Lightsources for Africa, the Americas & Middle East Project (LAAMP): An IUPAP and IUCr ICSU-Funded Project

We describe a new initiative funded by a 3-year, 300K-Euro grant from the International Council for Science (ICSU) to the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics and International Union of Crystallography in collaboration with some twenty-five partner organizations and ten advanced light sources to enhance the utilization of advanced light sources and crystallography in four targeted regions of the world, namely Africa, the Caribbean, Mexico and Middle East. LAAMP’s programs include the development of a Strategic Plan for each region, a Colloquium program to send experienced light source and crystallography users to those regions, establishment of new IUCr-UNESCO OpenLabs, design and distribution of a Brochure that describes light sources and crystallography for government officials and the layperson, and training visits to advanced lights sources for new users, culminating in a December 2019 meeting to chart a path forward beyond the ICSU grant.