The Center for Mathematical Modeling of the U. of Chile celebrated its 25 years of contributing to national science|CMM

In an emotive ceremony held at the Central House of the University of Chile, academic, scientific and governmental authorities commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Center for Mathematical Modeling (CMM), highlighting its contribution to the development of the country and its international projection. On the occasion, the cooperation agreement between the University of Chile and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) of France was renewed, reaffirming a key alliance to promote research of excellence, applied to the great social, productive and environmental challenges of Chile and the world.

During the morning of Tuesday, April 15, the 25th anniversary ceremony of the Center for Mathematical Modeling (CMM) of the Faculty of Physical and Mathematical Sciences (FCFM) of the University of Chile, one of the main scientific centers in Latin America and an international reference in applied mathematics, was held in the Hall of Honor of the Central House of the University of Chile. The event brought together state authorities, representatives of the academic, scientific and private world, as well as a delegation from the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) of France and the French ambassador to Chile.

The activity –part of a series of initiatives organized by the CMM during this week– aimed to recognize the trajectory of the center and its contribution to the consolidation of the national scientific ecosystem and project its role in the global challenges from a local perspective.

The director of the CMM, Héctor Ramírez Cabrera, highlighted in his speech the value of applied science and interdisciplinary collaboration as engines to face the challenges of Chile and the world. In this line, he also stressed the need to project the work of the center into the future, picking up the words of the rector of the University of Chile, who, at the launching ceremony of the National Plan Sumo Primero of the Ministry of Education, held last April 10, described the CMM as a heritage for the institution.

“We must assume the commitment to safeguard that heritage. That is, to ensure that the work of CMM is sustainable over time, beyond specific funding cycles. Because after 25 years of contributions to the country, with passion, rigor, and commitment, a center like the CMM deserves to project itself with the long-term horizon that Chile needs,” said Ramírez.

An agreement that projects 25 years of collaboration and commitment to development

The French ambassador in Chile, Cyrille Rogeau, and the president of the CNRS, Antoine Petit, highlighted the historical relationship of scientific cooperation between both countries, which will be strengthened with the extension of the International Research Laboratory (IRL) agreement between the University of Chile and the CNRS, formalized during the day.

In his speech, the French Ambassador to Chile, Cyrille Rogeau, emphasized that investing in science is always a long-term bet. In this sense, he recalled that the CNRS was created in 1939, a few weeks after the war with Germany was declared, as a visionary act in times of uncertainty:

“It was quite an incredible bet; we are proud of this form of French excellence that is the CNRS. So also, that this alliance with the University of Chile could exist, I believe that it was not such an easy bet, but it has been extraordinarily fruitful”, he pointed out.

Antoine Petit, president of the CNRS, specified that “it is a very important agreement, it is the renewal of the agreement, as you must know, the CNRS is a partner of CMM since its beginnings. But I don’t know if people in Chile know what the CNRS is; it is a large center of French public research organizations that covers all areas of science, including mathematics”.

And he added that “we live in a digital world and mathematics is absolutely necessary, it is the key to artificial intelligence, so we are very proud to be part of CMM since its inception, and a very important feature of CMM is its relationship with industry and with the real world, you could say, because science has to be beneficial to society”.

The Rector of the University of Chile, Rosa Devés, indicated that “this anniversary finds us in a complex moment, in which principles that until recently we considered unquestionable are being questioned, such as that collaboration is essential to face complex problems or that the great global challenges, such as climate change, require answers based on international cooperation, or that scientific work must be based on academic freedom, or that the rationality of science itself deserves to be recognized and respected or that the search for truth cannot be directly replaced by lies”.

“Beyond the arbitrary budget cuts announced to the centers of study, this is a crusade against scientific knowledge historically understood as a public good, which is being intervened from the logics of authoritarian power. Moving in this direction will not only compromise development, we know that it will also compromise peace. That is why the agreement we have signed is so important, because in addition to its intrinsic value, it is based on principles that today, more than ever, must be proclaimed and disseminated, given their relevance for our common destiny. “Beyond the arbitrary budget cuts announced to study centers, this is a crusade against scientific knowledge historically understood as a public good, which is being intervened from the logics of authoritarian power. Moving in this direction will not only compromise development, we know that it will also compromise peace. That is why the agreement we have signed is so important, because in addition to its intrinsic value, it is based on principles that today, more than ever, must be proclaimed and disseminated, given their relevance for our common destiny. In this sense, today we would like to reaffirm the will to continue strengthening inter-university cooperation in and from the CMM, as well as to continue strengthening the link with all the partners that make it possible to address key issues for the country and, of course, the joint work with the CNRS”, added Rector Devés.

In addition, the celebration of this milestone was attended by the President of the Republic, Gabriel Boric, who highlighted the role that the center has played throughout its history. “This is the way we believe that science is done in Chile, that science should be done in our country, with cooperation, with a willingness to dialogue, with multidisciplinarity, trying to understand each other, and the truth is that I am very happy to be here on the 25th anniversary of the CMM”, said the President.

And he added, “Here is a public policy of excellence, led by the University of Chile, which has been successful, has been maintained and consolidated over time.”

For his part, the dean of the FCFM, Francisco Martínez, emphasized that “For the Faculty of Physical and Mathematical Sciences of the U. of Chile and for our country, it is a tremendous pride to have a research center of the excellence of the Center for Mathematical Modeling. Its work in these 25 years has positively impacted the lives of people and the development of our country, for example, in crucial areas such as health, education, agriculture, climate change, mining, and the development of Artificial Intelligence, which depends on increasingly complex mathematical algorithms, so the role of the CMM is central for our country”.

The ceremony ended with an official photograph of the authorities and the interpretation of the Anthem of the University of Chile.

This celebration marks a milestone not only for the CMM but also for the Chilean scientific ecosystem, consolidating the joint work of the nine universities associated with the center and reaffirming its leadership in high-impact projects such as Copernicus LAC Chile, ALeRCE, and the National Laboratory for High Performance Computing (NLHPC).