1st Blue Chair on a choice of 2 themes:
Cumulative impact on the marine environment
Contaminants, the sea and health
Where: Ifremer Atlantique Centre, Nantes
When: Submission of applications before 15 October
Preparing for and adapting to changes in the ocean between now and 2100
To open up new fields of research and provide the knowledge and solutions required, Ifremer is creating the "Chaires Bleues" research chairs. This new scheme is part of the Institute's exceptional scientific investment plan. Its aim is to accelerate and amplify the implementation of its strategic plan to 2030 and to contribute to the objectives of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Sciences for Sustainable Development.
A 1st Blue Chair in 2021 at the Nantes site
The scientific identity of the Atlantic Centre's research units is centred on the interactions between the sea and health, within a global health approach (environmental, animal and human health): the quality of marine waters and the contamination that affects them; the land-sea continuum and the cumulative impacts of human activities; the sustainable management of aquaculture and fisheries resources.
Ifremer teams in Brest and Toulon have strong partnerships with the École Centrale de Nantes and the University of Nantes in this field, particularly within the framework of the Carnot MERS institute. The skills of Ifremer's Nantes teams can strengthen these collaborations by broadening the scope of ocean engineering to include the study of its environmental impacts and socio-economic dimensions.
Theme 1: "Cumulative impacts on the marine environment
The coastal ocean is subject to a growing number of natural and anthropogenic pressures that generate cumulative impacts: climate change, fragmentation and deterioration of habitats, increased input of chemical inputs or nutrients, microbiological contamination, invasion of non-native species or proliferation of native species, over-exploitation of living marine resources, etc.
The issue of the cumulative impact of human activities on the marine environment has now been clearly identified by the public authorities and taken into account in a number of regulations.
Most of the time, these impacts are still assessed by summing up the indices of the various pressures exerted on the environment. In particular, there is a lack of tools and methods for dealing with the non-linearities that can arise when similar effects (several plants of the same type along a catchment area) or different activities (cumulative impact of different pollutants or activities such as marine renewable energy and fishing) are combined.
Multi-risk analysis of simultaneous or cascading events, incorporating joint probabilities, appears to be a possible approach. Whatever methods are used, they should aim to decompartmentalise the specialisms working on the different components of risk.
Ifremer operates Europe-wide networks of observatories and open databases. It has undertaken innovative technological developments to characterise biodiversity in situ (flow cytometry, eDNA). It can count on the most up-to-date geochemical proxies for aqueous oceanic matrices through the 'ocean spectroscopy cluster', but also on the deployment of tools to facilitate in situ chemical characterisation. These new measurements can be used to understand the processes that control the physical and biogeochemical evolution of the water masses concerned, and to build new models controlled by the processes or data.
The main scientific objective is to mobilise different communities to develop an integrative approach to the cumulative impacts of human activities on the marine environment.
Theme 2: "Contaminants, the sea and health
The ocean is both the ultimate receptacle of chemical and biological contamination from the continent and a supplier of resources, particularly food. As part of an integrative and ecological approach to health (of the One Health/EcoHealth type), the land-sea continuum is an object of primary interest. This continuum can be explored from an understanding of the pathways by which marine ecosystems are contaminated to the effects of this contamination on health (both human and animal), with the living resources exploited being a link between the quality of the environment and the health of consumers.
While a great deal of work already exists in this area, it generally considers only one category of contaminant.
Taking into account the exposome (i.e. the sum of environmental exposures over a lifetime) and its consequences for human and animal health calls for the development of new concepts and new integrated approaches to understand the complexity of marine ecosystem contamination and its effects.
Ifremer's Nantes-based units are developing, through various projects and with local partners, recognised work targeting different types of contaminants (viruses and bacteria, chemical contaminants and toxic micro-algae). The main scientific objective is to develop integrative approaches to the relationship between contamination of marine environments and human health, based on
on these projects and strengthening partnerships with healthcare players.
Terms and conditions of the call for applications
Candidates must have a minimum of 4 years' experience after obtaining their doctorate.
The winner of the Chair will be awarded funding for a maximum of 5 years, which will cover the remuneration of the winner, at least one doctoral candidate and one post-doctoral candidate, operating costs and any investment costs.
Selection of candidates
Candidates will be selected on the basis of a dossier to be submitted to Ifremer's scientific management by 15 October 2021. The project proposal must be submitted on time, in the requested format and be complete.
The assessment will be carried out by internal and external experts.
The final arbitration will take place on 15 January 2022.
The project will start no later than 15 October 2022.
Preparing your file
Applications in English must include the following completed documents:
Draft application - 6 pages maximum,
Curriculum vitae of the candidate, showing his/her administrative status at the time of submitting the project,
List of publications and significant work over the last 5 years,
Letters of recommendation.
The draft application must contain :
The chosen theme
The scientific challenge and the obstacles
Areas of innovation and areas in line with society's expectations
Methodology
Description and use of the resources and means requested
Local, national and international partnerships
The location of the chair, the research ambitions of the Pays de Loire region and its support for Ifremer's activities and projects are all factors that may freely encourage candidates to strengthen their project by seeking sources of co-financing from the Pays de Loire region or other regional players interested in one or other of the two themes of the call for applications. In order for Ifremer to be able to anticipate the administrative procedures for implementing the Chair, by adapting them to the situation of the successful candidate, candidates must explain their individual administrative situation and the conditions and constraints that may accompany their application.
Assessment criteria
Excellence of the candidate
Originality and relevance of the project to the proposed themes and, more generally, to the challenges of sustainable development
Relevance of the proposed methods to the problems identified
Potential for developing the project in terms of innovation, expertise in support of public policy, training and scientific outreach.
Ability to create links between Ifremer Atlantique units
Consistency with Nantes site policy (ISite NEXT, iC MERS, etc.)
Relevance and structuring effect of planned collaborations and partnerships (local, national or international)
Adequacy of the resources requested for the proposed project and ability to mobilise additional resources
Ifremer will give favourable consideration to projects that :
to mobilise additional resources
create links with the Nantes site (ISiteNEXT, Carnot MERS, etc.)
- create links between the Ifremer centre's units.
Contact
Scientific Director of Ifremer : anne.renault@ifremer.fr
Director of the Atlantic Centre, Nantes : pierre.labrosse@ifremer.fr