Identification of French research potential in polar and subpolar environments
An interdisciplinary working group (WG) has been set up with the objective of ensuring, for the benefit of the entire CNRS, an animation function with a view to the emergence of a CNRS and then national scientific strategy in the polar and sub-polar fields, in consultation with the other national research actors. Led by Jérôme Chappellaz, chargé de mission at my side, the WG will rely on the scientific teams of the CNRS and in particular the polar affairs chargés de missions of the institutes.
The purpose of this email is to allow members of our laboratories who so wish to contribute to its work or at least to be informed of its progress. Thus I ask each unit director to forward this email to all members of his laboratory.
In order to fulfil its mission and propose a national strategy to be mediated by the CNRS Executive Committee, the WG will focus on:
- Promote the synergy of research in polar and sub-polar areas and amplify their future ambitions;
- Develop a national polar research roadmap based on exchanges between CNRS researchers;
- Solicit certain industrial actors to develop partnerships in these regions, in line with the scientific and logistical needs expressed by the CNRS and the French Polar Institute IPEV;
- Initiate meeting spaces between researchers and institutions (symposia, forums) to strengthen national coherence in polar areas, with research as a guiding principle;
- Contribute to the development of an international collaboration policy (bi or multilateral) integrating possible scientific synergies - taking into account France's logistical capacities - and the diplomatic context provided by the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs.
A first step for the WG is to establish a mailing list through which the CNRS will be able to exchange information related to polar and subpolar research with all registered personnel. To this end, the WG invites you to complete a short online questionnaire. Its completion will allow the WG to include you on the mailing list and provide a comprehensive overview of the forces at the national level. It will identify both personnel who have worked for a long time in polar and subpolar environments and those who view it in different terms.
I strongly encourage all staff, regardless of their status and organization, to participate in the development of this national panorama. In particular, I hope that your contribution will help to develop bridges between researchers and laboratories that have long been invested in these environments (earth and universe sciences, life sciences, humanities and social sciences) and to involve other communities that can provide particularly relevant expertise in the disciplines associated with engineering, biology, physics or chemistry and informatics.
Alain Schuhl, Deputy Chief Executive Officer for Science