return

In 1885, Finland mistakenly built a lighthouse in Sweden, so its neighbor redrew the border to return it to them.

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The Market Island It is most particular. How Guinness certifiesalong with Koiluoto, is the smallest uninhabited island shared between two nations: Sweden and Finland, once integrated into the Russian Empire (became independent in 1917but the history of Finland is another story). Unlike other islands with this casuistry such as Hispaniola (shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic), its border is not more or less a straight line: It looks like an S, as you can see in the image that illustrates this article. The reason for this winding muga is a lighthouse. As a curiosity, the Market lighthouse It had its lighthouse keeper in charge of managing it until it was automated in 1977, at which time the island became uninhabited, beyond tourists who came to visit its impressive fauna. Located at the entrance to the Gulf of Bothnia in the Baltic Sea, Märket is halfway between the islands bordering the Swedish provinces of Uppsala and Stockholm to the west, and the Finnish archipelago of Åland to the east. The western part of the island is administered by Sweden and is also divided into two provinces: Uppsala and Stockholm. The eastern area corresponds to Hammarland, belonging to the Finnish autonomous territory of Åland. Although the exact date on which Märket emerged from the sea is unknown, geology is based in the postglacial rebound rhythm of the region (greater than 5 mm per year) to point to the 16th century. Märket barely has 0.033 square kilometers, spread over a surface of mostly smooth diabase rock, with a maximum elevation of about 3.5 meters above sea level. On its northern and southern coasts there are coves that serve as natural ports for small boats. To prevent ships from running aground on its reef, in 1885 the Tsar of Russia commissioned the construction of a lighthouse, designed by the Finnish architect Georg Schreck: the wayward Märket lighthouse. Stay with one piece of information: Schreck chose the highest point on the island to build it with all the sense in the world: it is the least exposed to waves and ice. The Märket Island lighthouse has caused Sweden and Finland to change their borders But before we go to 1885, let’s move to 1809, the moment when Sweden and the Russian Empire drew their borders in the Treaty of Fredrikshamn. According to this agreement, the borders would be fixed on geographical elements and the sea border would be fixed in the Åland Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia, with the islands assigned to the nearest country. The topographical description of 1811 ruled: that line crossed Märket exactly through its geographical center. This original border can be revised in the historical archive Histdocwhich houses the official record: Original Märket border. Official document of the governments of Sweden and Finland. Via Histdoc You don’t have to pay much attention to observe an abysmal difference between the original border and the current one. Now it is time to travel back in time to 1885 when, after enduring the harsh climate (even in summer) of the island, the construction of the lighthouse was completed. Then two other attached buildings would arrive, a warehouse and a machine room. There was just one tiny, tiny problem.: They had planted it on the Swedish side. Märket is (and always has been) an inhospitable island in the wilderness, not a place to pass through or stay. So no one bothered to solve this little problem until the 1980s. Specifically, the formal border demarcation process of 1979-1981 officially showed that the lighthouse was between 35 and 60 meters west of the central point of the islet: on the Swedish side. As you can see on the map, the buildings are marked in part B, entirely on the Swedish side. So in 1985 they resolved it amicably. A joint Swedish-Finnish commission decided to modify the border so that the lighthouse was on the Finnish side through an exchange of territories, which generated that characteristic S shape. The maritime borders could not be modified without affecting the fishing areas, so they were limited to the land. Since then, the border has been marked with perforations in the rock itself (doing it any other way is not feasible due to its meteorological conditions) for almost 500 meters. In Xataka | A man bought a desert island in 1962: he planted 16,000 trees and turned it into an anti-rich sanctuary In Xataka | There is a paradise island that you only enter armed. And the United Kingdom wants to “liberate” it from the United States Cover | Google Maps and tt_koski

Epic Games has won. Fortnite will return to the Play Store and developer commissions will be lower than ever

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It’s been almost six years since it started the war between Epic Games and Google. A battle in which the American court ended up determining that the Google Play Store it was a monopolyand in which the company was forced to change its commission system and policy with third-party stores. Today, we know exactly what those changes will look like. A new era. We don’t say it, Google says it in its publication titled “A new era for choice and openness.” The lawsuits with Epic Games have forced the company to take a new directionmaking its commission system more flexible and allowing third-party developers to implement their own stores. The change in commissions. Google will eliminate its 30% commissions and move to a new 20% one. This rate refers to the commission charged by the application store when a user purchases something within an app (in app purchase). New developers who join the new Google programs will be able to reduce this commission up to 15%. These figures say goodbye to the 30% rate that giants like Epic Games described it as abusiveand which were modified by judicial order of the US Supreme Court. Third party stores. Epic Games had to launch your Epic Games Store outside of Google Play to avoid commissions, something that will no longer be necessary. Just like Apple had to do, Google will have to facilitate the installation process of third-party stores. As they have shown in their own publication, there will be an interface on Android dedicated to third-party application stores, so that users who download them have a more simplified and unified installation flow. This interface will be available to all developers who want to join the program. Otherwise, we will continue to be able to install them like any other APK. The before and after. The Google/Epic case marks a before and after: it is a warning to the rest of the giants. The PC platform Steam charges a 30% commission on game sales and microtransactions. Same figure that Sony charges developers on the PlayStation Store. For years, 30% became the name of large stores, but European regulatory pressures and the antitrust trials held in the US are the first blow to this wall of 30. In Xataka | Obtainium: what it is and how this alternative application store to the Google Play Store on Android works

How they are taxed and how much withholding they have in your 2026 return

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Let’s tell you How Treasury Bills are taxed in Income 2025which is the statement we will make in 2026 to catch up with the last fiscal year. Treasury bills are a good method to invest at low risk and with an interesting return, but you also have to include them in your declaration. Here, before starting you should know that now you are not going to declare those purchased last yearbut you will have to pay taxes on those that you may have purchased in the previous year, which are those that have expired during the last year. Come on, the year in which they were purchased is not taken into account, but rather the year in which they expired and the money was returned to you. How to declare Treasury Bills The treasure bills You have to declare them in your income tax the year after you sell them.. Because the important point is not when you bought them, but when you sell them to recover the money and keep the profits. That’s why, if you sold your Treasury Bills in 2025 You will have to declare them this year, whether you bought them then or not. But if you only bought them and haven’t sold them yet, then you won’t have to declare them yet. If you sell them this year, you will declare them next year when you make the declaration related to this year. The Bills are considered as “financial assets issued at a discount or implicit return.” This means that the difference between what you paid for them and what you received when you amortized them is something that you must declare. It is considered a return on movable capitaland is subject to the corresponding personal income tax. For example, if you buy Treasury Bills worth 20,000 euros and sell them the following year for 20,400 euros, your return obtained is 400 euros. This means that you will not have to declare the 20,400, but rather you will declare the 400 you have obtained as performance. And so with everything, what matters is not what you spend but the performance you get with it. Of course, whether one or another income tax bracket is applied will depend on the amount of the return. To declare Treasury Bills, you will have to do so in an informative manner filling out the Treasury form 192. It is a procedure that you can already do since the year has begun, and then the profits will be taxed to the Tax Agency in the Income Tax return. With all this, when reporting on it, it is normal that the letters appear in the draft when you go to make the declaration, and that you don’t have to worry anymore. These are the established sections depending on the profits you get: 19% retention for earnings of less than 6,000 euros. 21% retention for profits between 6,000 and 50,000 euros. 23% retention for profits between 50,000 and 200,000 euros. 27% retention for profits between 200,000 and 300,000 euros. 28% retention for profits greater than 300,000 euros. In Xataka Basics | Digital Certificate for Income 2025: how to request it from your PC or your mobile and prepare for the 2026 draft

The return to the Moon is delayed again and now helium is to blame

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If at this point someone tells you that NASA has delayed the mission again Artemis IIthe most logical thing is to think that they are playing a joke on you, since the list of accumulated postponements begins to border on comedy. And the last one is not for less, since after announcing that the last tests had been a success, hours later we knew that the mission scheduled in the window that opened on March 6 has been postponed again and the rocket returns to its ‘garage’. The new culprit. If one of the great enemies was hydrogen, which already forced delay the first date that we had for 2026, now the focus has been on helium. And, after the second general test with fuel that we saw last fridayengineers have detected a new technical problem in the propulsion system of the SLS superrocket. Specifically, it is an interruption in the flow of helium in the intermediate cryogenic stage. AND it’s not a minor mattersince this gas is absolutely essential to purge the engines and pressurize the cryogenic fuel tanks in order to ensure mission safety. And although everything worked well in the previous tests, during the post-test the system said “enough.” To the starting box. As confirmed by NASA itself on its official blog this February 21, as well as Jared Isaacman, current administrator of the agency, via Xthe team is evaluating the situation, but the decision has already been made: rollback. Repairs cannot be done outdoors on the launch pad, forcing the behemoth SLS to be returned to its garage, technically known as the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). The possible causes of this failure range from a blocked filter to a failure in the umbilical interface or the check valve, which are technical ghosts that are dangerously reminiscent of the problems that already tortured Artemis I in 2022 and that generated a situation of constant delays that took away all the seriousness of the mission. The new window. With March completely off the calendar, everything points to April, if it resolves quickly enough and passes the next general test. Although, given what we have seen, fixing one problem causes a completely different problem to arise, so saying a date is real nonsense. The chronology. Making a list of all the critical points in the mission that was to put four humans back into lunar orbit is almost a titanic and memory challenge, but we are going to illustrate it to make clear the context of delays that we have seen in this mission that has been going on for years. It all starts in November 2024, which was the original launch date. Throughout 2024, the mission was scheduled from September 2025 to April 2026 after discovering severe damage in the heat shield of the Orion capsule during Artemis I. In March 2025, a little light was seen when it was pointed out that the mission could be brought forward until February 2026. January 2026: a winter storm delay transfer to the launch pad. February 2, 2026: the first dress rehearsal is aborted with 5 minutes left due to a hydrogen leak liquid. February 21, 2026: After fixing the leak, the second rehearsal is a success and announces the date of March 6 with great fanfare… and in the end the helium fails, throwing March overboard. Doubts about the future. The bad experience with Artemis I and II already makes us doubt everything that NASA has planned in the future. Artemis III is the next major space project that aims to land at the south pole of the Moon and for man to set foot on lunar soil again. A mission that has already been delayed until 2027 in order to further perfect the capsule and the suits space. But the real focus is on Mars with the goal of humans setting foot on the red planet for the first time. A much more complex mission as it involves a much greater distance and a mission time that requires the astronauts to travel for many more days, with all the security implications that this entails. China. The great competitor of the United States in this space race, which has a great political component behind it. And while NASA turns its calendars into wet paper, on the other side of the world the Chinese space program follows a methodical rhythm, opaque in its crises, but at the moment relentless in its dates. Right now the goal is to put taikonauts on the lunar surface by 2030, and although the United States there is still room for temporary advantagethe image contrast is brutal: while the SLS suffocates between hydrogen leaks and helium failures under the spotlights around the planet, the Chinese space agency (CNSA) continues to chain millimeter successes with its Chang’e robotic missions. Images | POT In Xataka | Two Spanish space giants have joined forces to take 5G defense satellites into space: PLD Space and Sateliot

Long-term forecasts return rain to Spain

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Although we have had storms and surprises in the last couple of weeks, the truth is that we have enjoyed a certain meteorological stability that has given a break to the very saturated soils, rivers and swamps of the peninsular geography. The reason is simple (the NAO positive), the bad news is also simple: there is a turnaround brewing in Scandinavia. And, as a side effect, our chances of receiving a train of storms from the west again have risen significantly. But, first of all, let’s explain what the NAO is. The ‘NAO’ is the ‘North Atlantic Oscillation‘: I usually describe it as the ‘dance’ between the Azores high and the Icelandic low. That is, between the two major atmospheric phenomena that govern the meteorology of the North Atlantic. When the index we use to “measure who is winning” is negative, the Azores anticyclone is weaker than normal and, therefore, is unable to block the deep storms that hover over the Atlantic. The direct consequence is that they circulate further south than normal: right at our latitude. What happened at the end of February and what will happen at the start of March is the opposite: positive NAO. That is, the Azores anticyclone is strong and that sends the jet further north. Something that gives us stability, fewer fronts and (usually, although not necessarily) colder. But there are signs that this is beginning to change. It is important to remember that we are talking about long-term predictions and there are still many days ahead, but the pattern seems to be gaining consistency: during the first half of March, an anticyclonic block will develop over the skies of the Scandinavian peninsula. That, presumably, can undulate the jet and encourage more rain in the Mediterranean. That is, at least, Sergio Escama’s prediction. And the truth is that it is compatible with the weekly prediction that AEMET published a few days ago. Why is it important? Above all, for two reasons: the first is that the scenarios that are compatible with these schemes can give rise to a lot of rain on the Mediterranean façade. That is, because torrential rains are on the table. And the second issue is that we must not forget that Spain it is up to the top of water. “More rain” will be synonymous with “management problems” for weeks. So here we are, looking obsessively at the Nordic countries to see what the Atlantic will send us. Image | ECMWF In Xataka | Andalusia anticipates the storm and has already canceled in-person classes and activated the UME. The doubt is placed on the workers

The Government already has a plan to return to physical buttons

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Many of us miss the presence of physical buttons inside the vehicles that land on the market today, that is a fact. However, from various points of the globe there is already a certain movement in reversing and require a certain balance. In this sense, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China (MIIT) has proposed a new regulation which will force manufacturers to install physical buttons and controls for essential vehicle functions. The ‘all screen’ has dominated the automobile industry in China in recent years, but everything indicates that there is now an intention to stop this trend for safety reasons. The underlying problem. The obsession with minimalist interiors with huge touch screens has led many Chinese manufacturers to eliminate virtually all physical buttons from the cabin. A trend largely started by Tesla and that brands like BYD, Xiaomi or Geely have adopted it massively. As if navigating our phone’s interface wasn’t enough, now we also have to spend some time on the central screen of our car, and in several vehicles we have to go through this screen for functions as basic as the turn signals or emergency lights. Which functions will have mandatory physical controls. The regulations specify a clear list of items which must have physical buttons or controls with a minimum size of 10×10 millimeters: turn signals, emergency lights, horn, gear selection (P/R/N/D), windshield wipers, defroster, electric windows, switch to activate driving assistance systems and emergency lights. Technical requirements. Under the proposal, physical controls would need to be in fixed positions, allow use without looking, and provide tactile or auditory feedback. Additionally, basic functions must remain available even when the vehicle system fails or loses power. In this way, the regulatory body intends for the driver to be able to operate these controls without taking their eyes off the road or depending on the screen to respond correctly. It is not an isolated case. China has begun a regulatory crusade for security in recent months. A few days ago we were talking about the ban on hidden handles retractable after several fatal accidents in the country. There is also an intention to eliminate yoke-type (U-shaped) steering wheels, arguing that their design is not suitable for the 10-specific point impact tests on the steering wheel required by new safety regulations, which will come into force in January 2027. Stricter regulation for autonomous driving. The new rules also tighten the requirements for autonomous driving systems levels 3 and 4. Manufacturers will have to demonstrate that their systems can drive as well as “a competent and attentive human driver”, presenting case studies to support this. According to the regulations, if the system fails or the driver does not respond, the vehicle must reach what regulators call a “minimum risk condition” – that is, stop safely on its own. Implementation schedule. The draft is open to public consultation until April 13. According to ChinaEVHomethe regulations on physical controls would come into force on July 1, 2027, with a transition period of approximately six months. New models seeking approval must comply with all of this immediately, while existing models will have 13 months to adapt, according to they count from CarScoops. In Xataka | Two centuries ago the tires on cars and motorcycles were white. It had nothing to do with the design.

Dates and when the 2026 Income Tax return is made

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Let’s tell you what they are the dates of the 2025 income tax returnthe campaign that will take place during 2026. We say that it is Income 2025 even if it is done this year because what we will do in it is regularize and account for the last fiscal year. In this article we are going to tell you what they are the most important dates of this next Income campaign. For example, we will tell you when you can start checking your tax details or request your reference number, and also when declarations can be made. There are still a couple of dates that have not been revealed, such as the consultation of tax data or the request for your reference number. But when they are announced we will update it so that you have all the data. Income tax return dates 2025 These are the main dates of the Income Tax 2025 What you should keep in mind so that you don’t miss deadlines. It is important that you remember that the income campaign this year ends a day early than last year, because it will also start a day earlier. Tax data consultation: Unannounced, but possibly mid-March. Reference number request: Unannounced, but possibly mid-March. Income tax return online: You can do it from April 8 to June 30, 2026. Income tax return by phone: You can do it from May 6 to June 30, 2026. In-person income tax return: You can do it from June 1 to June 30, 2025. And now, we are going to tell you How can you request an appointment? for telephone and in-person income. Appointment for telephone statement: You can request an appointment to make your declaration by phone, calling the numbers 91 535 73 26 / 901 12 12 24 or 91 553 00 71 / 901 22 33 44. You can do so from May 6 to June 30, 2026. Appointment for in-person declaration: You can request an appointment to make your declaration in person, by calling the numbers 91 535 73 26 / 901 12 12 24 or 91 553 00 71 / 901 22 33 44. You can request the necessary appointment from May 29 to June 29, In Xataka Basics | IRPF withholding calculator 2025: how to use it online to know your minimum withholding recommended by the Treasury

The US already knows when it wants to return to the Moon to beat China. The problem is how the ship will return

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There is already an official date. After years of delays and speculations, NASA has confirmed what was rumored in the halls of Washington: Artemis 2 has the green light for launch on February 6, 2026. And what is its destination? Neither more nor less than the Moon itself. Tuning. With this announcement, NASA is already preparing for the transfer of the gigantic SLS rocket (Space Launch System) to platform 39B this very January 17, starting the final countdown for humans to orbit the Moon again. Something that has not happened since 1972 with Apollo 17. However, this is not a celebration without controversy. The mission, which will take the astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen to a 10-day trip around our satellite, has been brought forward under strong political pressure. And it does so with a worrying technical asterisk: the behavior of the Orion ship’s heat shield. A battle of pressures. On the one hand, Donald Trump has historically shown its impatience with the deadlines that NASA was giving to be able to orbit around the Moon. All this with an eye on China, which threatened to be the ‘first’ and overtake the United States in this fact. What has been the solution? put to Jared Isaacman as NASA Administratora billionaire, private pilot and astronaut (known for his missions in Polaris Dawn and its links with SpaceX) to prioritize speed and calculated risk-taking over the complete risk aversion that “old NASA” had. Because. February 6, 2026 has been set as set in stone for several strategic reasons that outweigh engineering doubts about the heat shield. The first of them It’s the race against Chinasince the Asian country has a very advanced lunar program and aims put taikonauts on the Moon before 2030. If Artemis 2 was delayed to redesign the heat shield (which would have taken years), Artemis 3 would have been gone until 2028-2029 or longer, leaving the door open for China to arrive earlier or very close. But they do not stop here, since for this administration the Moon is a springboard to reach Mars, this mission being a simple way to validate the systems they are using. That is why every delay on the Moon is a delay for the mission to Mars, which promises to be the historical legacy they seek. The Avcoat dilemma. The main point of friction between engineers and the agency’s new management lies at the bottom of the Orion capsule. During the Artemis 1 unmanned mission in 2022the heat shield (made from an ablative material called Avcoat) behaved unexpectedly. And instead of being consumed uniformly, it broke off in pieces, creating craters and cracks due to the gases trapped in the material. during re-entry into the atmosphere. The engineering logic faced with this problem would mark make a new design or material change. But since it is something that would delay everything, NASA has opted for a change in angle during reentry to minimize thermal stress in the most affected areas to maintain the same shield. The doubts. NASA assures that the risk is “acceptable”, but this decision has raised blisters in the aerospace security community. Added to this is that the life support system (ECLSS)provided in part by ESA, has never been fully tested in flight with humans, adding an extra layer of uncertainty to the mission. Charles Camarda, veteran astronaut of the STS-114 mission, the return flight after the Columbia disaster, has been blunt in this regard. In statements, Camarda has compared the current situation with the “dysfunctional culture” that led to the Challenger and Columbia tragedies. But for the NASA administrator, Artemis 2 is a non-negotiable step to ensure American leadership and the future cislunar economy. Operating tension. As if the pressure on Artemis were not enough, NASA also faces a parallel crisis in low orbit. The agency and SpaceX have scheduled January 14 undocking of the Crew-11 mission of the International Space Station (ISS) due to urgent medical evacuation. This is an unprecedented event in the history of the ISS: lowering an astronaut for an unspecified medical problem (although he has been confirmed to be stable). Although Isaacman has assured that this operational incident will not affect the schedule of Artemis 2adds a considerable load of stress to mission control teams in Houston, who must now manage a crisis in real time while preparing for the most important launch of the decade. What can we expect? At the moment, the dates we know are January 17, where the SLS rolls towards its platform, and February 6, when the window for its launch will open. In total, a 10-day flight mission is expected, with a lunar flyby and high-speed return. Specifically, 40,000 km/h. NASA has much more at stake than a mission in February. The validation of its security model is at stake in the new space era, where geopolitical competition and commercial rush collide head-on with the immutable laws of physics and thermodynamics. Images | Pedro Lastra POT In Xataka | We have been deceived by the distances of the Solar System: the closest neighbor to Neptune is Mercury

Renfe is obliged to return money after 15 minutes of delay. Its president warns that this “would make tickets more expensive”

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The president of Renfe, Álvaro Fernández Heredia, assures that the company will not apply from January 1 the new compensation approved by Congress. He argues that the measure is “unconstitutional and generates inequality against Iryo and Ouigo.” Conflict. In November, Congress approved a PP amendment to the Sustainable Mobility Law that forces Renfe to recover its old compensation for delays. These are 50% refund of the ticket from 15 minutes of delay and 100% from 30 minutes. Currently, after the change which the operator made in July 2024, only returns money after 60 minutes (50% of the amount) and 90 minutes (100%). The amendment, which had the support of Vox, Junts, ERC, PNV, Podemos and BNG, sets January 1, 2026 as the date of entry into force. Renfe’s position. Fernández Heredia, has declared in RNE that “in principle, no” there will be changes next Thursday in the travel conditions. According to the president of the operator, the State Attorney’s Office is studying legal formulas to avoid applying the provision. “We have a legal opinion that clearly says that it is unconstitutional,” he said. explained in El País, arguing that it violates principles such as equal treatment, freedom of enterprise and two European regulations on rail transport services. The economic cost according to the operator. The president of the institution estimates the impact of the measure at more than 125 million euros annually, well above the 43 million that Renfe paid in compensation during 2023. As Fernández Heredia clarifies, the increase is not only due to more incidents, but also because the amendment extends compensation to all long-distance commercial services, including Avlo, Alvia and Intercity, not just the AVE. “Whoever wrote this didn’t know what he was doing,” pointed out to the middle. The consequences for the traveler. The president of Renfe warns that applying the new compensation would cause a 10% increase in fares and would displace up to 5% of passengers towards the competition. In addition, it warns that “deficient services that Renfe maintains in areas where Iryo and Ouigo do not operate would be put at serious risk.” “If we want it to be cheaper, provide deficient services and stop where no one stops, what we don’t want is liberalization,” declared in RNE. Inequality. The core of Renfe’s argument is regulatory asymmetry. And while this operator would have to return part of the money from 15 minutes late, Ouigo begins to compensate from 30 minutes (with purchase vouchers) and Iryo from 30 minutes as well. Both competitors only refund 100% of the amount after 90 minutes of delay, just like Renfe does now. “I don’t think this is being done because we want to improve the conditions of travelers, but rather because of an attack on Renfe,” he said. affirmed Fernández Heredia in El País. Legal battle underway. Sources from the Ministry of Transport they qualified the amendment to the media 20 Minutes as “demagogic and populist.” Minister Óscar Puente announced after the approval of the law that they would look for formulas to prevent its application, something that Fernández Heredia has confirmed is being studied. The president of Renfe regrets that the company “is not entitled to appeal to the Constitutional Court, which creates insecurity when it comes to defending ourselves.” He inherits the mark of ppolitical opulism. The president of Renfe was very critical of the parliamentary groups that supported the measure. “It was a slap in the face of Renfe to the Government,” as collected The Country. “It is a populist measure because they do not say that this measure implies ‘raising prices’ and that it will benefit the ‘other two companies,’” added in the interview on ‘Las Mañanas de RNE’. The president of the operator has asked the PP, Podemos and BNG for explanations about why the obligation only affects Renfe. “If we want to provide a guarantee policy and better compensation, the logical thing is that it should be for all travelers.” In Xataka | Public transport faces 2026 with extended aid and the approved Single Pass: there is still one step ahead

The Basque Country and Navarra exported 35,700 qualified professionals who would like to return. The problem is how and where

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Companies argue that one of their main problems when it comes to filling job vacancies is find qualified workers. However, the data suggests that these qualified profiles are forced to leave the country for find better opportunities jobs outside Spain. In fact, a recent study by Artizarra Foundation and Deusto Business School puts precise figures on this mismatch between the situation of qualified talent and its reality. Thousands of professionals trained in Spanish universities and with consolidated careers outside the country they would be willing to return, but the system does not offer them a complete attractive setting to return to. The talent that left. According to the reportmore than 42,000 young people between 25 and 40 years old, trained in universities and higher educational centers in the Basque Country and Navarra, currently work outside their territory of origin. These are not profiles in transition: they are highly qualified professionals, with training in engineering, STEM disciplinesbusiness management or research. However, the key data from this report is the return intention of these professionals. More than 85% of the participants in the study affirm that they would like to return if they found working and living conditions comparable to those they have achieved abroad. If this scenario materializes, the study estimates that up to 35,700 qualified professionals could be recovered. A career developed abroad. Six out of every ten professionals consulted have already accumulated more than six years working in other countries, which implies that they already have consolidated professional trajectories there, competitive salaries and international work experience that is difficult to replicate in the short term. From an economic point of view, its impact is relevant. We are not talking about talent in training, but about already qualified personnel, with high technical knowledge and productive capacity that have been trained in public schools and universities in Spain, but that Spanish companies have not known how to retain. This lack of job opportunities is the key to their departure. Ability to train talent, not to retain it. The contrast appears when crossing the data from the Deusto Business School report with the Cotec Foundation Talent Mapwhich analyzes 55 indicators on talent creation, attraction and retention. In its latest edition in 2023, and maintaining the same territorial framework as the Deusto study, the Basque Country reaches 66.4 points, well above the national average (49.1 points) and only behind Madrid (67.7 points). The conclusions drawn from these data are clear. The Basque Country stands out for the quality of your higher educationtechnical qualification and productive environment. The educational system works well in training talent. The problem comes when that training period ends and that talent compares what you find in your country with what is offered outside. They do not return for the same reason they left. The reasons for the flight of talent are recurring: better salaries, greater professional projection, access to cutting-edge projects and, in the case of scientific profiles, more opportunities to develop a stable research career. As and how they point According to the authors of the Deusto Business School report, these factors do not disappear when the return of that talent is considered. On the contrary. Accumulated experience raises expectations and makes those reasons more visible. The study by Artizarra and Deusto identifies barriers that go beyond employment and connect with structural problems common to an entire generation. Return yes, but where. The price and conditions of housing is one of the main reasons that slows the return of this talent. Returning implies assuming high prices, both for rent as for home purchaseand face it with salaries that do not always compensate for the difference compared to other European markets. For those who have already built a life outside, the opportunity cost is high. The second major barrier to return is the quality of employment. Not so much the absence of work for these qualified profiles, but the difficulty for local companies to match salaries, professional autonomy and recognition of talent. The comparison with international markets is inevitable. A paradox that remains open. The study data supports the spirit of this talent to return because it has not separated itself from its territory and maintains its roots. Most want to return. However, as the authors of the study point out, the biggest problem is an environment that allows doing so without giving up professional and life expectations. From an economic point of view, recovering part of those 35,700 profiles would be an investment that is difficult to match for a labor market that affirms that the shortage of skilled labor It is the stone that prevents them from moving forward. As Joe Biden once said: “Pay Them More“. In Xataka | Spain has such good nurses that it exports them to other countries. The problem is that public health needs 100,000 Image | Unsplash (Philipp hubert)

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