On June 4, Ivan Sherstov, Director of Research at Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, visited Paris, France in an effort to encourage French universities and research institutes to participate in the Call for Proposals to create Skoltech Research Centers and build contacts with the country’s leading researchers.

With historical strength in the fields of Nuclear technologies, Aerospace and IT, France offers unique research expertise in that sector as well as many of Skoltech’s other strategic research fields like Biomedicine and Energy Sciences and Technologies.

Representatives from about 20 research institutes and universities attended the presentation at Telecom Paris Tech, including: Institut Mines-Telecom, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Compagnie Européenne d’Intelligence Stratégique, Universite Paris-Sud, and Institut Gustave Roussy.

After an hour-long presentation, the professors demonstrated their interest in the program asking questions for another hour, and almost all said they would apply in some form to various Skoltech activities in the future.

“Each trip is instrumental in expanding our reach,” said Director of Research Ivan Sherstov. “We have traveled throughout Russia, to Germany and are going to Israel before the second round of Call for Research Centers Proposals. The amount of interest has been so high that I am afraid we may not have enough room for all the groups at the conference.”

The second Skoltech Research Center Proposers Conference will be held on July 9-10, 2012 in Skolkovo Russia. Further information can be found at http://web.mit.edu/SkTech.