Portraits of UM

With the Amarok observatory, Professor Olivier Torrès has dedicated his research to improving the health of small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) managers. His career has been doubly rewarded with the Julien Marchesnay Prize in 2024 and a knighthood in the National Order of Merit in 2025.

Mircea Sofonea is an epidemiologist at the Pathogenesis and Control of Chronic and Emerging Infections (PCCEI) laboratory. Although his field has only become widely known since the Covid epidemic, for him it is a vocation that goes back a long way. Portrait of a researcher who knows how to stay the course.

As Chair of Inorganic Chemistry at Heidelberg University and Director of the Institute of Inorganic Chemistry, Lutz Gade has acquired world-renowned expertise in his field over the years. In addition to his academic career, he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Montpellier in February 2025 for his commitment to cooperation between the University of Heidelberg and the University of Montpellier.

After studying the impact of human activities on marine biodiversity, David Mouillot is now looking at the potential impact of coastal marine resources on reducing human poverty. The professor at the University of Montpellier and researcher at the Marbec laboratory has just been awarded an ERC Advanced Grant to conduct transdisciplinary research on this new topic.

Dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Sherbrooke in Quebec (Canada), Armand Soldera has been awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Montpellier. This is a well-deserved honor for this Professor chemistry, who is as committed as he is adept at forging lasting ties with the University of Montpellier and its constituent parts, including Polytech Montpellier.

A professor at the Max Mousseron Institute of Biomolecules at the University of Montpellier, chemist Jean-Yves Winum designs and synthesizes enzyme inhibitors for carbonic anhydrases, an interesting target for cancer treatments and against various pathogens. His career has been recognized with the Michel Delalande Prize from the French National Academy of Pharmacy.