"The research landscape is in a state of flux".
On August 30 and 31, the University of Montpellier hosted the annual conference of vice-presidents in charge of research and innovation at French universities. Over 180 participants attended the 2022 edition, which focused on the theme of transitions. A look back at the event with Jacques Mercier, vice-president in charge of research at the UM.
What is the aim of this annual symposium?
For the past seven or eight years, all VPs of Research and Innovation have been invited to meet to report on the year's activities. It's an opportunity to discuss current reforms and research news, both among ourselves and with representatives of major research organizations.
How many people take part in this event?
We had over 180 participants, which was a real success. We welcomed VPs from all over France, including La Réunion and Polynesia. CEOs of major research organizations1 and Manuel Tunon de Lara, President of France Université (ex-conférence des présidents d'université).
The R3SUP network held its symposium the day before. Who are they?
The R3SUP network brings together research administrative managers. They are the equivalent of Anne Bancel, who heads the UM's Department of Research and Doctoral Studies (DRED). The network generally meets one day before or one day after the meeting, and also takes part in the VP Research and Innovation Conference.
The host city changes every year, so why was it so interesting for the University of Montpellier to host this year's event?
We've already been to Toulouse, Bordeaux, Lille and Paris, so it was only logical that Montpellier should join the ranks of these major university cities. It underscores our attractiveness, dynamism and visibility in a year when the UM has embarked on some major transitions. We also took the opportunity to highlight some of our own themes.
The theme chosen for this year's event was "French research in transition". So transitions can refer to many things, starting with the ecological transition I suppose?
As the University of Montpellier is very well placed in terms of ecology, we couldn't ignore this dimension. Research must continue its efforts to integrate this transition into its day-to-day operations, whether in terms of waste management, consumables or fluids, the use of plastics, recycling, etc.
What's new for 2021-2022?
The research landscape is in a state of flux. The research programming law introduced by the previous government, under the mandate of Frédérique Vidal, is changing a lot of things, thanks to the allocation of new resources for research. Discussions are underway on the role that universities should play with research organizations, there are reforms concerning the doctorate in particular, and the emergence of junior professorships...
What does the doctoral reform entail?
First there was the increase in the remuneration of doctoral contracts, and more recently a new decree has been issued. almost at the time of the symposium, which provides for the introduction of a doctoral contract under private law. In other words, it will now be possible to carry out a doctorate in a private company. It's still a little early to talk about the details, but we're working on it.
And what are junior professorships?
These are new contracts under which a Professor is recruited for a period of 3 to 6 years and, after an assessment, may be appointed as a professor. This is a very interesting career move, especially as they also have a budget of 120,000 euros to set up a research laboratory.
Research in transition is also a move towards greater interdisciplinarity. Is it a new way of working for researchers?
Yes, undoubtedly, and it's an extremely interesting thing, giving rise to new themes and fields. However, this must not be to the detriment of purely fundamental research. We need to know how to combine the two, and we mustn't ignore the new questions raised by this interdisciplinary research.
What do you mean by that?
Interdisciplinarity can sometimes make the execution of certain projects, and especially their evaluation, a little more complex. It must therefore be well structured if it is to be carried out without lowering the standard of research.
Do you think that civil society expects science today to be more applied, to take up more challenges, particularly in relation to the ecological crisis?
Yes, there's a lot of talk about participatory science. Research and science must be in touch with society: it's an absolute necessity, and research has long been working to provide solutions. But not to the detriment of purely fundamental research, which must always exist to advance knowledge.
At the symposium you also talked about research in the South. Why?
We are fortunate to have the IRD and CIRAD in Montpellier and to be able, with them, to position ourselves strongly in partnership research with the South. We really wanted to take advantage of this symposium, and the visibility it affords us, to reaffirm our orientation in this direction.
The President also spoke of the institutional transition with the UM's transformation into an experimental public establishment (EPE). What does this mean for research?
This obviously changes a lot of things. The perpetuation of the Muse I-SITE and its integration into the experimental public establishment has strengthened the links between the University and the research organizations, and at the same time brought the research communities closer together. As a former VP, I can say that the I-SITE and the transformation into an EPE have given rise to a much more intense dialogue between research organizations and players in Montpellier.
What's in it for the University of Montpellier?
As I said, a symposium of this kind helps to assert our attractiveness and visibility, but that's not what this event is all about. It's not every day that the President of France Université and the presidents and CEOs of research organizations sit around the same table. This gives rise to extremely rich discussions on the workings of research and universities. But while people of course make the trip for the program, they also do so to share a great moment of conviviality, and to enable informal exchanges, which is also essential.
- Antoine Petit for CNRS, Gilles Bloch for Inserm, Valérie Verdier and Elisabeth Clavery de Saint Martin for IRD and CIRAD, Philippe Mauguin for INRAE and Bruno Sportisse for INRIA. ︎