The Montpellier Institute for Water and the Environment Becomes a UNESCO International Centre
On November 18, the UNESCO General Conference approved the creation of an international water center in Montpellier. This is a major recognition for the water sciences community, which has been led since 2015 by the Montpellier Institute for Water and the Environment (IM2E) and has benefited from the support of I-SITE MUSE through its WATERS Key Initiative.
From the Montpellier Institute of Water and the Environment…
Founded in January 2015, the Montpellier Institute for Water and the Environment (IM2E) coordinates and leads France’s largest community in the field of water sciences. It brings together more than 400 scientists and 150 doctoral students from 15 research units*. The momentum generated by IM2E has been reinforced by the I-SITE MUSE project, as water is at the heart of its three key challenges: feeding, healing, and protecting. The support provided by MUSE has thus made it possible to realize the collective ambition of the “water” community in Montpellier. Among the projects launched in this context is the creation of a UNESCO International Centre, approved on November 18 by the General Conference of UNESCO Member States following a lengthy evaluation process led notably by the Council of UNESCO’s International Hydrological Programme. There is only one other centre of this type in France: located in Nice, it focuses on pure and applied mathematics.
The agreement formalizing the establishment of the center will soon be signed by the Ministry of Higher Education, Research Innovation, UNESCO, and the University of Montpellier.
… at the UNESCO International Centre in Montpellier
The creation of the UNESCO International Center in Montpellier (officially known as ICIReWaRD: International Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Water Systems Dynamics) is undoubtedly an international recognition of the leading role played by Montpellier’s water sciences community. The Center, which will position itself as one of the most important in the world—due to the diversity of its research and training topics and
the influence of its teams in both the Global North and South—will greatly enhance the visibility and appeal of this community. Four objectives are targeted:
- strengthen scientific partnerships in the Global North, particularly through the network of UNESCO water-related centers and chairs (the “Water Family”)
- strengthen solid and fruitful partnerships in the fields of research and education in the Global South and in regions vulnerable to water-related issues (rapid urbanization, population pressure, anticipated effects of climate change)
- attract top-tier students and researchers
to train future professionals with the skills and expertise needed to tackle water-related challenges in a world where constraints—but also new opportunities—are becoming increasingly numerous.