06/08/2018

Volunteering inside and outside Riocentro

Vitality, joy, creativity, as well as stimulating the mind and aiding in the assimilation of new ideas. These are some of the properties attributed to the color orange. Since the first day of the International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM 2018), this is the color that has filled all spaces. Wearing orange shirts, young volunteers have been making life easier for the approximately 3,000 congress attendees.

The 228 volunteers came from various parts of the country and some even from abroad (Germany, China and Peru). We gathered five of them to tell a little about this experience: Marthus Santos (DF), studying Mathematics and Civil Engineering; Thiago Moreira (SP), Science and Technology; Pietro Onnis (MG), Mechanical Engineering; Zianfeng Zhao (China), Master's in Combinatorics; and Luan Borelli (RJ), Economics.

They all said they worked hard to be selected to work at ICM, as it would be an opportunity to experience mathematics firsthand and be close to the people they admire so much. They spared no effort to achieve this. “My desire to come was enormous, but I didn't have the financial means. I encouraged a friend from Rio to participate, so if I was accepted, I could stay at his house. It worked out for both of us,” says Thiago Moreira.

Volunteers cover all travel and accommodation expenses, but receive uniforms, meal vouchers, and transportation.

Zianfeng Zhao, from China, who has been in Brazil for just over a year pursuing a master's degree at the Institute of Pure and Applied Mathematics (IMPA), said he was extremely happy to participate as a volunteer and added that he intends to stay in Brazil to pursue a doctorate and, perhaps, work as a researcher at IMPA.

There are many stories. Luan Borelli, for example, follows the French mathematician Cédric Villani on social media and took the opportunity to meet his idol in person. "I took a selfie with him." Pietro Onnis, from Minas Gerais, said that this is the first time he has worked as a volunteer and that he is satisfied with the experience. "Seeing the people who inspire us is the best reward," he says.

Marthus Santos told a story that, according to him, sums up what it means to be a volunteer. “Last week, a Chinese teacher didn't know how to buy a light rail ticket. A colleague of ours accompanied her to the station and helped her. We've been doing this a lot, when we find people who are coming here and are a bit lost on public transport. We know our work is inside, but it doesn't hurt to help,” he says.