On 9 December 2024, the first JINR Information Centre in the Southern Hemisphere was opened at the NRF: iThemba LABS in South Africa. This new centre will serve as a key instrument for the development of collaboration between the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research and the Republic of South Africa.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Information Centre’s (IC) main display was performed by JINR Director Grigory Trubnikov, iThemba LABS Director Victor Tshivhase, and UC Director Dmitry Kamanin. The opening ceremony was attended by senior figures of National Research Foundation organisations, representatives from South African educational institutions, guests from JINR member states, and heads of other JINR Information Centres.
The opening of the JINR IC also marked the start of a seminar to discuss the issue of attracting young people to scientific research. One of the central themes of discussion was work with school teachers. The seminar included a series of lectures and panel discussions, and culminated in a round table. Participants in the discussion noted the diverse ways in which the IC format could be used to develop collaboration, both with the main centre at JINR and directly between ICs. The seminar concluded with a visit by the guests to three universities: the University of the Western Cape, the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, and the University of Cape Town.
The delegation, along with representatives from JINR and the head of the newly opened IC, Richard Newman, included Albina Daurova, Dean of the Faculty of Physics and Technology at the North Ossetian State University, Andrey Tanaev, Director of the Research Institute of Applied Physics at Irkutsk State University, and Olga Anisimova, Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs at Dubna State University.
The guests were introduced to the infrastructure and educational programmes of the universities. Dmitry Kamanin, JINR UC Director and Coordinator for Cooperation with South Africa, mentioned the possibility of collaboration with these universities on personnel training in partnership with JINR. The potential participation of students in research programmes was also discussed, particularly in the TAIGA collaboration and in the creation of the SPD detector for the NICA collider. The participants discussed potential formats and areas for collaboration, considering the potential of the Institute and Information Centres as a platform for expanding bilateral and multilateral international scientific and technological relations, and agreed to continue the dialogue in the near future.
The opening of the IC will contribute to the further development of South African students’ involvement in collaboration with JINR. Every year, young scientists come to Dubna for practice and internships, in order to work on their theses under the academic supervision of JINR scientists. The next meeting of Dubna managers with a new group of students will be held as part of the Summer School run by SAINTS, the educational division of iThemba LABS, at the end of January 2025.
