ACM Europe Illuminating the Role of Computing in the Digital Age in Europe and Globally

acm
The Association for Computing Machinery
Advancing Computing as a Science & Profession

Contact: Virginia Gold
212-626-0505
[email protected]

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BRUSSELS, 29 September 2010 – The ACM Europe Exhibition Stand at  ICT2010 in Zone E: Information Booths, Stand Number E06 shines a spotlight on the critical role of computer science and computer science education for the Digital Age. With its 15,000 members, ACM Europe is part of the world’s most respected and largest professional computing society: the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) www.acm.org. ACM Europe provides an important foundation for the European computing community by ensuring members are kept abreast of all the key developments that are crucial to advance the computing field and support the careers of every age group. This goal is achieved through the dozens of ACM-sponsored computing research conferences held in Europe every year, ACM professional and student chapters across Europe, as well as ACM resources like its Digital Library, the world’s largest and most comprehensive collection of scientific and computing content.

ACM Europe is defined and led by distinguished European computer scientists and computing professionals in every dimension of computing research and development. “It is important that computer scientists are visible as a respected and recognizable body. Because of its prestige and because it is truly international, ACM can play a role in promoting synergy with the national societies in Europe,” said Carlo Ghezzi, Milan Polytechnic. This view is echoed by Gabriele Kotsis, Johannes Kepler University of Linz, Austria: “As a long-time member of a national computer society in Austria, I value the importance of extending well-established national networks on an international scale. ACM Europe is an excellent opportunity for me to benefit from its support and cooperation in scientific conferences and workshops in Europe.”

ACM Europe adds value by ensuring a more focused, co-ordinated approach to the pivotal role that computer science and computer science education play, an advantage underscored by Marc Shaprio, INRIA and LIP6, “The European informatics research community is vibrant but fragmented. ACM Europe creates an opportunity to strengthen ties across Europe, and to promote and defend our values before decision-makers. ACM Europe has issued an open invitation to get to know and sustain this initiative at the ICT2010 event: “I would like to invite professionals in Europe to join ACM, a world-wide organization that belongs to computer professionals. Join now!  Together we can protect our profession more effectively,” said Paul Spirakis of the University of Patras and the Greek Computer Technologies Institute.

The ACM Europe Exhibition Stand at ICT2010 is a “must visit” for professionals and researchers from the field attending Europe’s largest event in Information and Communication Technologies. Visitors can interact with leading figures from the European Council     spearheading ACM’s expansion in Europe, and share their concerns, priorities and plans. They can learn about the many benefits of joining ACM, which counts 97,000 members worldwide, and is set to grow as computer science continues to accelerate at a faster rate than any other domain. Pertinent visitors are also given the chance to win an iPad.

 

            “ACM Europe is a long-awaited opportunity to bring European educators, researchers and engineers closer together and make their contributions to computer science visible in a globalized world,” said Gerhard Schimpf, German ACM Chapter Chair. The view that Europe needs to take a leadership role is shared by Matthias Kaiserswerth, IBM Zurich Research: “Europe is not immune to the emergence and impact of Asia and South America and their talented, hardworking IT workforce. With this competition, the ACM Europe Council can take on an even greater role in pulling together our collective members to ensure that Europe maintains a leading role in the future of the computing industry.” The key role of ACM Europe in illuminating the field is summed up by Jan van Leeuwen, Utrecht University: “ACM Europe is crucial for the advancement of informatics. It is what our science in Europe needs.”

About ACM and ACM Europe

ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery http://www.acm.org, is the world’s largest educational and scientific computing society, uniting computing educators, researchers and professionals to inspire  dialogue, share resources and address the field’s challenges. ACM strengthens the computing profession’s collective voice through strong leadership, promotion of the highest standards, and recognition of technical excellence. ACM supports the professional growth of its members by providing opportunities for life-long learning, career development, and professional networking.

ACM Europe is playing a key role in strengthening Europe's collective voice and expanding ACM's high-quality activities to meet the needs of European computing professionals. ACM Europe is committed to offering real opportunities for members to cross company and university boundaries, learn from the leaders, share research results, celebrate key achievements, and help develop career paths.

ACM Europe Council Members:

• Fabrizio Gagliardi, Director of External Research Programs, Microsoft Research Europe (Chair)
• Michel Beaudouin-Lafon, Universite Paris-Sud, France
• Wendy Hall, University of Southampton, UK (and ACM President)
• Thomas Hofmann, Google EMEA, Zurich, Switzerland
• Gabriele Kotsis, Johannes Kepler University of Linz, Austria
• Jan van Leeuwen, Utrecht University, The Netherlands
• Andrew McGettrick, University of Strathclyde, Scotland
• Avi Mendelson, Microsoft Research, Israel
• Bertrand Meyer, ETH Zurich, Switzerland
• Burkhard Neidecker-Lutz,  Research Division, SAP AG, Germany
• Gerhard Schimpf, Chair, German ACM Chapter, Pforzheim, Germany
• Marc Shapiro, INRIA and LIP6, France
• Paul Spirakis, University of Patras and the Greek Computer Technologies Institute, Greece
• Mateo Valero, Technical University of Catalonia, Spain
• Alexander Wolf, Department of Computing, Imperial College London, UK