CROSSDISCIPLINARY DISCUSSIONS | PART 1

Today, we'd like to highlight our students who volunteered to take part in our interdisciplinary discussions at our Interdisciplinary Day event a few weeks ago.

These exchanges aimed to encourage an interdisciplinary approach, pushing students to link their academic expertise to concrete global issues 🌍💡

Our first group tackled the 1st theme:

🌍 Endangered planet, threatened biodiversity: what solutions?
Based on the IPBES report on transformative change (December 2024), they explored concrete applications linked to their respective disciplines.

🎤 O ur student speakers & their contributions :

💧 Ana Idiaquez Valbuena(Biological and Environmental Systems Modeling) explored the impact of PFAS pollution in water and the associated health risks, while proposing possible mitigation strategies.

🌱🧪 Louna FILBET(Chemistry for Health, Protection and Nutrition) presented the role of medicinal plants in sustainable chemistry, highlighting their benefits but also the threats linked to overexploitation and habitat destruction.

🌾 Oïana Brayle(Plant and Microbial Sciences for the Agro-Environment) analyzed the historical link between agriculture and biodiversity loss, before proposing innovative agroecological strategies for sustainable agriculture.

⚕️🔄 Mai Linh Sorroche(Sciences pour la Santé Humaine) demonstrated the interconnection between environmental and human health through a case study of mangroves in Vietnam. She explained how mangrove degradation leads to increased water pollution, promoting the accumulation of toxins in the food chain and increasing the risk of cancer. She then proposed six solutions from the IPBES report to remedy the problem.

💬 A dynamic multidisciplinary exchange
After their presentations, the students engaged in dialogue to explore the connections between their work. They exchanged before a panel of international researchers from MAK'IT Montpellier Institute and the IDIL graduate program, including:
🔹 Anand Madhur
🔹 Mourad Latati
🔹 Mathieu Sicard
🔹 Emanuel A. Fronhofer
🔹 Cherine Bechara

We would like to thank Camille Guibal, Head of the IPBES Technical Support Unit, for expertly moderating this discussion.

👏 Congratulations to all the students for their outstanding performance, unanimously acclaimed by the jury!

We'll be sharing part two soon, where we'll be highlighting another group of students who took part in these exciting exchanges!