalunya |location=Barcelona, Spain |issn=1988-298X |language=ca}}{{cite magazine |title=Administració Electoral: Junta Electoral Central |journal=Diari Oficial de la Generalitat de Catalunya |date=3 March 2021 |issue=8355 |page=6 |url=https://portaldogc.gencat.cat/utilsEADOP/AppJava/PdfProviderServlet?versionId=1838768&type=01 |access-date=25 May 2021 |publisher=Generalitat de Catalunya |location=Barcelona, Spain |issn=1988-298X |language=ca}}

Considered a Puigdemont ally, she was heavily involved in JuntsxCat and the National Call for the Republic.{{cite news |title=Gemma Geis es presenta a les primàries per encapçalar la llista per Girona de JxCat |url=https://www.diaridegirona.cat/girona/2020/11/30/gemma-geis-presenta-les-primaries-48656952.html |access-date=26 May 2021 |work=Diari de Girona |agency=EFE |date=30 November 2020 |location=Girona, Spain |language=ca}}{{cite news |title=New pro-independence platform founded |url=https://www.catalannews.com/politics/item/new-pro-independence-platform-founded |access-date=27 May 2021 |work=Catalan News Agency |date=26 May 2021 |location=Barcelona, Spain}} On 26 May 2021 she was sworn in as Minister of Research and Universities in the new government of President Pere Aragonès.{{cite news |title=New Catalan ministers take office under the presidency of Pere Aragonès |url=https://www.catalannews.com/politics/item/new-catalan-ministers-take-office-under-the-presidency-of-pere-aragones |access-date=26 May 2021 |work=Catalan News Agency |date=26 May 2021 |location=Barcelona, Spain}}{{cite news |last1=Calvet |first1=Josep M. |title=Los consellers de Aragonès toman posesión sin referencias al Estatut ni a la Constitución |url=https://www.lavanguardia.com/politica/20210526/7482392/14-consellers-aragones-toman-posesion-cargos.html |access-date=26 May 2021 |work=La Vanguardia |date=26 May 2021 |location=Barcelona, Spain |language=es}}{{cite magazine |title=Càrrecs i Personal: Departament de la Presidència |journal=Diari Oficial de la Generalitat de Catalunya |date=26 May 2021 |issue=8418A |page=1 |url=https://portaldogc.gencat.cat/utilsEADOP/AppJava/PdfProviderServlet?versionId=1853623&type=01 |access-date=28 May 2021 |publisher=Generalitat de Catalunya |location=Barcelona, Spain |issn=1988-298X |language=ca}}

Other activities

Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), Member of the Board of Trustees[https://www.isglobal.org/en/governance Governance] Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal).
Greenpeace, Member