HISTORY
Early History of the International Federation of Societies for Microscopy
From: Advances in Imaging and Electron Physics 96
VERNON E. COSSLETT
Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB3 0HE, UK
Updated 2012
The International Federation of Societies for Electron Microscopy grew out of the common interests of the various national societies for electron microscopy (EM), but not without a few false starts. An attempt was made in 1953-1954 to set up some sort of joint organization under the umbrella of the International Council of Scientific Union (ICSU). Owing to bureaucratic opposition, that attempt failed and it was replaced in 1954/1995 by an independent federation. Since then the IFSEM has gradually developed in numbers and in activities. In 1996, it was reported that a tenuous connection had been established with the ICSU. IFSM is now clearly an Associate Member of ICSU. The name of the Federation was changed in 2002, to omit ‘Electron’.
Origins
It is not clear who, in particular, first had the idea of some sort of federation of the early existing electron microscope societies. Probably the general intention developed from the example of the X-ray crystallographers, who during World War II had adopted the habit of holding informal meetings, largely on the initiative of Sir Lawrence Bragg. Most of the early relevant correspondence has been lost, and the memories of the initial participants have faded. The earliest documented reference to the need for some sort of continuing international organization occurs in the minutes of the British Electron Microscopy Group of the Institute of Physics. Those for the committee meeting held on May 1949 include a section on the forthcoming Delft EM conference: “Before any steps were taken towards the formation of any more permanent international body, it was agreed that the advice of Professor Stratton, Secretary of the International Union of Scientific Conferences [sic] should be sought.”
Thus it is clear that the idea of an international body linking the various EM societies was already in the air before the first International Conference.
Thus, although the International Federation came into existence de jure only in October 1955, it should de facto date from July 1954 as the logical and constitutional successor to the International committee for Electron Microscopy. On this basis it was 30 years old in August 1984.
The Development of the International Federation
Almost as soon as it was formed, the IFSEM lost its first president, Prof. Bodo von Borries. He was taken ill and died of a brain tumor in July 1956, at the early age of 51. He had been the prime mover in the creation of an international organization, and his death was a great blow to the infant federation. This was especially so on the eve of the first conferences to be mounted under its sponsorship, the First European EM Conference, to be held in Stockholm in September 1956 (Sjöstrand and Rhodin, 1957), and that for the Far East and Oceania, in Tokyo in October 1956 (Tani et al., 1957). I believe that the idea of holding regional meetings between the four-yearly world conference was his in the first place. On the proposal of Dr. J. Hillier, the Stockholm conference was dedicated to his memory.
Before that meeting the committee met and decided to nominate E. Ruska, von Borries’ long-term collaborator, as President in his place. This proposal was unanimously approved by the member societies. At the next meeting of the Assembly at Berlin in 1958, he was succeeded by T. F. Anderson (USA). V. E. Cosslett was succeeded by J. B. Le Poole (The Netherlands) at the 1962 meeting in Philadelphia.
Presidents, General Secretaries and Meeting Sites of the International Federation
| Year elected | President | General Secretary | Location |
| 1954 | Bodo von Borries | Vernon E. Cosslett | Delft |
| 1956 | Ernst Ruska | Vernon E. Cosslett | Stockholm |
| 1958 | Thomas F. Anderson | Vernon E. Cosslett | Berlin |
| 1962 | Noboru Higashi | Jan B. Le Poole | Philadelphia |
| 1966 | Gaston Dupouy | Jan B. Le Poole | Kyoto |
| 1970 | Vernon E. Cosslett | W. Bernhard | Grenoble |
| 1974 | Don W. Fawcett | Gareth Thomas | Canberra |
| 1978 | Jan B. Le Poole | Gareth Thomas | Toronto |
| 1982 | Hatsujiro Hashimoto | Gareth Thomas | Hamburg |
| 1986 | Gareth Thomas | Arvid Maunsbach | Kyoto |
| 1990 | Elmar Zeitler | Arvid Maunsbach | Seattle |
| 1994 | Arvid Maunsbach | David J.H. Cockayne | Paris |
| 1998 | Archie Howie | David J.H. Cockayne | Cancun |
| 2002 | David J.H. Cockayne | C. Barry Carter | Durban |
| 2006 | Christian Colliex | C. Barry Carter | Sapporo |
| 2010 | C. Barry Carter | Brendan Griffin | Rio de Janeiro |
| 2014 | Prague |
History: A Past President
This article is from the PLoS and reminds us of the 7th President of IFSM (then IFSEM). Don Fawcett was one of the pioneers in applying the electron microscope to biological materials. A pioneer of electron microscopy and one of its greatest practitioners for studying the organization of cells and tissues, Fawcett died at his home in Missoula, Montana on May 7, 2009 at the age of 92. Sadly, this article omits the fact that he was the President of IFSM!