Quantum Gravity Gatherings (QGG)
Quantum Gravity Gatherings (QGG) is a study group that organizes intensive lecture series on a wide range of approaches to quantum gravity. It provides a platform for students and researchers from different disciplines and backgrounds to come together, learn from one another, and exchange ideas on the fundamental nature of spacetime.
Objectives
What is the nature of spacetime? How did our macroscopic universe come to be? What is the underlying structure of a black hole? These questions have been at the heart of theoretical high-energy physics for nearly a century, ever since Einstein’s discovery of general relativity and the subsequent development of quantum theory.
A variety of approaches to quantum gravity have been developed to address these fundamental problems. Each has its own strengths and unresolved challenges, yet each is expected to capture essential aspects of a quantum theory of gravity. At the same time, these approaches have often been studied in relative isolation, with limited opportunities to explore their common ground or to discuss their differences in a shared setting.
Quantum Gravity Gatherings was created to help bridge that gap. Our aim is to foster a collaborative environment in which diverse approaches to quantum gravity can be studied, discussed, and connected. To this end, we organize several intensive lecture series each year, each focused on a particular framework and led by leading experts in the field.
These gatherings offer researchers at all career stages, as well as participants from a range of disciplines, the opportunity to learn foundational ideas, exchange perspectives, and build meaningful collaborations. Our broader goal is to cultivate a community capable of approaching quantum gravity from multiple angles, with the hope of contributing to the next breakthrough in our understanding of the universe.
- Facilitators:
- Che-Yu Chen (RIKEN iTHEMS)
- Kanato Goto (The University of Osaka)
- Álvaro Pastor Gutiérrez (RIKEN iTHEMS)
- Yuta Hamada (KEK)
- Puttarak Jai-akson (RIKEN iTHEMS)
- Christy Koji Kelly (RIKEN iTHEMS)
- Ryo Namba (Shizuoka University)
- Toshifumi Noumi (The University of Tokyo)
- Naritaka Oshita (Kindai University)
- Yuki Sato (University of Fukui)
- Wei-Hsiang Shao (RIKEN iTHEMS) – Contact: wei-hsiang.shao@riken.jp
- Sotaro Sugishita (Hokkaido University)
- Daichi Takeda (RIKEN iTHEMS)
- Yuki Yokokura (Kochi University of Technology)
[Last updated by Wei-Hsiang Shao (2026.04)]