Opening Ceremony August 1, 2018 Opening address Marcelo Viana, Chairman of the Rio de Janeiro ICM 2018 Dear Minister of Education, Rossieli Soares da Silva, Dear Colleagues, Ladies and Gentlemen, When the Federal Polytechnical School of Zurich opened its gates to the participants of the first International Congress of Mathematicians, on the 9th of August 1897, Brazil was nowhere to be seen. Back then this was a rural country with just a handful of scientific institutions, none in mathematics. The first schools of engineering were being created in a few major cities. The first universities, with undergraduate courses in mathematics, were still a few decades into the future. The nation’s mathematical awakening took place in the 1950’s, when the In- stitute for Pure and Applied Mathemat- ics was created, Brazil joined Group 1 of the International Mathematical Union, and the biennial series of Brazilian Math- ematical Colloquia was launched. By 1962, Leopoldo Nachbin became the first Brazilian invited speaker at an ICM, in Stockholm. Seven years later, in 1969, the Brazilian Mathematical Society was created and became our adhering or- ganization to the IMU. The country you are visiting today is totally different, and so is its mathemat- ics. Early this year the IMU members voted Brazil’s promotion to Group 5. That news was greeted as a matter of national pride, by our media and our authorities, as much as by the mathematical community. As it should be. Four years ago, Artur Avila was distinguished with the Fields medal, the first winner born, raised and educated in a developing country. And today, we are honored to welcome the delegates to the first International Congress of Mathematicians ever held in the southern hemisphere. Such progress, in such a short time, was the doing of generations of mathematicians, some of whom are unfortunately no longer with us. But it is fair to say that no one symbolizes the achievements of Brazilian mathematics better than Jacob Palis, without whose dreams and whose vision we would probably not be here today. 10 That is why I ask you to join me in electing Jacob the honorary president of the Congress, through a round of applause. However, for all the merits of the past, bringing ICM 2018 to Rio de Janeiro has always been about the future. Most of our efforts over the last six years went into taking advantage of this historical opportunity to promote mathematics amongst our youth. The Biennium of Mathematics, proclaimed by the Brazilian national parliament. The Math Festival we organized last year, with over 18,000 visitors of all ages. The Interna- tional Mathematical Olympiad, also last year and also a huge success. And all the other initiatives we organized or triggered during these two years, under the umbrella of the Biennium. As a token of all that, we have here today a group of very special guests: the 576 gold medalists of the Brazilian Mathematical Olympiad for Public Schools. This is the largest and, I dare say, most impressive school competition in the world. It is held by IMPA every year, with the participation of over 18 million students from all over Brazil. This year, we have invited the gold medalists to attend the ICM opening. In a few minutes they will participate with us in the award ceremony for the Fields medal and the Nevanlinna prize. And they will receive their own medals in this same room, tomorrow afternoon. I don’t think this is an experience they will ever forget. I would like to add a more personal note. Four years ago, in Seoul, I pledged that we would put the best of Brazilian ingenuity to the service of this Congress. Of course, I did not expect that we would be put to the test the way we were, just two days before this ceremony. That we passed the test is the definite proof that we have a tremendous team, enor- mously competent and fully dedicated to this dream of having an ICM in Brazil. I want them to know how grateful I am for what they achieved here in the last 48 hours. 11 I want to finish by thanking you for your presence here today, and by welcoming you to Brazil and to the Marvelous City. Enjoy Rio, enjoy ICM 2018, and, most of all, enjoy mathematics. Thank you! Welcoming Address Shigefumi Mori, President of the International Mathematical Union Minister of Education, distinguished guests, Prize Winners and families, every atten- dant of this event: Watching the scenes from past ICMs, I recalled myself the ICM in Seoul four years ago. Perhaps you also did Hyderabad in 2010, Madrid in 2006, Beijing in 2002, or even further. I even recall ICM 1990 Kyoto, when I received the Fields Medal. During that congress I was so tense and could not enjoy the congress and celebrate the oc- casion. That was a regret of mine if any. So I wish you especially the win- ners, plenary and invited speakers enjoy the congress as well as learn through it. Back to this ICM 2018 at Rio de Janeiro, we are familiar with the beautiful Brazil and its history and culture. Dur- ing the Congress, you will learn about the recent developments in mathematics and celebrate IMU Prize Winners. You will surely meet old friends, make new friends, since this is a unique opportunity to do so once every four years; thousands of mathematicians came here to participate in this ICM from all over the world. I also hope that you will find time to explore this magnificent place, its history, cul- ture, and beauty, and food, since this is the first ICM ever held in the Southern hemi- sphere. But above all, I think you will find that all this is made possible by the very smooth organization and devoted and sustained work of the Local Organizing Committee. I have had many occasions already, in the preparations to the ICM, to witness their dedi- cation and efforts, and we will continue to do so during the whole ICM. I would like to thank all of them on your behalf, for this work. To end this welcome address to the ICM, I want to express again my hope that you will enjoy the remainder of this Opening Ceremony and of the whole Conference. Thank you. 12 Award Ceremony Shigefumi Mori The Gauß Prize has been awarded at the ICM for the first time in 2006 and is now awarded at every ICM. The Prize was established by the IMU and the German Mathe- matical Society. It honors a scientist whose mathematical research has had an impact outside mathe- matics either in technology, in business, or simply in people’s everyday lives. The 2018 Gauß Prize is awarded to David Donoho for his fundamental contributions to the mathematical, statistical and computational analysis of important problems in signal processing For the glory of the Opening Ceremony to be shared by later events of ICM, the award ceremony of Gauß Prize 2018 will take place at 7:30pm on Aug 4 (Sat) before the Social Dinner. The Chern Medal Award was awarded for the first time at the 2010 ICM and is now awarded at every ICM. It was established by the IMU and the Chern Medal Foundation in cooperation with the Simons Foundation. It is awarded to an individual whose accomplishments warrant the highest level of recognition for outstanding achievements in the fields of mathematics. The 2018 Chern Medal Award is awarded to Masaki Kashiwara for his outstanding and foundational contributions to algebraic analysis and representation theory sustained over a period of almost 50 years. For the glory of the Opening Ceremony to be shared by later events of ICM, the award ceremony of Chern Medal Award 2018 will take place at 7:30pm on Aug 4 (Sat) before the Social Dinner. The Leelavati Prize was awarded for the first time during the Closing Ceremony of ICM 2010 in Hyderabad. The prize was established by the IMU and by the government of India; it is presently funded by Infosys, as a permanent IMU prize to be awarded at every ICM. The Leelavati Prize accords high recognition for outstanding contributions to increas- ing public awareness of mathematics as an intellectual discipline and the crucial role it plays in diverse human endeavors. The 2018 Leelavati Prize is awarded to Ali Nesin for his outstanding contributions towards increasing public awareness of mathematics in Turkey, in particular for his tireless work in creating the Mathematical Village as an exceptional, peaceful place for education, research and the exploration of mathematics for anyone. Following the precedent set at its first awarding at ICM 2010, it was decided that the Leelavati Prize 2018 winner be announced during the Opening Ceremony, but that the award ceremony itself is part of the Closing Ceremony of each ICM. Award Ceremonies for the Fields Medals We now start the ceremony for the Fields Medals. The Fields Medals have been awarded by the IMU since 1936. They recognize out- standing mathematical achievement for existing work and for the promise of future 13 achievement. From the start, they were meant for young mathematicians. The rule is now that to be eligible to receive a Fields Medal, mathematicians must have their 40th birthday after January 1st of the year in which the ICM is held. The Rolf Nevanlinna Prize has been awarded at every ICM since 1982. It was es- tablished by the IMU together with the Finnish Academy of Sciences. It recognizes outstanding contributions in mathematical aspects of information sciences. It is subject to the same age limit as the Fields Medal: to be eligible for the Nevanlinna Prize, the 40th birthday of the winner must be after January 1st of the ICM year.