UM Profiles

Isabelle Olivieri, a researcher at ISEM who passed away ten years ago, is a leading figure in evolutionary ecology in Montpellier. A pioneer in her field, the work of her team is being carried on by the younger generations she inspired by defending her convictions, sometimes fiercely. She will be among the 72 women scientists whose names will join those of the scholars of the Eiffel Tower, engraved 65 meters above ground.

In a few days, environmental economist Zhi Li will return to Xiamen University in China. After spending six months in Montpellier as part of the MAK’IT Institute’s “Visiting Scholar” program, he plans to continue the various collaborations he has initiated with laboratories in the Hérault region.

Pauline Roques has had a unique career path, juggling her marketing dissertation at the University of Montpellier with an international career as a champion in artistic roller skating. She looks back on those busy years, which culminated in a doctorate and several roller skating titles.

Thanks to groundbreaking research on semiconductor nanostructures—and in particular on the physical properties of boron nitride—physicist Guillaume Cassabois of the Charles Coulomb Laboratory at the University of Marseille has just been awarded the 2025 Jean Ricard Grand Prize by the French Physical Society. While the award recognizes individual achievement, the researcher emphasizes the importance of teamwork throughout his research.

A political scientist at the University of Montpellier (UM), Laura Michel has been coordinating a research group dedicated entirely to the social sciences and humanities—focusing on public policies for transition—since 2024. This role led to her appointment as director of the Mak’it program, Montpellier’s institute for advanced studies specializing in transition.

Irène Georgescu, a professor at Montpellier Management, researches the resilience of healthcare professionals. This work earned her a €5.6 million grant from the European Research Innovation Action program in 2025.

Madhur Anand, an ecologist and professor at the University of Guelph in Canada, bridges the gap between science and the arts, even in her own work. A modeler and author, she will be taking advantage of her visit to Montpellier in the first semester of 2025 to combine interdisciplinary seminars with book signings at the Comédie du livre.

Tomasz Hueckel, professor emeritus at Duke University (Durham, North Carolina, United States), joins the growing community of honorary doctorate recipients at the University of Montpellier. An engineer, researcher, and educator, he has been collaborating for over 15 years with teams at the University of Montpellier, particularly those at the Laboratory of Mechanics and Civil Engineering (LMGC). The ceremony on May 16, 2025, provided an opportunity to trace his journey step by step, from his native Poland to the United States, as well as his significant contributions to the field of civil and environmental engineering.

Noémie Coulon, a postdoctoral researcher at the Marbec laboratory, is one of nine young researchers selected by the Ocean Institute to cover the One Ocean Science Congress in early June in Nice. It’s a perfect fit for this specialist in the impact of climate change on rays and sharks in Europe.

Through the Amarok Observatory, Professor Olivier Torrès has dedicated his research to improving the health of small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) leaders. His career has been recognized twice: with the Julien Marchesnay Prize in 2024 and with his appointment as a Knight of the National Order of Merit in 2025.

Mircea Sofonea is an epidemiologist at the Pathogenesis and Control of Chronic and Emerging Infections (PCCEI) laboratory. While his field has only come to the public’s attention since the COVID-19 pandemic, for him it has been a calling for many years. A portrait of a researcher who stays the course.

As holder of the Chair of Inorganic Chemistry at Heidelberg University and director of the Institute of Inorganic Chemistry, Lutz Gade has, over the years, established himself as a world-renowned expert in his field. In addition to his academic career, it was also in recognition of his commitment to cooperation between Heidelberg University and the University of Montpellier that he was awarded an honorary doctorate from UM in February 2025.