The goal of EUROPT is to promote and to facilitate communication links among  European (and other) researchers working in areas of continuous optimization. EUROPT was established with numerous founding members at a satellite meeting of the EURO XVII Conference in Budapest, July 16-19, 2000. EUROPT's kick-off workshop, the Second IPM Workshop (IPM-2000, 2000), was organized just before the EURO meeting. In the sequel, we had two further EUROPT workshops: The second one took place in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, July 2001, before EURO XVIII and was entitled Smooth and Nonsmooth Optimization, Theory and Applications. Three years ago, we celebrated our third annual meeting called Workshop on Advances of Continuous Optimization  in Istanbul, Turkey, July 2003, when Prof. Tamás Terlaky and Prof. Tibor Illés became our Honorary Coordinators, before the 5th EUROPT/INFORMS Joint International Meeting 2003. In July 2004, right before EURO XX, we had our fourth one entitled Workshop on Challenges of Continuous Optimization in Theory and Applications on Rhodes, Greece, and right after EURO XX, our 2-3 weeks of EURO Summer Institute XXII (ESI 2004) Optimization and Data Mining in Ankara, Turkey. Below we will closer come to our 17^th EURO Mini Conference 2005 in Pécs, Hungary, our 5^th EUROPT Workshop 2006 in Reykjavik, Iceland, our engagement at EURO XXI 2006 in Reykjavik, our ESI 2006 in Wittenberg, Germany, and to our various further engagement!     

At those EURO conferences above, EUROPT organized sessions and semi-plenary lectures on continuous optimization. Moreover, after our various workshops and our ESI 2004, we preparated special issue of European Journal of Operational Research. Four EJOR special issues appeared already, some further ones will be published. To them, to the last one appeared and to further special issues in preparation, we will come below. 

For 8th SIAM Conference on Optimization 2005 (Stockholm, Sweden), 2 mini-symposia were held  in the name of EUROPT, and a one closely associated with us. Furthermore, at IFORS 2005 (Hawaii), we had a session cosponsored. A series “Workshop on Sustainable Living in Rural Areas of Turkey” intitiated in 2005 and a seminar series supported by us at METU (Ankara), should not be forgotten here.

In 2005, EUROPT celebrated its 5^th anniversary at the occasion of the very enjoyable 17^th EURO Mini Conference “Continuous Optimization in the Industry”,  Pécs, Hungary, June 29 - July 1, 2005: happy birthday!  

After in 2004 engaged students - members of EUROPT - established the group “Young People for Operations Research in the Developing Countries” (YORC), EUROPT submitted a proposal for a new EURO Working Group “Operational Research for Development”. We were grateful that this proposal became accepted by EURO Executive Committee in July 2005! Furthermore, another application for a new EURO Working Group “Operational Research in Computational Biology, Bioinformatics and Medicine” prepared by us became accepted by EURO in February 2006! At the occasion of EURO XXI 2006 in Iceland, we celebrated the foundations of the two new sister EURO WGs. To their leaders and members we wish joy, success and that both new groups will bloom! EUROPT will further support them with devotion.

In 2005, EURO EC also accepted our proposal for a EURO Summer Institute “Optimization Challenges in Engineering: Methods, Software and Applications”  in Lutherstadt Wittenberg, Germany, August 18 - September 2, 2006. This ESI 2006 became one of EUROPT’s highlights in 2006, besides our 5^th EURO Workshop “Advances in Continuous Optimization”, Reykjavik, Iceland, June 30 - July 1, 2006, and our rich engagement at EURO XXI 2006, Reykjavik, July 2-5, 2006. At the EURO conference, we were represented by 21 precious streams, some of them really pioneering in OR like, e.g., dynamical and anticipartory systems, data mining, electricity markets and optimization in financial mathematics, and a number of semi-plenary, tutorial and keynote lectures. At EURO 2006, EUROPT introduced a Managing Board.Furthermore, Prof. Dr. Florian Jarre left as the Coordinato and became Vice Chair; his successor and the new Chair became Prof. Dr. Gerhard-Wilhelm Weber who was the Vice-Coordinator before.

In 2005 and 2006, there were further scientific activities such as "International Symposium on Health Informatics and Bioinformatics” (Antalya, Turkey), "ISPRS 2005 Spatial Data Mining Workshop", "Workshop on Complex Societal Problems, Sustainable Living and Development" (2 times), "Workshop of Geometric Morphometry" (all in Ankara) and 1^st Summer School “Achievements and Applications of Contemporary Informatics, Mathematics and Physics” (Kiev, Ukraine), where EUROPT contributed to. For closer information please visit our links "Scientific events", "Journals" and "Reports". In 2006, EUROPT introduced the title and plate “EUROPT Fellow” of a year; Prof. Dr. Alexander Rubinov became our first year’s fellow.   

Two further EJOR special issues appeared: “Optimization in Data Mining” (in 2006) and “Challenges of Continuous Optimization in Theory and Applications” (in 2007) both at the occasion of events mentioned above. A CEJOR special issue “Advances in Continuous Optimization” became published in 2007. Furthermore, an Optimization special issue “Continuous Optimization in Finance”, an MMOR special issue “Optimization Challenges in Engineering: Methods, Software and Applications” at to occasion of our ESI 2006, and an OMS Special Issue at the occasion our Joint EUROPT-OMS Conference 2007, are in preparation.

Indeed, in the year 2007, we and our friends prepared and celebrated "A Joint EUROPT-OMS Conference: 2nd Conference on Optimization Methods & Software and 6th EUROPT Workshop Advances in Continuous Optimization" Prague, Czech Republic, July 4-7, 2007, which was our largest event so far - there, we also honoured Prof. Georg Still who became EUROPT Fellow 2007! At EUROPT-OMS we had helpful and renowned partners whose name you can find by this homepage. We also gave a very strong engagement at the conference EURO XXII 2007, July 8-11, 2007, which followed. This engagement expressed itself, e.g., by more than 30 streams which we helped to prepare. That EURO became the biggest one in the series of EURO meetings with about 2000 participants. Furthermore, we supported another satellite event, “PhD Workshop on OR for Development”, Prague, July 7, 2007, and the prestigous conference INFORMS International 2007, Puerto Rico, July 4-7, 2007. Furthermore, we supported International Symposium on Health-Informatics and Bioinformatics, Antalya, Turkey, April 30 – May 2, 2007, “Workshop on Sustainable Living at Turkish Rural Countryside”, Ankara, Turkey, June 8, 2007, and “2st Summer School Achievements and Applications of Contemporary Informatics, Mathematics and Physics”, Kiev, Ukraine, August 4-20, 2007.

One expression of this role played by EUROPT consists in bringing national OR societies close together, e.g., the Hungarian and Turkish one with the German OR society. Further societies’ collaboration will follow.

In 2006-2007, EUROPT served for the preparation and finalization of both the EJOR and the CEJOR special issues “OR for Better Management of Sustainable Development” at the occasion of EURO XXI 2006 in Iceland.

In the year 2008, The 20th EURO Mini Conference “Continuous Optimization and Knowledge-Based Technologies”, May 20-23, 2008, Neringa, Lithuania, together with LitORS - the Lithuanian Operational Research Society, GOR - the German OR Society, and other partners, was one of EUROPT’s highlights. We were happy that EURO Executive Committee had accepted this special event – without any complain. Since we had a “EURO MC” not long a time ago (Pécs, Hungary, 2005), that approval by EURO EC implies a special acknowledgement and great honour for us. At this Mini-EURO 2008, we published ISI proceedings and two special issues have been published: in TOP (selected contributions), in Informatica and in Technological and Economic Development of Economy (Baltic Journal on Sustainability). At this special event, Prof. Dr. Kees Roos became EUROPT Fellow 2008, the third Fellow of EUROPT in its history. Moreover, the Managing Board of EUROPT changed; Prof. Dr. Gerhard-Wilhelm Weber left as the Chair (now Past Chair); his successor and the new Chair became Prof. Dr. Marco A. Lopez-Cerda who was the Vice Chair before.

In 2008, there are 8 further important events with EUROPT among the organizing societies. There were “Recent Developments in Financial Mathematics and Stochastic Calculus”, Workshop in Memory of Professor Hayri Körezlioðlu, Ankara, Turkey, April 25-26, 2008, Workshop “The Simulation Tool Box for the Financial Engineer”, Ankara, Turkey, April 23-24, 2008, “International Workshop on Hybrid Systems: Modelling, Simulation and Optimization”, Istanbul, Turkey, May 14-17, 2008, Workshop on “Complex Societal Problems, Sustainable Living and Development”, Ankara, Turkey, May 16, 2008, “International Conference on Engineering Optimization” (EngOpt 2008), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, June 1-5, 2008, “International Conference on Power Control Optimization” (PCO’2008), Chiang Mai, Thailand, July 18-20, 2008, 4th Summer School Achievements and Applications of Contemporay Mathematics, Informatics and Physics (AACIMP-2008), Kiev, Ukraine, August 11-24, 2008, and “Mini EURO Conference on Computational Biology, Bioinformatics and Medicine”, Rome, Italy, September 15-17, 2008.

Furthermore, we supported 3 more events: IFORS 2008, 18th Triennial Conference of the International Federation of Operational Research Societies, Sandton, South Africa, July 13-18, 2007, furthermore, TC8/WG8.3 Working Conference “International Conference on Collaborative Decision Making” (CDM’08), Toulouse, France, July 1-4, 2008, and The Kerkenes Dag Project, Yozgat, Turkey, October 12, 2008. By the latter 2 events, we supported two “sister EURO working groups”.

In the year 2009, we have given a strong contribution to EURO XXIII 2009 – “23rd European Conference on Operational Research”, Bonn, Germany, July 5-8, 2009 (at this very important event, numerous streams served, many ones of them by EUROPT, its friends and members, again), but also to 7th EUROPT Workshop “Advances in Continuous Optimization”, Remagen (near Bonn), Germany, July 3-4, 2009, which will be a real core event of our group. At our celebrated workshop in Remagen, Prof. Dr. Adil Bagirov became our EUROPT Fellow 2009, the fourth annual fellow of our group! What is more we served for two other satellite events of EURO 2009 as mentioned in the following.

In fact, besides our highlights, EUROPT’s engagement in events of the year 2009 contained the following 6 ones: Workshop on Game Theory, Ankara, Turkey, January 30, 2009, A EURO ORD Workshop on OR for Developing Countries – Young Researchers and PhD Symposium, Remagen, Germany, July 4, 2009, State of the Art Workshop: Mutual Session of Special Researchers of several EURO Working Groups, OR and Development, Ethics, Decision Making, Methodology of Societal Complexity and Others, Remagen, Germany, July 5, 2009, 4th Summer School “Achievements and Applications of Contemporay Mathematics, Informatics and Physics” (AACIMP-2009), Kiev, Ukraine, August 5-16, 2009, 2nd Global Conference on Power Control and Optimization (PCO) 2009, Bali, Indonesia, June 1-3, 2009, and our support for ICCAM 2009 – 14th International Congress on Computational and Applied Mathematics, Antalya, Turkey, September 29 – October 2, 2009.

Moreover, it was a great honour that EURO Executive Committee accepted two more Mini EURO Conferences with the involvement of EUROPT: 5th International Vilnius Conference and EURO-Mini Conference "Knowledge-Based Technologies and OR Methodologies for Strategic Decisions of Sustainable Development" (KORSD-2009), September 30 - October 3, 2009, Vilnius, Lithuania, where we supported some other EURO working groups in their efforts, and, in particular, 24th Mini Euro Conference EurOPT 2010 - “Continuous Optimization and Information-Based Technologies In the Financial Sector” June 23-26, 2010, in Izmir, Turkey. This will become the third particular Mini EURO Conference in the history of EUROPT, and it will foster integration and impact of continuous optimization in financial mathematics and its practice.

Indeed, now we are looking forward to the years 2010 and 2011 already. We are going to support the prestigous events EURO XXIV 2010, Lisbon, Portugal, July 11-14, 2010, and IFORS 2011, Melbourne, Australia, July 10-15, 2011. Our special “10 Years EUROPT Birthday” event, given by 8th EUROPT “Workshop Advances in Continuous Optimization” will take place in Aveiro, Portugal, at July 9-10, 2010. What is more, we shall coorganize two other satellite events of EURO 2010: A EURO ORD Workshop on OR for Developing Countries - Young Researchers and PhD Symposium, and State of the Art Workshop - a Workshop related to EURO XXIV / EUROPT / EURO ORD / EUROMSC / Ethics, both in Lisbon, Portugal, July 10 and 11, 2010, respectively.

Moreover, we will support 3rd Global Conference on Power Control and Optimization, Gold Coast, Australia, February, 2-4, 2010, 4th Workshop on Optimization and Variational Analysis, Elche, Spain, July14-16, 2010, the 24th Mini EURO mentioned above, 3rd Conference on Nonlinear Science and Complexity, Ankara, Turkey, July 28-31, 2010, EngOpt 2010 - 2nd International Conference on Engineering Optimization, Lisbon, Portugal, September 6-9, 2010, and 4rd Global Conference on Power and Optimization,Sarawak, Borneo, Malaysia, December 2-4, 2010.

In 2008, we published the feature cluster issue Continuous Optimization in the Industry of EJOR (European Journal of Operational Research) at the occasion of 17th EURO Mini Conference of the same name (Pécs, Hungary, June 29 – July 1, 2005), the special issue of CEJOR (Central European Journal of Operations Research) Advances in Continuous Optimization, at the occasion of 5th EUROPT Workshop “Advances in Continuous Optimization” (Reykjavik, Iceland, June 30 - July 1, 2006), the proceedings Contributions of Workshop on Recent Developments in Financial Mathematics and Stochastic Calculus in Memory of Professor Hayri Körezlioðlu (Ankara, Turkey, April, 25-26, 2008), on the CD of the workshop, the ISI Proceedings of International Conference EURO Mini Conference “Continuous Optimization and Knowledge-Based Technologies” (EurOPT-2008) (Neringa, Lithuania, May 20-23, 2008) (ISI: International Statistical Institute). Moreover, the special issue of the journal Mathematical Methods of Operations Research (MMOR) devoted to ESI 2006 - EURO Summer Institute ESI XXIV: Optimization Challenges in Engineering: Methods, Software, and Applications (Lutherstadt Wittenberg, Germany, August 18 – September 2, 2006), and the special issue at the occasion of EURO XXII (Prague, Czech Republic, July 8-11, 2008) of the journal Optimization Methods and Software (OMS) appeared in 2008, too.

In 2009, the special issue OR for Better Management of Sustainable Development of European Journal of Operational Research (EJOR) at the occasion of EURO XXI (Reykjavik, Iceland, June 30 – July 1, 2006), supported by us appeared, and we finalized the 3 special issues, namely, of TOP (selected contributions), Informatica and Technological and Economic Development of Economy (Baltic Journal on Sustainability), respectively, at the occasion of our 20th Mini EURO Conference 2008 in Lithuania. The special issue Continuous Optimization in Finance of the journal Optimization appeared in 2009, too. The PCO conferences and Mini EURO in Izmir mentioned above have proceedings and special issues also.

We are going on with our collaboration and support for other EURO Working Groups and their activities, with integration of further research areas in EUROPT, our service via EUROPT homepage, e-Newsletter and the Managing Board of EUROPT, by appointing our EUROPT Fellows annually, supporting EURO in various activities, award and selection processes, supporting EJOR and further journals related to EURO’s member societies, and serving the collaboration and friendship between national OR Societies of EURO and in IFORS.

By all those well-appreciated events and our various further engagements, such as Seminar support at METU, Ankara, and by further personal interest of colleagues, the number of EUROPT members increased to more than 1044. Together we prepare a rich scientific life, common experiences and friendship for the best of the members of our group, of our people in Europe and the world!

If you are interested in EUROPT, please contact us! In case of your kind consideration and, maybe, your wish to join us as a member electronically, you are warmly welcome!

We sincerely like to collaborate with you.

For more detailled information please closer visit this homepage and the EUROPT at EURO side which you find when clicking us at the working groups page of EURO. 

 Objectives of EUROPT:

• to disseminate state-of-the-art knowledge and to support research in continuous optimization,

• to contribute to the education of young optimization researchers and students
  (organizing EURO Summer and Winter Institutes, and by announcing Ph.D. Programs etc.),

• to assist in gathering the continuous optimization community in Europe organized under the umbrella of EURO,

• to build and maintain links with sister special interest groups inside and outside EURO,

• to support the foundation of new EURO working groups,

• to foster newly founded EURO working groups,

• to support preparation, refereeing and editing of publications,

• to establish regular information channels and regular meetings,

• to build links to users of continuous optimization methodology,

• to involve industrial organizations and users of optimization in the activities listed above,

• to initiate interdisciplinary research with colleagues from science, engineering and economy, with continuous optimization being a key technology,

• vivid exchange between scientific experience and enthusiasm of the youth,

• encouragement of building up a common and developing Europe,   and

• deepening of peace and friendship in Europe and in the world.