After months of planning, discussing options and finally, after careful consideration, the Executive Committee of the European Mathematical Society and the organizers of the 8th European Congress of Mathematics have reached a decision that all lectures, including Public, Plenary, Invited and Prize lectures, as well as Minisymposia and Special Sessions, planned to take place in Portorož, Slovenia, 20 – 26 June 2021, are moved online.
This is not a decision we are taking lightly, especially after two years of actively planning the event, but the uncertainty of the worldwide public health issue, travel bans and nationwide restrictions do not allow for many alternative options.
First and foremost, we would still like to encourage participants to travel to Portorož, Slovenia, if they can and wish to do so. For those who travel to Slovenia during the week of the 8ECM, an informal event will be organized at the initial congress venue, and they will be able to attend the online 8ECM from their hotel rooms. We will also provide smaller lecture rooms for closed groups hosting discussions and smaller meetings, if the situation allows. Likewise, we hope that at least one satellite event will take place live!
For those who have standing hotel reservations at the venue, your reservation will remain open! Further instructions regarding the hotel reservations will be communicated soon through the 8ECM website and other communication channels available to the organizers.
Exhibitors will be able to present their products and services online; the 8ECM organizers will provide technical support and the communication platform. Art exhibitions and other cultural events will be dispersed across various locations, expanding throughout 2021 and 2022.
Finally, following the decision to go online, eligible participants that have already paid the registration fee can request a partial fee refund in the amount of 120 €, according to the defined rules*. Eligible participants can write to 8ecm.registration@famnit.upr.si with a request for a partial fee waiver and proof of their status no later than 31 March 2021. We would like to bring to your attention that by requesting a refund under these Terms and Conditions, participants are forgoing participation at the 8ECM. The new terms of this conditions were determined upon agreement with the European Mathematical Society.
Participation fees for accompanying persons will be fully refunded (100%). The organizers will contact the said participants with additional information in the following weeks.
We would like to point out that all 8ECM participants will receive a Confirmation of Attendance, without specific reference to online participation. Those who travel to the 8ECM initial venue will also have the option to request an additional confirmation from the organizer, should they require proof of their travel or participation expenses.
We understand that an online format of the congress cannot transcend the experience of a live event, nevertheless, we hope that a large part of the mathematical community will continue to offer their support and that you will join us for the 8th European Congress of Mathematics this summer!
Registrations are still open, visit our website to register and participate at the 8ECM!
Volker Mehrmann
President of the European Mathematical Society
Tomaž Pisanski
8ECM Organizing Committee Chair
Klavdija Kutnar,
8ECM Organizing Committee Deputy- Chair and Rector of the University of Primorska
* Participants that are eligible for a partial fee waiver, reduced by 120 €, are: economically disadvantaged groups (retired, students, unemployed); nationals of least developed countries, as defined by the UN list of least developed countries , on the condition that they are affiliated to an institution from said countries in their 8ECM registration profile; researchers who had their registration covered from grants and are required to recompense due to the grant tender rules; researchers who have suffered a cut in their research funding due to the epidemic. Participants need to provide proof of their eligibility.