Dear Abel Prize Laureate, Mayor, County Governor, County Major, President of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters,

dear all,

we have just completed some great days celebrating mathematics during The Abel Prize Week

In Oslo on Tuesday, professor Faltings was presented The Abel Prize from His Royal Highness Crown Prince Haakon.

Today, in the home region of Abel himself (and me), we have continued the celebrations in Kristiansand – exploring mathematics together with 600 pupils, in the most suitable way: through play, curiosity, and exploration of the endless journeys of the mathematical world.

Thank you to Abel Prize Laureate Faltings for sharing your time with the young students and for inspiring them to be interested in math.

*

Speaking of the younger generation: As we are fortunate to be gathered here today in the spirit of math and the young Abel – I want to take this opportunity to say a few more words about our common responsibility for the future role of mathematics in our society.

We live in a time with major societal challenges in areas such as technology, climate, health, security, and preparedness. To meet these, we need more people to study and explore  science and technology. We need this to address It is also vital for Norway’s competitiveness.

We also live in a time where everything is fast and instant, where reels in social media keep turning, and where we expect instant results and gratification. With this pace, we risk forgetting the necessary patience – and pain – of actual learning.

I often hear young people – actually even grown-up people – saying they do not have talent for math, they don’t have “math heads” or they just don’t get math. We make a mistake when we imagine talents that are fundamentally different from the rest of us.

We also live in a time where fewer students choose to take natural sciences and mathematics in school and fewer choose to continue with these subjects on BA-level. This is something we must work to counter.

We do not have the right to give up on young people learning and enjoying math. We owe them the opportunity to try, play, fail, try again, and experience the joy and beauty of solving a puzzle or understanding something that seemed impossible.

More young people need to experience a sense of achievement in mathematics. That is something we owe the younger generation. To make that happen, we must encourage play and exploration through practical learning.

And we need to start early.

Today’s Abel Day has been a prime example of how well this works – so thank you to the University of Agder.

*

The government takes this responsibility seriously, and we are now working on a national strategy for science and technology education. It will consider measures across the entire education system and is expected to be completed by 2027. The goal is to ensure that more people develop strong skills in science and technology.

Maybe, someday, one of them will solve a fantastic puzzle and go on to win prestigious prizes, showcasing excellence the way professor Falting does.

More likely, they will be crucial parts of large teams developing new systems and solutions building on those great breakthroughs

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the Academy, the Abel board and the Abel Comimttee, all represented here today, for being fully committed to this collective task – and for reminding all of us about the role of mathematics in society and for stimulating interest in mathematics in children and youth. I would also like to highlight the important educational work taking place here at Froland Verk. Thank you to Froland Kommune and everyone involved in facilitating this.

*

Dear all,

It feels especially meaningful to conclude the Abel Week right here in Froland. Both Abel’s life and his untimely death remind us of something deeply important: why investing in mathematics truly matters.

Abel died just 26 years old, from tuberculosis. Had he lived a hundred years later, he might well have lived longer, thanks to vaccines and advances in medical treatment. At the heart of such advances are mathematical insights.

Mathematics underpins major breakthroughs in medicine – it underpins human progress itself. But mathematics is also valuable in its own right, and outstanding fundamental research will always hold intrinsic worth.

That is why I am glad that “Abel left mathematicians enough to keep them busy for five hundred years”, to quote the French mathematician Charles Hermite.

Our world needs that.

To all of you, thank you for carrying Abel’s legacy forward. And thank you so much to Mayor Inger-Lene Håland for hosting this lovely dinner tonight.

To Professor Faltings, to Froland and to the future of mathematics – skål!