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In Memoriam

ICTP co-founder Paolo Budinich
In Memoriam

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Professor Paolo Budinich, co-founder of ICTP, on 14 November 2013.

It was at the Symposium on Elementary Particle Interactions which was held at the Castelletto of Miramare from 22-26 June 1960 that Paolo Budinich first met Abdus Salam. At this meeting Salam shared with Budinich his idea of creating an international centre, under the auspices of the UN, to which scientists from all over the world could come and exchange ideas in frontier areas of science. The centre could have been set up anywhere in the world but Paolo Budinich joined forces with Salam and succeeded in convincing the Italian Government to support the idea at the International Atomic Energy Agency's General Conference in Vienna and to nominate Trieste as Italy's candidate to serve as the seat of the Centre. In 1962, Salam's dream became reality and the IAEA endorsed the creation of an international centre for theoretical physics. In October 1964, ICTP was officially inaugurated in Trieste with Salam as its first director, and Paolo Budinich, his main interlocutor in all the negotiations which led to ICTP's creation, his deputy, a position which he held for many years.

Budinich was also the main architect in the creation of many other scientific institutions in Trieste, in particular, upon his retirement from ICTP, he founded and became the first Director of the International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA). He also played a vital role in the establishment of the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), the Elettra Sincrotrone, the Immaginario Scientifico, to mention a few. We are confident that thanks to the vision of scientists like Paolo Budinich, ICTP and its sister institutions have contributed uniquely to scientific capacity building in developing countries.

Budinich was born in Lussingrande, on the island of Lussino (Losinj) and raised in Trieste. After studies in Pisa's Scuola Normale Superiore, and a long and adventurous military war period including service as a submarine officer, he started up high international standard physics in Trieste, an area now enormously expanded to other fields of science thanks to his tireless work, enthusiasm, and dedication. A towering personality and a beloved mentor, he is the recipient of many awards and honours, including Trieste's San Giusto d'Oro.

A picture gallery of Paolo Budinich at ICTP over the years.

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