Exciting things are happening in Operations Research, and we don’t want you to miss out! Whether you’re looking to expand your network, sharpen your skills, or get involved in new initiatives, there are a lineup of events and opportunities just for you. Read on to find out what’s coming up!
There are plenty of Operation Research conferences to fill up your calendar, here are a few that might spark your interest. Firstly, and to start locally, the South African Numerical and Applied Mathematics (SANUM) will be hosting SANUM2025 from 31st March to 4th April 2025. More information can be found here. The International Conference on Optimization and Decision Science 2025, will be held in Milan, Italy from 1st to 4th September 2025 and is hosted by AIRO, the Italian Operations Research Society, read more about this conference here. Finally, if Italy doesn't strike your interest, the 34th Conference of the Association of European Operational Research Societies (EURO), is taking place in Leeds, UK, from 22nd to 25th June 2025. This year there is a special session entitled 'OR for Better Africa' which is calling for abstracts. This session will explore how OR can drive impactful solutions for Africa’s development, tackling key challenges across industries, policy-making, and society. Find out more here.
If you aren't able to travel this year, why not join the System Dynamics Learning Hub 2025, hosted by the South African System Dynamics Chapter (SASDC)! This interactive, hands-on training, free series is designed to help you explore system dynamics in a practical and engaging way. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced modeller, the Learning Hub offers a space to develop your skills, collaborate with peers, and apply systems thinking to real-world challenges.
The Learning Hub is organised by Andries Botha and Corne Du Plooy and runs in three streams throughout the year. Each stream comprises three weeks structured to maximise learning:
Week 1: Teaching & Learning – Interactive contact sessions
Week 2: Individual Feedback – One-on-one guidance
Week 3: Presentation – Share insights and receive peer feedback
Stream 1 has already kicked off, so be sure to register for free now!
Another opportunity is the Analytics for a Better World event. To reflect on their achievements and untapped opportunities to make the world a better place, they would like to extend a warm invitation to the Analytics for a Better World 2025 Kick-off Event, on the 27th of March, between 3:00 and 4:30 CET PM. To accelerate their impact as a community, the Analytics for a Better World team would like to share their sharpened mission and vision for 2025, their plans for their open-source analytics and optimization repository for humanitarian and non-profit challenges, and to introduce the beginning of an impact and capability building program which they believe will increase your data-driven impact tenfold in the near future.
Do you want to get to know their vibrant community and celebrate the impact they created? Then start your year of impact with fresh data-creative inspiration and energy, they would be delighted to have you online on the 27th of March, between 3:00 and 4:30 PM CET! Please sign up here. All logistic details such as the zoom link will be communicated via email one week before the event.
Don't forget to sign up for the events mentioned in the last blog post, namely the SAMS online celebration of the International Day of Mathematics (IDM), taking place on Saturday 8th March 2025, 9 am – 11am. Register here
Please also remember to RSVP to the upcoming ORSSA SIG History of OR event which will held on 19 March at 18:00 via zoom, presented by Hans Ittman. You can RSVP here. Hans will be presenting on the topic "Reflections on early OR career at CSIR, from 1973 to 1986." Below is a summary of the presentation:
Joining the National Research Institute for Mathematical Sciences (NRIMS) of the CSIR
as an operations researcher with hardly any formal OR training and experience was a
daunting challenge. In retrospect my defence background opened the opportunity to
become part of this world class scientific institution. The environment was conducive to
gain know-how, to learn and to grow. The privilege to work with, and under a person
such as Theo Stewart, was invaluable. In this presentation I will give a brief outline of my
own background and my experiences in a growing OR group. My focus will be largely on
projects I was personally involved in during the early years of the OR group but also a
period of fundamental changes within the CSIR.
With so many exciting events ahead, now is the perfect time to get involved. Don’t miss out—mark your calendar, sign up, and stay connected.
Finally, for the ORSSA members, here is some news from IFORS:
"I’m Héctor Cancela, a Professor in the Operations Research Department at the Universidad de la República in Montevideo, Uruguay. On 1st January I started my three-year term as President of IFORS. You can find more information about me and the rest of the new members of the AC on the website. The new VP representing your region, EURO, is Greet Vanden Berghe, please feel free to contact them if you have any ideas, suggestions or need some support in your local activities.
I’d like to start by thanking my predecessor, Janny Leung, who will be serving three more years as Past President, for her leadership and commitment. The new AC plans to continue the good work from the last three years, adding some new initiatives to promote OR and IFORS globally.
There are three communication routes I’d like to ask you and your members to consider signing up to:
IFORS’ new LinkedIn group. This is an ideal channel to share news and details of events in your country or region. Sign up at: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/10015549/
Sign up to receive free electronic copies of IFORS’ newsletter. This is sent out quarterly and features lots of interesting reports, tutorials and updates. Sign up here: https://www.ifors.org/ifors-newsletter/
IFORS' YouTube channel, including the recordings of all previous IFORS Global webinars: https://www.youtube.com/@ifors3785
I look forward to interacting with you and your members over the coming three years, working together to support OR practitioners, scholars and students with relevant, timely and useful information about all aspects of our discipline; sharing knowledge and best practices, and developing existing and new synergies, in order to achieve together the widest impact and contribute to a better future for our planet."
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