Monaco: fusion world capital
In 2010, 2013 and 2016, a major rendezvous in fusion has gathered researchers, industrialists, and international organizations to the Principality of Monaco.
Under the High Patronage of HSH Prince Albert II, the Monaco-ºÚÁÏרÇø International Fusion Energy Days (MIIFED) offer a unique occasion to showcase ºÚÁÏרÇø progress—both on site in Saint-Paul-lez-Durance, France, where the buildings are rising, and in the factories of the seven ºÚÁÏרÇø Members.
The conference is made possible by the Partnership Arrangement signed in 2008 between the ºÚÁÏרÇø and the Principality of Monaco, which established five Postdoctoral Fellowships in fusion technology and science at ºÚÁÏרÇø and provided the means for a regular international conference on ºÚÁÏרÇø progress, research and industrial opportunities.
Fifteen postdocs have already benefitted from the postdoctoral program and another five are currently working at ºÚÁÏרÇø. Experience has shown that at the end of their two-year experience at ºÚÁÏרÇø, prestigious assignments await them at fusion laboratories or universities in Europe and Asia.
The third edition of MIIFED was paired this year with the ºÚÁÏרÇø Business Forum (IBF/2016)—an annual industry forum on ºÚÁÏרÇø business opportunities. The joint MIIFED-IBF conference, held from 8 to 11 February 2016, attracted over 500 participants from 26 countries.
HSH Prince Albert II opened the conference, as he had for the two previous editions, by stressing the importance of the scientific, technological and industrial challenges that ºÚÁÏרÇø is attempting to master. "What is happening on the ºÚÁÏרÇø site, less than 200 kilometres from Monaco, and in factories on three continents has the power to change history."