EMS Handbook: European Congress of Mathematics
4.2.2 Guidelines and timeline for the establishment of the Scientific Committee and the Prize Committees
General setting. The EC has the prerogative to appoint the Scientific Committee (SC) of the ECM and the prize committees. The EC should seek advice from the broad mathematical community within the frame set by the appropriate constitutive documents. Appointing the SC, the EC trusts it with choosing a diverse and balanced list of excellent speakers taking also into consideration the speakers’ ability to communicate. The prize committees are trusted with choosing prize winners with the most remarkable achievements within the scope of each prize description. The selection process should respect the principles of the EMS ethical policy.
Involvement of member societies. The EC is obliged to solicit in due time suggestions for committees’ members from its members societies including both names of the candidates and indications of their areas of expertise. While the members of the previous congress committees are generally ineligible for the same role, the societies should also be encouraged to check a longer congress history at https://euromathsoc.org/ecm and make their suggestions with the preference for new people and ideas.
Balance requirement. Based on proposals of the member societies and its own, the EC should choose the SC and the EMS Prize Committee in a way covering as much as possible all areas of mathematics, pure and applied, in a balanced manner with respect to topics, geography, gender, minorities, etc. This also applies in a reasonable way to other prize committees with regard to their thematic focus.
Nomination process. After collecting all the suggestions, the EMS President will chair a discussion of the EC leading to the appointment of the committees and their chairs. This discussion includes as observer(s) the congress convener(s) who signed with the EC the Memorandum of Understanding about organization of the congress.
The timeline (Y is the year of the congress).
- Y – 3, April: Calling corporate members, EMYA and standing committees to suggest SC candidates with the deadline 31 October Y – 3.
- Y – 3, autumn EC meeting: Determining the order of SC candidates and substitutes for addressing.
- Y – 3, December: Calling corporate members, EMYA and standing committees to suggest EMS Prize Committee candidates with the deadline 2 weeks before spring EC meeting Y – 2.
- Y – 2, spring EC meeting: Approval of the final composition of the SC.
- Y – 2, autumn EC meeting: Determining the order of EMS Prize Committee candidates and substitutes for addressing.
- Y – 1, spring EC meeting: Approval of the final composition of the EMS Prize Committee.
- Y – 1, April: Calling corporate members, EMYA and standing committees to nominate candidates for EMS Prizes with the deadline 31 October Y – 1 and for Felix Klein Prize, Otto Neugebauer Prize and Hirzebruch Lecture with the deadline 31 December Y – 1.
- Y – 1, July: Negotiating with the Abel Committee and inviting the Abel Lecturer.
- Y – 1, November 30: Appointing the chair of the Paul Lévy Prize Committee
- Y, March 31: Deciding all prize winners and the Hirzebruch Lecturer.