Science at UM [S03-ep30]: Festivals in rural areas
This week in Science at UM Emmanuel Négrier, researcher at Cepel, talks to us about the specific characteristics of festivals in rural areas. In the second part of the program, we return to Cemipai with Sébastien Lyonnais, who presents his atomic force microscope. A program co-produced with Divergence FM and broadcast every Wednesday at 6 p.m. on 93.9.
Every year, more than 7,000 festivals are organized in France. This phenomenon has been growing rapidly since the 2000s, but it is far from new. Hector Berlioz founded the first event of this type in 1869, called the Chorégies d'Orange, which celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2019. In another field, Concarneau has been organizing the Festival des Filets Bleus since 1902. These are relatively modest festivals that cannot compete with the giants of the sector, such as the Festival Interceltique de Lorient or the well-known Fête de l'Huma, which attracts more than 800,000 participants each year.
While Brittany is often in the spotlight, Occitanie is also a land of festivals. Every year, more than 150 events of this type take place between Gard and Hérault alone, with an unexpected diversity. Indeed, what do the very Parisian Radio France festival and the Montaren chickpea festival have in common, or the Ales surface crater and the Domaine d'O spring theater festival, or the Feu Garance reggae festival in Bagnoles sur Cèze and the Tous Contes Fées fairy tale festival in Clarensac?
Nothing? Or perhaps quite the opposite. This is partly revealed by our guest's latest survey. A researcher at the Montpellier political science laboratory, Cepel, which he also heads, he has been coordinating the major Sofest survey for the past five years, alongside Aurélien Djakouane . Sofest involves 25,000 questionnaires, 3,500 volunteers surveyed, and 1,300 festivals analyzed in 13 regions. This year, the two coordinators and their team of around ten researchers looked at the specific cultural, social, and economic characteristics of festivals in rural areas, which account for no less than a third of the 7,300 festivals surveyed.
To go further:
- Read also the article It is through absence that we see the place occupied by culture, published in Lum magazine.
- Listen also to the program Festivals at the Cefe's experimental field.
In the second part of the program, for the final report in the series devoted to Cemipai, Sébastien Lyonnais presents his favorite toy, the atomic force microscope or AFM, coupled with fluorescence. It is the only one in the world installed in a level 3 biosafety platform, and researchers are clamoring to use it to visualize viruses or bacteria topographically thanks to a device that offers incredible observation possibilities.
At UM Science, you have the program, so let's get started!
Co-production: Divergence FM / University of Montpellier
Host: Lucie Lecherbonnier
Interview: Aline Périault / Lucie Lecherbonnier
Reporting and editing: Lucie Lecherbonnier / Aline Périault
Production: Tom Chevalier / Alice Rollet
Listen to the program “A l’UM la science” on Divergence FM 93.9
Find UM podcasts now available on your favorite platform (Spotify, Deezer, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, etc.).