IFORS NEWSLETTER

Highlights of the latest IFORS developments: Optimization Workshop: Theory, Algorithms, and Applications: Young and senior optimizers met in Bogotá, Colombia

The “Optimization Workshop: Theory, Algorithms, and Applications” was held from December 9-13, 2024, at the Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia. The main objective of this workshop was to bring together researchers and students from local and international communities, fostering collaboration and innovation in the field of mathematical optimization. The conference attracted 110 participants, including 60 students, from Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador, Chile, Singapore, Canada, France, USA, and Australia. The organizing committee comprised Mateo Díaz (Johns Hopkins University, USA), Andrés Gómez (University of Southern California, USA), and Mauricio Junca (Universidad de los Andes, Colombia). The conference was supported by Johns Hopkins University (USA), University of Southern California (USA), and Universidad de los Andes (Colombia), which enabled the organizers to offer 11 travel grants for local and international students.

The keynote speakers were Claudia Sagastizábal (Unicamp, Brazil), Simge Küçükyavuz (Northwestern University, USA), Stephen J. Wright (University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA), and Andrés L. Medaglia (Universidad de los Andes, Colombia). The conference featured a single track with 21 invited speakers and 4 keynotes delivering talks on cutting-edge topics of optimization, covering theory, methods, and practice.

The jury, comprising Beste Basciftci (University of Iowa, USA), David Bernal Neira (Purdue University, USA), Ashwin Pananjady (Georgia Institute of Technology, USA), and Alejandro Toriello (Georgia Institute of Technology, USA), selected the winner and runner-ups. The winner was Rodolfo Quintero (Lehigh University), with honorable mentions awarded to Esteban Leiva (Universidad de los Andes) and Daniel Lopez-Castaño (Johns Hopkins University).