Cédric Villani

About Cédric Villani

Cédric Villani is currently a Professor of Mathematics at the University of Lyon and Director of the Henri Poincaré Institute. He is currently the most well-known and recognized French and international mathematician.

He pursued his mathematics studies first at the Ecole Normale Supérieure, then at the University Pierre and Marie Curie, where he obtained his DEA, and finally at the University Paris-Dauphine, where he defended his thesis under the supervision of Pierre-Louis Lions.

From 1996 to 2000, he was an assistant professor at the Ecole Normale Supérieure; a position that allowed him to be close to both students and research professors. In 2000, he was appointed as a university professor at ENS Lyon, where he taught at all levels (from undergraduate to doctoral). Since 2010, he has been affiliated with the University of Lyon, where he delivers doctoral courses.

He simultaneously leads a brilliant research career, first at the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon and in various institutions around the world, particularly in Atlanta (1999), Berkeley (2004), and Princeton (2009). His research focuses on the statistical physics of gases and plasmas, particularly the concepts of entropy and phenomena of convergence towards equilibrium; as well as on optimal transport in relation to analysis and geometry.

Cédric Villani’s reputation was built on the discovery of unexpected links between different notions. For this, he received the European Mathematical Society Prize (2008), the Henri Poincaré Prize from the International Association of Mathematical Physics (2009), the Fermat Prize (2009), and the Fields Medal (2010), often considered the most prestigious award in mathematics.

Highly involved in research administration and training activities, he has served on a dozen councils and chaired the mathematics recruitment committee of the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon for 6 years, supervised 4 theses whose authors are now researchers in Cambridge, Austin Texas, Paris-Dauphine, and Nancy; he is also an editor of several scientific journals, including Inventiones Mathematicae, one of the most prestigious mathematics journals in the world.

In 2009, he became the director of the Henri Poincaré Institute, the second oldest mathematics institute in the world. Beyond its contribution to mathematical research by hosting hundreds of international researchers each year, the Henri Poincaré Institute also serves as a mathematical ambassador to the general public: popularization conferences, press conferences, consultations, etc.

The dual status of director of the Henri Poincaré Institute and Fields Medalist has allowed him to play the role of a mathematics ambassador to the general public and society in general, regularly speaking at public conferences, radio or television shows, general or specialized newspapers, hearings at the National Assembly, colloquiums addressing societal issues, etc. Cédric Villani follows his motto: “to place science at the heart of society, with the help of the prism of spectacle and art.”