I am assuming responsibility for this editorial as a follow-up of the September 2023 newsletter to provide you with further information about the Commission for Developing Countries (CDC) of the International Mathematical Union (IMU).  But first, on behalf of IMU, let me wish all our members and all mathematicians around the world a very happy new year 2024!!

The CDC, dedicated to providing assistance and resources to mathematicians in economically disadvantaged countries, collaborates closely with a diverse array of partners who share similar objectives.  These partners encompass the EMS Committee for Developing Countries, the counterpart of CDC within the European Mathematical Society, as well as prominent institutions such as the International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), a UNESCO Category 1 institute based in Trieste, Italy, the Centre International de Mathématiques Pures et Appliquées (CIMPA), a UNESCO Category 2 institute based in Nice, France, and the International Science Programme, an independent unit of Uppsala University, Sweden.  Alongside these partners, the CDC offers funding programs to strengthen research capacity in mathematics, and it is not uncommon for the same project to receive combined funding from several of the partners.  As an example, our Conference Support Program provides financial support each year to several of the research schools organized by CIMPA.  It is also important to mention that these projects are sometimes developed in coordination with local, national or continental, mathematical societies, such as the African Matematical Union (AMU), the Unión Matemática de America Latina y el Caribe (UMALCA), or the Southeast Asian Mathematical Society (SEAMS).

One of CDC's missions is to seek funding for its various programs.  In addition to the contribution from IMU, the CDC benefits from generous donations from mathematical societies, institutions of higher education, or individuals, sometimes via the Friends of IMU (FIMU) association.  For example, this is the case with donations made by certain winners of the Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics, which fund the IMU Breakout Graduate Fellowship Program.  The CDC also receives substantial funding for certain specific programs, such as the Abel Visiting Scholar Program funded thanks to an annual grant of the Abel Board, or the IMU – Simons African Fellowship Program funded by the Simons Foundation.

Another mission of CDC will soon be to assist the organizing committee of the upcoming International Congress of Mathematicians, ICM 2026, in distributing travel grants to mathematicians from developing countries.  In short, as you can see, the CDC collaborates with many partners who play an essential role in its activities.  The CDC is grateful to them and to all the individuals who, through their efforts, are involved in promoting mathematical research worldwide.

M'Bour, 25 January 2024

Ludovic Rifford
Secretary for Policy of the CDC

The The Commission for Developing Countries (CDC) is actively working on improving its funding solutions.  It strongly encourages mathematicians and students from developing countries to apply to the calls below and to contact the CDC for further details via email.  We especially wish to draw the attention of our colleagues to the updated list of countries that are eligible for our programs.

Grants to Institutions

• Volunteer Lecturer Program (next deadline March 15, 2024)
• Library Assistance Scheme (no fixed deadline)

Grants for Conferences and Projects

• Conference Support Program (next deadline April 15, 2024, for conferences starting after August 15, 2024)

Grants to Individuals

• Abel Visiting Scholar Program (next deadline April 30, 2024, for visits between September 1 and December 31, 2024)
• Individual Travel Support Program (next deadline April 15, 2024, for visits starting between August 1, 2024, and August 1, 2025)

Graduate Scholarships

• IMU Breakout Graduate Fellowship Program (the 2024 call for nominations will be open from February 1 to May 31, 2024)
• Graduate Research Assistantships in Developing Countries (GRAID) Program (the 2024 call for applications is open with deadline on March 15, 2024)

Ludovic Rifford
Secretary for Policy of the CDC

The CWM Newsletter Issue 10 – December 2023.  The CWM closed 2023 with the release of the 10th issue of its newsletter, which includes two special interviews.  The first follows the series of interviews with CWM members and features Matilde Lalín.  The second is an excerpt of the interview by Marie-Françoise Roy with the mathematician and illustrator Constanza Rojas-Molina about her work as cartoonist of mathematicians. The full interview will appear in the proceedings of the second World Meeting for Women in Mathematics, (WM)² 2022, which is currently under preparation.

Click here for the CWM Newsletter Issue 10.  Subscribe to the CWM Newsletters here.

CWM 2024 Call is now closed.  The CWM Call 2024 closed on January 5, 2024, receiving a total of 39 applications from many different countries.  The selection of initiatives to be supported by CWM will be published on the CWM webpage by February 16, 2024.

More information about this and previous CWM calls can be found on this page.

Carolina Araujo and Hélène Barcelo
Chair and Vice-Chair of the IMU Committee for Women in Mathematics

Latest news about the 26th ICMI Study, by Angel Gutiérrez – University of Valencia, Spain, and Thomas Lowrie – University of Canberra, Australia.  The 26th ICMI Study “Advances in geometry education” is devoted to reporting the state of the field of geometry education.  The Study will analyze the advances and current challenges in the teaching and learning of geometry, from both innovation and research perspectives.  The Study pays particular attention to how the landscape has changed in the past three decades, since the release of the Study Volume for ICMI Study 9 “Perspectives on the teaching of geometry for the 21st Century”.  The Study is organized around four main discussion topics (theoretical perspectives, curricular and methodological approaches, resources for teaching and learning geometry, and multidisciplinary perspectives) and a diversity of subtopics within each topic.

The International Program Committee (IPC) has been working on the organization of the Study Conference throughout the year, and the Conference will take place at the Institut National Supérieur du Professorat et de l’Éducation (INSPÉ) of the University of Reims (France) from April 23 to 26, 2024.

The process of reviewing the proposals for presentations received will have been completed by the time this newsletter is released.  The IPC is now working on the organization of the program of the Conference, which will be organized around two plenary talks, two panels, and sixty paper presentations.  The plenary and panel discussions will be organized around the four Study themes, while paper presentations will be organized in parallel working group sessions, based on sets of subtopics.  As is the usual practice for ICMI Studies, participation in the Study Conference is by invitation only, among authors of the accepted proposals.  Invitations will be sent out in the coming weeks.  We expect to receive acceptances from between 80 and 100 participants.  The registration will open soon and close on March 1, 2024.  The IPC is excited by the quality of the manuscripts submitted for the conference and is looking forward to a lively and productive conference.  All bodes well for the Conference and the forthcoming ICMI Study Series volume that will be produced post conference.

ICME-15 Progress update, by Kim Beswick, ICME-15 Convenor and ICME-15 International Program Committee Chair.

ICME-15 is just over 5 months away.  We are delighted to have received more than 2000 TSG proposals, all of which have now been reviewed.  Discussion Group and Workshop proposals were received until December 31, 2023.  Details of these activities are available on the website.

Registration is now open.  Please check the website regularly for updates.  Information about accommodation options is now available and there will soon be details of an exciting range of excursions from which you can choose.  These will include opportunities to explore Sydney’s vibrant culture and rich history, and to meet some of the local wildlife.

Mark your calendar and make plans to be part of ICME-15 from July 7 to 14, 2024, in Sydney.  Come and be counted with us!  It is not too soon to register!  Early bird registration closes on March 31, 2024.  Register now.

Jean-Luc Dorier
ICMI Secretary General

1. The 2024 Math Remix Challenge is now online: it consists in adding mathematics to an everyday thing or place and sharing a photo. Everyone is invited to participate! Share the word of playing with mathematics!
2. The IDM Governing Board needs your help to spread the news of IDM in national and local school networks and increase the number of schools celebrating the IDM, either in the classroom, or through a larger event.  For that purpose, material for classroom activities is available.  Invitations to the school networks of your country can be done using the following invitation letters: Arabic, Chinese (simplified), Chinese (traditional), English, French, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Turkish.  If you wish to produce a letter in your own language, you can use the following English template.
3. The 2024 IDM map is online.  Please invite any organizer of an IDM celebration, including the celebrations taking place in schools to publish their event on the IDM map by filling the form.
4. A live coverage will take place on the IDM website and on social media on March 14.
5. Visit the activity page for suggestions of activities.  Posters, pins and logos can be found at the resources page.
6. National IDM websites: national communities are invited to create their national IDM website and the IDM website will link to these.  (There will be a review process to check that the websites are indeed national websites and, for instance, not promoting private organizations.)
7. Register for the IDM Newsletter to receive the latest news of IDM 2024.

Christiane Rousseau
Chair of the IDM Governing Board

The next International Congress of Mathematicians will be held in Philadelphia, from 23 to 30 July 2026.  The official poster of the congress is ready: download it here!

Readers are warmly invited to read the interview by Bjørn Dundas and Christian Skau with the Abel Prize Laureate of 2023 Luis A. Caffarelli, published by the Magazine of the European Mathematics Society.

We bring to your attention the call listed on the MCA2025 website for nominations for the MCA2025 Prizes.  We encourage all of you to circulate this information to your societies and institutes.

Completed nominations should be sent by e-mail.

Susan Friedlander and Steve Cantrell
Executive Committee
Mathematical Council of the Americas

The 9th European Congress of Mathematics will take place in Seville, from 15 to 19 July 2024.  The European Congresses of Mathematics (ECMs) are organized by the European Mathematical Society (EMS) every four years and is the second largest event of mathematics in the world.

Visit the website of the congress for a wealth of information concerning ECM 2024.