Yves Maufette and Yves Bergeron receive honorary doctorates from the University of Montpellier

This Friday, December 2, Philippe Augé, President of the University of Montpellier, will award the title of Doctor Honoris Causa from the University of Montpellier to Yves Maufette and Yves Bergeron, both professors at the University of Quebec (Canada). The ceremony will take place on the Triolet Campus from 11am, in the presence of Patrick Caron, UM Vice-President in charge of International Relations, Jean-Michel Marin, Dean of the UM Faculty of Science and Ahmed Adam Ali, Vice-Dean of the UM Faculty of Science.

By invitation only

What does the title "Doctor Honoris Causa" represent?

Created by decree on June 26, 1918, and whose origins can be traced back to the 17th century, the title of Doctor Honoris Causa pays tribute to foreign personalities who highlight and echo the values of the university through their contribution to the world of ideas, culture, the arts and sciences. Awarded at a solemn ceremony, this is the most eminent and prestigious academic title to be conferred by the University of Montpellier.

Yves Maufette, and Yves Bergeron, the two professors receiving the title of "Doctor Honoris Causa".

Yves Maufette, Associate Professor at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM ): "Being a university professor mainly involves teaching and research. Our training is first and foremost that of a researcher, and we often teach according to our intuition. In academia, our task is divided into three: research, teaching and community service. In theory, these three tasks should be equally divided. Research is the key activity, as it will primarily determine the success of our academic career from promotion to international recognition. The second component of the task, teaching, is less valued. Choosing to invest in university pedagogy entails certain risks, because we're thinking outside the box. It's one thing to change the content of a course, but it's almost insane to change the academic curriculum of a field, and to do so in the direction of a new pedagogical approach. Isn't training our students to better respond to tomorrow's needs a primordial challenge? Research is progressing, so why not pedagogy?

Yves Bergeron, Professor at Université du Québec en Atibi-Témiscamingue and Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM): "Canada's boreal forest is one of the world's last natural forests, and one that is under severe strain. Traditional forest management practices have considerably reduced the proportion of old-growth forest. Fire, a source of soil disturbance that increases soil fertility, has been largely suppressed. Forest managers need to find ways of reproducing the main characteristics of natural forests through practices that mimic natural disturbances and forest dynamics. In this crucial area, France has a long history of forest management, and paleoecological approaches have been developed to reconstruct the past. Over the past twenty years, the paleoecological expertise of the University of Montpellier has been applied in collaborative and cotutelle projects in the cold forests of Canada, France and elsewhere in the world."

Practical information:

Date : Friday, December 2, 2022 at 11am
Location : Campus Triolet, Village des Sciences, bâtiment 36, Place Eugène Bataillon, 34090 Montpellier
Registration : here