In 1965, Jean Tran Thanh Van, a young researcher at Orsay, decided to organize an unusual scientific meeting for January 1966. The subject itself – electromagnetic interactions – was not particularly unusual, but the organization was. The meeting was held in the French Alps in a group of chalets, with no catering help or assistance, few of the visual aids one associates with such meetings and, most importantly, without any telephone contact with the outside world. Tran Thanh Van was helped in this groundbreaking initiative by five colleagues: Bernard Grossetête, Fernand Renard, Michel Gourdin, Jean Perez Y Jorba and Pierre Lehmann.

  This was not a conference or a school, but a gathering (“rencontre”) of minds. The name of what became a series of meetings reflects this original motivation. Held in Moriond village, the very first of the Rencontres de Moriond was a resounding success. The 20 participants included theorists and experimenters of all ages, from France, Italy (Frascati) and Germany (DESY). The time was well filled with fruitful but relaxed discussions, culinary experiments, skiing, and evenings spent listening to music performed by the scientists themselves.

  The Rencontre was unusual in another respect. Half of the participants and organizers were young researchers, but their views and contributions were as significant as those of the senior members. At Moriond, all participants were equal, and none were more equal than others. Happily this tradition persists today.

  But the unique spirit of those early meetings lives on. Of the 400 participants at the 2005 meeting, 57% were younger than 35; of the 350 papers presented, 80% were read by young researchers; 60% of the participants were experimenters or observers and 40% were theorists. Sandwiched between three hours of morning talks and another three hours of hard work in the late afternoon was that traditional break, in which science, snow and sky combine to create new and ever-changing patterns.

(adapted from Ludwik Celnikier, 2005)

Some links to consult about the Rencontres de Moriond:

Cern-Courrier 2005

CERN Bulletin 2012 special Moriond edition

Symmetry 2012

Cern Bulletin 2013