The Fields Institute Turns Twenty-Five 170725 Final book with covers | Page 81

The Diversity of Intellectual Activity
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the NCE Mitacs as a joint effort of the Fields Institute,
Centre de Recherches Mathématiques, and Pacific Institute
for Mathematical Sciences. One of my lasting memories is a
midnight meeting at Fields preparing the final proposal to the
NCE program together with Arvind Gupta, who went on to
be the brilliant leader of Mitacs for fifteen years developing
innovative programs of collaborative research and training
across Canada.
During my years at Fields I was fortunate to have
the opportunity to observe the creative work taking place
day-by-day as well as many memorable and inspiring lectures
by leading mathematicians and scientists. Since my term
ended in 2000, I have watched with interest the continued
development of Fields as one of the leading international
mathematics institutes and its wide range of activities.
These include the widening of the Centre for Financial
Industry, Centre for Mathematical Medicine, and Centre in
Mathematical Education.
Of particular note is the series of Fields Medal Symposia,
which bring some of the recent major developments in
mathematics to the attention of the public and the
mathematical community. Fields also plays a key role at the
participating universities, including my own, by supporting
local research activities and events. My most recent experience
at Fields was the World Congress in Probability and Statistics
which was hosted by Fields during summer 2016. The
organization produced by the Chair of the local organizing
committee, Tom Salisbury, and the Fields staff was highly
professional.
The success of the Fields Institute is a result of the
dedicated work of many individuals. Members of the Board
of Directors, Scientific Advisory Panel, and the Fields staff
have, over the past twenty-five years, collectively produced a
remarkable institution which has served a vast community of