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On October 14-15, 2005, the Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences and the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute (Berkeley) jointly hosted the Pacific Rim Mathematical Forum at the Banff International Research Station. The goal of this meeting was to lay the groundwork for establishing a network of mathematical centres throughout the Pacific Rim.
Pacific Rim Mathematical Forum Participants at BIRS.
More than 30 participants from all over the Pacific Rim attended this meeting, representing mathematical institutions from many countries, including: Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore and the United States.
 Jong Hae Keum (KIAS)
speaking at the forum.
The first part of the meeting consisted of presentations by our foreign visitors, where each in turn described their institution and their goals for this meeting. Immediately after that, sleeves were rolled up and participants went to work on formulating specific action items for international networking, as well as developing the appropriate framework for achieving this. Most importantly, participants agreed on a vision statement, which formulates the guiding principles in our collaborative network. To break the routine, two high level lecturers were enlisted to talk about cutting edge developments in pure and applied mathematics. Our very own Ivar Ekeland gave a thought-provoking lecture on "The Role of Mathematics in Economics and Finance" and Gang Tian (Princeton) gave a beautiful presentation on "Geometry and Analysis of Low-Dimensional Manifolds", in particular providing a tantalizing update on the groundbreaking work of Perelman on the Poincare Conjecture.
After two days of hard work, it was agreed that a well coordinated and concerted effort among our institutions and countries would stimulate a vibrant and interconnected mathematical community whose activities would have an unprecedented impact on our economic, social and cultural development.
A resolution was made to establish an organization, to be known as the Pacific Rim Mathematical Association (PRIMA), and to develop an action plan to achieve these goals. The mission of PRIMA will be to promote and facilitate the development of the mathematical sciences throughout the Pacific Rim region.
The principal objectives of PRIMA will be:
1. To create a network for the exchange of ideas and the dissemination of scientific knowledge;
2. To coordinate and encourage wider participation in scientific activities in the region in order to maximize their effectiveness;
3. To substantially increase the region's capacity in training the next generations of mathematical scientists;
4. To identify geographical areas in need of mathematical advancement and to assist them in strengthening their expertise and infrastructure;
5. To promote breadth and diversity within the mathematical sciences community;
6. To share expertise in the promotion of the mathematical sciences, and their impact on society and the global economy;
7. To pool resources where appropriate, and to identify potential new ones to assist the scientific development of every community in our region.
An official announcement with further details about PRIMA will be forthcoming.
After the meeting at BIRS, many of our guests traveled to Vancouver, where on October 17 PIMS hosted a mini-symposium highlighting activities at PIMS universities. They had the opportunity to meet with the Vice President of Research at UBC (John Hepburn) and to discuss with him various ways in which UBC and PIMS can establish international research connections with Pacific Rim nations. In the afternoon our visitors were able to attend lectures by distinguished scholars, such as the IAM-MITACS-PIMS Distinguished Lecture by Prof. Eitan Tadmor (U. Maryland), and the Department of Mathematics Colloquium Lecture by Prof. Michael Cowling (U. New South Wales, Australia).
To celebrate these important achievements and to recognize the wonderful community of mathematical scientists in Vancouver, that evening PIMS hosted a glittering reception at the world famous Museum of Anthropology, where our extended family was warmly welcomed by John Hepburn (VPR UBC), our Director (Ivar Ekeland) and our Deputy Director (Alejandro Adem). Our visitors then had a chance to mingle with our colleagues from UBC, SFU and UVic and to visit the stunning First Nations exhibits in the Great Hall.
Images from the reception (click on a thumbnail to see a full size photo with a caption):
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