Biopolis: “The goal is to make the most of all the expertise available in Montpellier”
Since 2018, the University of Montpellier has been a partner in the Biopolis development project. A center of excellence based in Portugal and dedicated to research and innovation in biodiversity. At the heart of this collaboration: the transfer of expertise between European regions. Pierre Boursot, a researcher atISEM and project leader for UM, and Paula Dias, a researcher at CEFE, arein steering the project.
To start with, could you explain what Biopolis is?
Pierre Boursot: Biopolis is a project to establish a center of excellence for research, development, and innovation, resulting from a partnership between Portugal and Montpellier. It is part of the European H2020 Teaming program, which aims to promote the creation of such centers in areas of Europe considered less developed—in this case, northern Portugal—by establishing a partnership with an organization located in a European region considered more developed, in this case France.
What themes will this center focus on?
P. Boursot: Biopolis conducts basic research in evolution and ecology. The research themes are environmental biology, biodiversity, ecosystem services, and agrobiodiversity. Montpellier is recognized as one of the world’s leading centers for these disciplines, which constitute two of the three pillars of Muse—protecting and feeding—so it seemed to me that we had a role to play.
But isn't Biopolis going to be launched in Portugal?
P. Boursot: In this case, it’s not a matter of starting from scratch, since Montpellier’s role is to help the Cibio-Inbio laboratory, located north of Porto, take things to the next level. Cibio-Inbio is the coordinator of this project; it is already an excellent research laboratory with which CEFE and ISEM have been collaborating for about fifteen years, and since 2014, as part of an international partner laboratory ofthe CNRSInstitute of Ecology and Environment. It was therefore quite natural for them to turn to us to set up this partnership. It is a project focused on skills transfer and capacity building.
How will this transfer of authority take place?
P. Boursot: First and foremost through training. The commission’s funding will cover approximately nine doctoral fellowships per year. The goal is for as many of these as possible to be co-supervised by researchers from Montpellier and Biopolis, under a joint supervision arrangement between the University of Montpellier and the University of Porto. Biopolis will also fund decades’ worth of postdoctoral fellows’ salaries, allowing them to come to Montpellier for training. Our technical platforms will also be able to host Biopolis staff, or staff from here can go to Porto to organize training sessions or supervise projects. The goal is to make the most of all the expertise available in Montpellier.
Paula Dias: This can also take the form of various scientific events, such as conferences, workshops, thematic sessions, and training modules… Anyone with ideas should feel free to submit proposals to Biopolis. Often, organizing such events involves chasing down grants, but if the topic is of interest to Biopolis, funding is available.
Isn't the purpose of this partnership to fund the research projects themselves?
P. Dias: No , what you need to understand is that this isn’t a research grant; it’s not intended to fund equipment or research projects. The commission’s funds are allocated to the center’s overall operations and to this skills transfer initiative between Montpellier and Portugal. However, it does cover personnel costs, including in Montpellier, which account for a significant portion of research budgets.
How much does European funding amount to?
P. Boursot: The commission is providing €15 million in funding for the project over a seven-year period. The condition was that this new center demonstrate its ability to raise at least twice that amount—which it has already done—and achieve sustainable financial independence by the end of the Teaming project.
One of the main priorities is excellence in innovation. How do you plan to develop this?
P. Boursot: Generally speaking , in the field of environmental protection, it’s not always easy to identify what constitutes innovation, but it is certainly present in terms of societal value. All infrastructure created by humans that encroaches on nature must be scientifically assessed in order to measure its impact and develop solutions. Genomics is also central to Biopolis. It is a rapidly expanding field that offers enormous opportunities for innovation, if only to characterize biodiversity and apply this knowledge to agriculture. Portugal is a highly agricultural country, and we want to develop this potential for innovation and put it to work for society.
P. Dias: And we mustn’t forget that there is a third official partner in this project: Porto Business School (PBS). They are very valuable allies who will share with us all their expertise in the business world and in partnerships.
Social responsibility, along with economic and local considerations, is another pillar…
P. Boursot: We want this center to work closely with all stakeholders with an interest in this field. This could range from agricultural cooperatives to multinational distribution companies—there are no limits. The idea is to create a mixed-use campus in the Porto region that would bring together basic research, NGOs, startups, and more…
The University of Montpellier is a partner in the project, but many other agencies are also involved?
P. Boursot: One of the commission’s requirements was that the “lead” partner be a single entity. It quickly became clear that the University of Montpellier (UM), through Muse, was in a position to represent the research being conducted in most of the joint research units (UMRs) on the Montpellier campus, regardless of their administrative affiliations. The CNRS, CIRAD,IRD,INRAE, EPHE, andthe University of Perpignan are also involved in the H2020 project.
Biopolis brings together eleven laboratories in Montpellier. How did you select them?
P. Boursot: When the Portuguese came to visit Montpellier, they identified eleven laboratories that they considered promising for developing partnerships. Some of these, such as the Center for Biology and Population Management (CBGP), were not affiliated with the UM. This provided an opportunity to renegotiate with all the relevant authorities so that the UM could represent them within the project, in line with the spirit of Muse, thereby avoiding purely legal or administrative roadblocks. The UM also signed a strategic partnership agreement with the University of Porto.
Beyond the leadership aspect, what opportunities might such a partnership open up for research in Montpellier?
P. Dias: Cibio-InBIO is already an excellent, internationally recognized laboratory that produces truly outstanding scientific work. It’s no coincidence that Pierre has been working with them for 15 years. They’re also capable of raising significant funds and opening up new partnerships for us in regions where France has a smaller presence, such as Portuguese-speaking Africa and South Africa, with whom they’re developing partnerships recognized notably by UNESCO. They serve as gateways to those parts of the world.
What are your next steps now?
P. Bousot: We are wrapping up the legal and administrative aspects of establishing the organization, and we are currently recruiting the executive team. Soon we will be able to launch the flagship projects we want to highlight.