Thrilled to Receive the Galleys for Our Tariffs, Rerouting, and Supply Chain Paper for the Rockafellar Volume

It has been a very busy "winter break" with the revising of a 50 page paper with collaborators, the reviewing of multiple journal articles, and also the handling of papers submitted to journals as an Associate Editor. And, of course, the holiday season, with the accompanying festivities also needed attention! Plus, I have also been busy updating my lectures for two classes that I will be teaching this spring at the Isenberg School of Management.

I was delighted to receive from the publisher Springer galleys for the paper, "Multicommodity Trade, Tariffs, and Rerouting," which is in press as a chapter for a very special edited volume in honor of Tyrrell "Terry" Rockafellar on the occasion of his 90th birthday! The volume is titled, "Convex and Variational Analysis with Applications." The volume is edited by Professors Rassias and Pardalos and was originally scheduled for publication in mid December 2025 but now the publication date on the Springer page is March 16, 2026: https://link.springer.com/book/9783032078599.

The paper, which I co-authored with my Isenberg School of Management PhD student, Samirasadat "Samira" Samadi, will be chapter 16 in this special volume.

The galleys (I was delighted) were in great shape and no changes were needed!

Thanks to the typesetters for their outstanding work. We are very much looking forward to the publication of this volume, which I am hearing will have 27 chapters.

Rerouting to Evade Tariffs - Our Latest Study

Tariffs and their impacts we have been researching for several decades now because of the relevance of the topic as well as the scientific interest in the mathematical modeling of supply chain networks and international trade. Furthermore, there are different types of tariffs, including unit tariffs, ad valorem tariffs, and even tariff rate quotas. We have studied the impacts of tariffs in perfectly competitive contexts such as spatial price equilibrium problems as well as in oligopolistic markets.

Recently, because of the escalating trade wars and imposition of various retaliatory tariffs in the second Trump administration, our research has included rerouting to evade tariffs. This topic has been quite newsworthy; see, for example, this article in The New York Times, which was published today: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/24/business/vietnam-china-transshipment.html

My paper, "Multicommodity Trade, Tariffs, and Rerouting," co-authored with my Isenberg School PhD student, Samirasadat "Samira" Samadi, was accepted in the very special volume: Convex and Variational Analysis with Applications: In Honor of Terry Rockafellar’s 90th Birthday. Panos M. Pardalos and Themistocles M. Rassias, Editors, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.

It was an honor to have been invited to contributed to this edited volume in honor of the amazing Professor Rockafellar, a giant in the optimization and variational inequalities.

A preprint of our paper can be downloaded from the Supernetwork Center website: https://supernet.isenberg.umass.edu/articles/MulticommodityTradeTariffsandRerouting.pdf

The case study in the paper focuses on tea, which is produced in both China and Vietnam, and, in our numerical examples, can be rerouted, with associated additional costs (although it is illegal) to demand markets. It is important to model and to quantify trade-offs associated with such illicit tariff evasion in order to provide policy- and decision-makers with insights for interdiction purposes. Our research continues.

The Outstanding Optimization and Decision Science Conference in Beautiful Firenze, Italy

I would like to thank the organizers of the outstanding Optimization and Decision Science Conference that took place August 30-September 2, 2022 in the stunning city of Firenze, Italy.

It was a conference of great scientific value, with wonderful social activities, at the University of Firenze, which brought together researchers from many different countries for face to face exchanges. For many of us, it was the first international face to face conference since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. I very much enjoyed all the sessions on variational analysis and equilibrium problems!

I would also like to extend my deepest appreciation to the Conference Co-Chairs: Professors Fabio Schoen and Paola Cappanera, for the warmth and hospitality extended to all of us. The conference website can be found here. Thanks to the Local Organizing Committee and to the Program Committee for their outstanding work!

It was a great honor to give the opening keynote talk at the Museum of Innocents this past Tuesday, followed by a cocktail hour and tour of the museum.  The title of my keynote was: Labor and Supply Chain Networks: It's All About People. The slidedeck can be downloaded here.

Above I am with Drs. Alice Raffaele and Marti Fischetti, two incredibly talented OR researchers and very dynamic leaders of AIROYoung!

The energy and enthusiasm of the conferees was heartwarming to behold. New friendships were made and established relationships further cemented. The sessions were excellent and the University of Firenze a great venue.

It was fabulous that all 5 co-authors of our paper on UAVs, 5G, and Disaster Management showed up! Below are: Yours truly, Daniele Sciacca, Professor Patrizia Daniele, Professor Ladimer S. Nagurney, and Dr. Gabriela Colajanni.

I very much enjoyed listening to the other keynote talks of Professors Bertsimas (virtual presentation), Dick den Hertog, and Paola Scaparra. It was very cool that both the opening and closing keynoters were female!

Below is a photo of the female keynoters.

The social dinner was a banquet at a farm with majestic views of the landscapes in Tuscany. 

It was truly special to see Professor Ivana Ljubic and her postdoc Martina Cerulli at the banquet and to meet colleagues even from the Czech Republic!

I leave you with some views of beautiful Firenze, Italy! 

All the conferees had a fabulous time scientifically and socially.  The great discipline of Operations Research, because of the creativity and dedication of its researchers, educators, and practitioners, is making laudable positive impact globally. Working together we can achieve so much good.

Thanks to the organizers of the great Optimization and Decision Science 2022 conference for bringing many of us together again, in person!

From Disaster Relief to Freight Sustainability - Our Talks at EURO in Valencia, Spain

This summer I am again spending at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University where I am a Summer Fellow. I have been busy working on a project on perishable product supply chains from food to blood.

Last summer I was also at Harvard as a Summer Fellow but spent a considerable amount of time flying to conferences, including one I co-organized on the Dynamics of Disasters, which took place in Kalamata, Greece.

Since I will have a heavy set of speaking engagements this Fall and I also wanted to fully take advantage of my time at the incredible Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, I have had co-authors present our latest work at the EURO Conference in Valencia, Spain.

I am delighted to report that our three presentations, two on disaster relief, and one on sustainable freight, have now been presented!

These presentations can be downloaded in their entirety here.

The first paper above is in press in the new Dynamic of Disasters: Algorithmic Approaches and Applications volume that I co-edited with Professors Ilias Kotsireas and Panos M. Pardalos.  The published is Springer. The last paper above was published in the European Journal of Operational Research very recently and was co-authored with Professor Sara Saberi (also a former doctoral student of mine) and her colleague at WPI, Professor Joe Sarkis.  The second paper above has three generations of scholars as authors: besides myself - Professor Tina Wakolbinger and her doctoral student, Timo Gossler, in addition to our collaborator Professor Patrizia Daniele.

Below I have posted a few photos from the conference, thanks to my wonderful co-author from Italy, Professor Patrizia Daniele. What is truly special is that three of my former PhD students from the Isenberg School, Professor Jose M. Cruz of UCONN's School of Business, Professor Tina Wakolbinger of the Vienna University of Economics and Business, and Professor Dmytro Matsypura of the University of Sydney in Australia, were all at the conference, and both Jose and Tina, as well as Patrizia, spoke on our joint research. They all continue as Supernetwork Center Associates and
it is fabulous to see how synergistic our research has been over the years and how beautifully the friendships established in our doctoral program have continued!

A big thank you to the organizers of the terrific EURO 2018 Conference in Valencia, Spain, for a fabulous conference for the exchange of the latest in scientific accomplishments n Operations Research and Analytics!

Impressions of and Photos from the Fabulous Variational Inequalities and Nash Equilibrium Conference in a Castle in Italy

As academics, we sometimes journey to conferences that take place in quite remote locations. And, what never fails to surprise me, is how doing so is so worth it! I believe that academics, driven by intellectual curiosity, always want to exchange ideas and to engage in discussions and, if you can do so in locations that are unique, then the inspirations drawn and experiences as well as the  memories can be exceptionally rewarding.

Today, I will be journeying to England, where I will be conducting a master class in Network Equilibrium at Lancaster University next week but, before I head to the airport, I thought it appropriate to prepare and share this blogpost.

First, I would like to express my sincerest appreciation to the organizers of the fantastic VINEPA (Variational Inequalities, Nash Equilibrium Problems and Applications) 2018 conference, which took place the past two days in Reggio Calabria, Italy. The venue was a castle and the views from the top of the castle are spectacular. One can see Sicily across part of the Mediterranean Ocean.

 

The organizers, who deserve a medal for this exceptional conference, were: Professors Sofia Giuffre', Patrizia Daniele, and Laura Scrimali. How appropriate that they are all females, given that the conference also coincided with International Women's Day!

I was invited to give a keynote at this conference and, since the theme of the conference is so perfect for my research, I had to accept.
 





The photo above is of the organizers and of a doctoral student of Professor Patrizia Daniele's, Gabriela Colojanni. We even have a joint paper now on cybersecurity, which is in press.

I enjoyed giving my keynote very much and in hearing all the great talks and discussions. The discussions were especially stimulating since the conference convened operations researchers, applied mathematicians, computer scientists, and even those working in areas of economics and engineering. Conferees came from Italy (of course), Denmark, Norway, Russia, Mexico, France, and the USA! Some journeyed for almost 40 hours to get to Reggio Calabria, which is in the "toe" part of the boot that is the shape of Italy.
 

Dr. Igor Konnov, in the photo above, presented me with his book.

The attention to detail by the organizers was outstanding, with delicious lunches, coffee breaks, a tour of the castle, and a multicourse banquet. Of course, I could not resist having a cannoli!

 

I am carrying back not only great research ideas but gifts from the organizers and several participants!

And, we all have new friendships and have renewed friendships!
 

An Operations Research Conference in a Castle in Italy

I arrived in Reggio Calabria, Italy yesterday afternoon after twenty hours of travel from Amherst, Massachusetts to Boston Logan and flights via British Airways to Heathrow and then onwards to Rome with the final leg via Alitalia. A big shoutout to both of these airlines for fabulous service and comfort.

Reggio Calabria is in (very) southern Italy and is located in the "toe part" of the boot shape that is Italy. One can see Sicily past the Mediterranean ocean and the journey was definitely worth it. I am here, thanks to the invitation of my wonderful colleagues, Professor Sofia Guiffre' of Reggio Calabria and Professor Patrizia Daniele of Catania. They are among my dear co-authors and our paper is now in press in the International Transactions in Operational Research (ITOR).  Coincidentally, while I was at the Rome airport, during a 3 hour layover - none other than the Editor of ITOR, Professor Celso Ribeiro, emailed me and told me that he, too, is now also in Europe - on sabbatical in (snowy) Oslo, Norway.

Tomorrow I will be giving a keynote talk at the VINEPA 2018 conference, which focuses on some of my methodological loves - variational inequalities and Nash Equilibria!

The venue of the conference is truly unique and, this morning, after an exquisite breakfast at my hotel with an amazing view,

I ambled to the conference venue which is a historic castle. I marched up to the top and took photos of the panorama.

On the second floor of the caste there was artwork and the staff was getting our space ready for the conference.

I couldn't resist snapping a photo of the one window in the conference room.

At the conference, I will see many operations research colleagues from various countries, some of whom I have not seen in quite a while, so I am very excited!

Thus far, I have managed to walk for miles (my cure for any jetlag) and walking along the Mediterranean with the astounding landscape, vegetation, architecture, and the kindness of the locals (more on this later)  make all the hard work on research (which is actually a joy in itself) worth it. Massachusetts is bracing for another snowstorm so I made it out, just in time!

I am a real tree hugger and the last time that I was so awe-struck by the vegetation of a country was when I gave a keynote talk in New Zealand. I have my favorite tree in Auckland. And, speaking of New Zealand, next week I will be at Lancaster University in England, giving a masterclass, and will see Professor Matthias Ehrgott, who is now on the faculty there and who was my host when I was in NZ!

The kindness of the Italians in Reggio Calabria is truly special. Not many speak English but that is not a problem, and, last evening, not only did a waiter run up to help me with my trenchcoat but another one treated me to a dessert from the selection below (of course, I chose one the chocolate ones).

I love watching the locals promenade along the beautiful mile walkway along the Mediterranean Ocean and also on the main street (which is for pedestrians only) and is filled with elegant shops. I marvel at the elegance of the people and how they acknowledge one another and (this must be the academic in me since we tend to fit anywhere) acknowledge me with a greeting.

The places that doing Operations Research can take you on our fascinating planet never fail to inspire.