THE INTERNATIONAL MATHEMATICAL UNION (IMU) is an international non-governmental and non-profit scientific organization, with the purpose of promoting international cooperation in mathematics. It is a member of the International Council for Sciences (ICSU). The IMU was originally formed in 1919; it existed until 1936 and was then reconstituted in 1951.

The objectives of the IMU are:

• to promote international cooperation in mathematics
• to support and assist the International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM) [to be held in Madrid in 2006] and other international scientific meetings
• to encourage and support other international mathematical activities

What is the IMU? A two-part article from the 1995 Notices of the AMS, the second part written by David Mumford, a past president of the IMU. Notable quote: "When I got involved in the Executive Committee, Serre told me what he considered the two secrets of its success. First, no one was ever nominated to the Executive Committee who wanted the job; second, the IMU has no money to speak of."

History: Lehto, Olli. Mathematics Without Borders: A History of the International Mathematical Union. New York: Springer, 1998.
TC Mathematics Library QA1 .L42 1998 Regular Loan

IMU Executive Committee January 1, 2003 - December 31, 2006

• President: John M. Ball (United Kingdom)
• Vice-Presidents: Jean-Michel Bismut (France)and Masaki Kashiwara (Japan)
• Secretary: Phillip A. Griffiths (USA)
• Members at Large: Andrey A. Bolibruch (Russia), Martin Grötschel (Germany), Zhi-Ming Ma (China), Ragni Piene (Norway), Madabusi S. Raghunathan (India)
• Ex-officio: Jacob Palis (Past President) (Brazil)

Commissions of the IMU

• The International Commission of Mathematical Instruction (ICMI)
  • Official journal: L'Enseignement Mathématique
  • Quadrennial conference: International Congress on Mathematical Education (ICME)
  • Solidarity Program to further "mathematics education in those parts of the world where there is a need for it . . .[and to] foster solidarity in mathematics education between well-defined quarters in developed and less developed countries."
  • Studies currently under way:
    • 14. Applications and Modelling in Mathematics Education.
    • 15. Teacher Education and Development.
    • 16. Challenging Mathematics in and Beyond the Classroom.
    • 17. Technology Revisited.
• The Commission on Development and Exchange (CDE)
  • Grants travel funds to mathematicians from developing countries in support of research visits.
  • Gives partial financial support to conferences organized by developing countries.
• The International Commission on the History of Mathematics (ICHM) [jointly with International Union of the History and Philosophy of Science, Division of the History of Science]
  • Official journal: Historia Mathematica
  • Award: the Kenneth O. May Medal to historians of mathematics for outstanding contributions to the history of mathematics

Committee on Electronic Information and Communication (CEIC)

• Recommendations on Information and Communication
  • Best Current Practices
    • for Mathematicians
    • for Librarians and Mathematicians
    • for Publishers and Mathematicians
  • Math-Net
  • Call to all Mathematicians to Make Publications Electronically Available
  • CEIC Copyright Recommendations: What Do You Want from Your Publisher

Member Countries
A country adheres to IMU through an adhering organization, which may be its principal academy, a mathematical society, its research council or some other institution or association of institutions, or an appropriate agency of its government. The adhering organization for the USA is the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. Currently there are 64 countries adhered to IMU.