The Catalan Institute of Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA) exists 25 years in 2026. On February 6, Arjan joined the ICREA community in Barcelona to celebrate this achievement and to witness the inspirational atmosphere within the ICREA family. Various contributions from the institution’s founder, Andreu Mas-Colell, all former directors and the current one Antonio Huerta and the Catalan Secretary of State for Research and Universities, Nuria Montserrat, highlighted the importance of the creation of the organization and the long-term vision of excellent science it brought to Catalonia.