Remembering Prof. Karim Aoudia

One Challenge After Another: the Butterfly Effect continues

The ICTP community united behind a common goal in late 2025 and achieved something extraordinary: turning a single "butterfly" into 100,000.

Now the "Butterfly Effect Challenge" has now inspired another longtime ICTP donor and friend to create not one, but two extraordinary challenge opportunities.

Prof. Adnan Shihab-Eldin, a friend and supporter who has been connected to ICTP since the days of Abdus Salam has issued a generous challenge to support two vital new initiatives.

The ICTP global community now has the chance to double their donations once again and join Prof. Shihab-Eldin in keeping the momentum going.

 Challenge #1: Remembering Karim Aoudia

Prof. Shihab-Eldin has pledged to match the first €30,000 that ICTP raises to support the The Abdelkrim "Karim" Aoudia Memorial Scholarship which will be awarded annually to an Earth Systems Physics or other diploma student from Africa or the Middle East.

This endowed scholarship—with a total goal of €300,000—was created in honor of Prof. Karim Aoudia, who passed away suddenly in October 2025. Over his nearly 20 years at the Centre, Karim exemplified the three pillars of ICTP’s mission: Scientific Excellence, Global Inclusion, and International Cooperation. He was a dedicated mentor who guided and inspired countless students throughout his career.

Every donation made to this fund up to €30K will be matched 1:1. Due to the generosity of many of Karim's colleagues at ICTP, we have already raised over €7,000 and counting toward the challenge. Please join us in remembering and honoring Karim.