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In December, timed to coincide with a state visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to China, students in the Chinese language section at the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur International School (EIPACA), near ITER, decided to put their growing language skills to use. With the help of their teachers, they wrote a letter to Chinese President Xi Jinping, sharing their enthusiasm for the language and describing how, in a unique international school in southern France, they are learning more each day about Chinese history and culture.

They had no way of knowing whether the letter would ever receive a reply—or even reach the president's desk.

So the surprise was considerable when a formal response arrived in March. In his letter, President Xi extended his best wishes to the students, the teachers and the entire school. He encouraged them to become “pillars of friendly cooperation” between China and France, and between China and Europe. He added that they would be welcome in China for study, exchanges or visits, and expressed the hope that the Chinese language would become their “lifelong friend.”

The Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur International School was established in 2007 to serve the needs of the ITER project, but it also benefits the local community. From the outset, its mission has been to provide bilingual education—in French plus one of the ITER languages. Currently, six language sections are offered: Chinese, English, German, Italian, Japanese and Spanish. From junior high school onward, English-speaking students may also join the European Section, where about 80 percent of courses are taught in English.

--EIPACA students and teachers from the Chinese language section.

The 7th International Conference on Data-Driven Plasma Science (ICDDPS 7) will take place in Kiel, Germany, from 3–7 August 2026.

ICDDPS is an international conference that intends to be the premier forum for researchers from academia and industry to discuss current and future directions in Al and machine learning applied to plasma science and technology, including but not limited to topics such as plasma processing and nuclear fusion.

The conference will bring together researchers working on AI, machine learning, and data-driven approaches applied to plasma science, fusion, and plasma technologies, with a focus on the latest advances in extracting knowledge from large experimental and simulation datasets.

More information is available on the conference website. Registration is open now.

Applications are open now for the 2027 EUROfusion Bernard Bigot Researcher Grants. 

These grants fund individual post-doctoral research projects for two years (beginning 2027) by contributing to the salaries, research and training activities of up to nine outstanding early career researchers. 

Researchers and engineers of all nationalities who have completed their PhD and defended their thesis in the two years preceding the application deadline are eligible. The candidate must be employed by a EUROfusion Consortium member or one of their Affiliated Entities during the grant period. Interested candidates should jointly prepare their application with an institute or institutes affiliated with EUROfusion, who will submit the application and offer to employ the candidate for the proposed duration of the project.

For details and to see all application documents, visit this EUROfusion website. The application deadline is 11 May 2026.

According to an independent study conducted for the European Domestic Agency for ITER (Fusion for Energy) by CSIL, Trinomics and Cambridge Econometrics, the European Union’s investment in fusion between 2018 and 2024 has created a strong positive impact on Europe’s economy and industrial competitiveness.

Since its creation in 2007, Fusion for Energy has invested over EUR 7 billion to provide Europe’s contribution to ITER and other international projects through more than 1,400 contracts. This has helped shaped the largest fusion supply chain in the world, with at least 2,700 companies and 75 R&D organizations involved. Besides the infrastructure and technologies delivered, the analysis shows the far-reaching benefits in terms of knowledge, growth and jobs. For instance, 66% of firms reported that their staff had acquired new skills and 77% acknowledged enhanced know-how, driven by ITER’s complex requirements. Around half of surveyed firms noted improvements to their products or processes, with some reporting patents or spin-offs towards sectors like fission, medicine or aerospace.

 See this article on the Fusion for Energy website for more analysis or download the report directly here.

Pre-registration is open for the 15th ITER International School, which will be held in Chengdu, China, from 20–24 July 2026.

The deadline for pre-registration is 6 May 2026. Selected students will be informed on 11 of May so that they can complete the registration process. 

This year's ITER International School will explore the "Physics and engineering of heating and current drive systems for magnetic fusion plasmas." The organizers of the event—the Engineering & Technical College of Chengdu University of Technology and the Southwestern Institute of Physics (SWIP)—have opened the webpage for pre-registration. The program for the five-day event is also consultable on the website. 

Visit the 15th ITER International School website for all information or to pre-register by 6 May.

Download the 2026 School poster here.