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Mircea Sofonea is an epidemiologist at the Pathogenesis and Control of Chronic and Emerging Infections (PCCEI) laboratory. While his field has only become widely known since the COVID-19 pandemic, for him it has been a calling for a very long time. A portrait of a researcher who stays the course.

The UAR PAC Chimie Balard Montpellier offers a unique suite of equipment for the analysis and physicochemical characterization of materials and biomolecules (analysis of solutions, solids, and surfaces; determination of structural, textural, and thermodynamic properties). The PAC Montpellier aims to address multidisciplinary analytical challenges, primarily in the fields of chemistry and at the interfaces between biology and health, agronomy and ecology, and materials and the environment. The Analysis and Characterization Platform offers exceptional capabilities for measurements using X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, NMR spectroscopy, IR–Raman spectroscopy, Mössbauer spectroscopy, SQUID magnetometry, RPE spectroscopy, XPS, mass spectrometry, textural and particle size analysis, chemical analysis (elemental analysis, AAS, ICP-MS, X-ray fluorescence), calorimetric and thermal analysis, and dielectric spectroscopy. The various services are organized around centers of expertise staffed by technical personnel dedicated to these instruments, who maintain constant contact with researchers and Professors in the field. The Balard Chemistry Cluster’s Analysis and Characterization Platform is open to the entire academic scientific community and the industrial sector (large corporations, SMEs, and startups). Access to these services is provided through service contracts, collaborations, or partnerships, including: analytical services performed by PAC staff, research and development projects, methodological and instrumental developments, and theoretical and practical training. Designation: Support and Research Unit Research UAR)Primary Affiliations:UM CNRS - ENSCMResearch Cluster: Chemistry Cluster

The InterTryp Joint Research Unit (UMR) is developing a “One Health” approach within the broader context of eliminating these neglected tropical diseases. It conducts research at various scales—gene, molecule, individual, territory, country, and region—to better understand the pathogen system and assess the associated risks. In the longer term, it studies the mechanisms of co-evolution between parasites, vectors, symbionts, and mammalian hosts (animals and humans) in relation to environmental changes. It proposes prevention and control methods tailored to the constraints of developing countries: context-specific surveillance tools, new therapeutic molecules, vector control, and vaccine research. Notably, it developed the first vaccine against canine leishmaniasis. Designation: Joint Research Unit Research UMR)Primary Affiliations: CIRAD - IRDSecondary Affiliation: UMResearch Cluster: Biology-Health Cluster (BS)Doctoral Schools: CBS2: Chemical and Biological Sciences for Health - GAIA: Biodiversity, Agriculture, Food, Environment, Earth, Water Website

Affiliation: Support and Research Unit Research UAR) Primary Sponsors: CNRS - UMP Research Cluster: Agriculture-Environment-Biodiversity (AEB)

The UMR Water Management, Stakeholders, and Uses brings together 90 permanent researchers and engineers and about 50 doctoral and postdoctoral students from all disciplines working together on issues related to integrated and adaptive water management. It conducts research on the trajectories of socio-hydrosystems and their regulation; it contributes to the design and evaluation of tools that facilitate the implementation of innovative public policies regarding water; and it participates in multidisciplinary training for students in the field of water. The UMR G-EAU, affiliated with I-Site MUSE, is a member of ICIREWARD, a Category 2 Center under the auspices of UNESCO on water in Montpellier. The core of the UMR G-EAU’s mission is to understand how socio-hydrosystems function, both under normal conditions and during periods of crisis or high stress (water scarcity, flooding, pollution). We analyze the hydrological, technical, social, economic, and political processes within a water-related territory and their consequences. We also leverage our interdisciplinary strength to analyze the combined effects of these processes and, ultimately, identify opportunities for governance and adaptation in complex and uncertain environments. The project includes the design and testing—in collaboration with society—of tools and mechanisms aimed at revealing how these systems function and influencing their trajectory. Originating from teams working on irrigated systems, the UMR G-EAU has gradually broadened its focus toward integrated management. It now approaches water-related regions as complex systems by drawing on a variety of perspectives: A diversity of uses and interests: irrigation, drinking water, recreation, energy, wastewater treatment, flood protection A diversity of water types: surface water, groundwater, wastewater A variety of processes: water and pollutant transfers, irrigation technologies, economic instruments, public participation, and modes of appropriation A variety of regulatory approaches: river and canal infrastructure, water access and land-use policies, and standards governing water use. A variety of disciplines For all of this research, the UMR G-EAU emphasizes approaches grounded in case studies. This means a commitment to research based on field observations, supplemented by experimental approaches conducted in collaboration with users and/or managers. To build upon the knowledge generated in this way, the UMR relies on a broad network of partners and research sites around the world—in France and in countries of the Global South—that present a diversity of water-related challenges and hydro-ecological, socio-economic, and political contexts. One-third of the staff are stationed abroad in the Maghreb, West and Southern Africa, and Southeast Asia. In France, collaboration agreements bring us closer to institutions responsible for watershed management. This field involvement leads to strong interactions with stakeholders. Finally, the UMR G-EAU is committed to transferring its research results. Three approaches are used for this purpose: Testing the proposed techniques and tools with local institutions; Training students in the North through the Water Master’s program in Montpellier and at engineering schools affiliated with the UMR (Montpellier SupAgro and AgroParisTech), and in the South through Master’s programs offered by our host partners; Hosting partner companies, particularly start-ups. Designation: Joint Research Unit Research UMR) Primary Affiliations: CIRAD - IRD - INRAE - AgroParisTech - Institut Agro - BRGM Secondary sponsoring organization: UMP Research cluster: Agriculture-Environment-Biodiversity (AEB) Doctoral schools: EDEG: Economics and Management - GAIA: Biodiversity, Agriculture, Food, Environment, Land, Water Website