Portraits of theUM

Kōichi Tanaka: The Mistake That Changed Chemistry

Kōichi Tanaka, winner of the 2002 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Montpellier on July 9, 2026. The University is thus recognizing the career of this Shimadzu engineer, a pioneer in mass spectrometry, and the scientific ties forged with the Montpellier university-hospital clinical proteomics platform in the field of neurodegenerative diseases.

Eric Servat: Sharing Water

As director, in turn, of the Hydrosciences Montpellier laboratory, the UNESCO-ICIREWARD International Center, and the Montpellier Environmental Research Observatory, Eric Servat has reshaped the role of water research in Montpellier. By securing UNESCO accreditation in 2021, the hydrologist has, in particular, established the city as an international water capital.

Matthieu Lengaigne: Between Iron and the Sea

Matthieu Lengaigne, a research director at the Marbec laboratory—which is overseen by the University of Montpellier—is a co-recipient of the ERC Synergy Harvest grant. This project will take him off the coast of the Tonga Islands to understand and model the role of iron released by undersea volcanoes in phytoplankton growth.

Anne Mione: A Moma-Certified Director

Elected director of Montpellier Management in March 2026, Anne Mione is taking charge of her institution’s AACSB international accreditation process. This is a perfect fit for the University of Montpellier professor, who has devoted her research to the study of standards and certifications.

Jan E. Leach, a researcher who “feeds” on bacteria

An internationally renowned American plant pathologist, Jan E. Leach has dedicated her career to rice diseases, sustainable plant resistance, and the effects of climate change on plant health. A distinguished university professor and researcher emerita at Colorado State University, as well as a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, she was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Montpellier on April 3, 2026.

Isabelle Olivieri: The Montpellier-based ecologist joins the scientists at the Eiffel Tower

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

Zhi Li: Credit for the Environment

In a few days, environmental economist Zhi Li will return to Xiamen University in China. After a six-month stay 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 department.

Things are going well for Pauline Roques

Pauline Roques has had a career unlike any other, 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.

Guillaume Cassabois: Matter in Light

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

Laura Michel – MAK’IT Great Again

A political scientist at theUM, Laura Michel has been coordinating a research group focused entirely on the social sciences and humanities and dedicated to public transition policies since 2024. This role led to her appointment as director of the Mak’it program at the Montpellier Institute for Advanced Studies, which specializes in transition.

Irène Georgescu: There's no point in rushing to get far

Irène Georgescu, a university professor at Montpellier Management, conducts research on the resilience of healthcare professionals. This work earned her a 5.6 million euro European Research Innovation Action grant in 2025.

Madhur Anand, ecologist, modeler, and poet

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 is 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.