Culture is a powerful lever for implementing change

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)^[1] and experts from the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES)^[2] have been warning us for some time about the role of mankind in global warming and its consequences, particularly the loss of biodiversity. The Ministry of Higher Education and Research is alerting us and requiring us to take action through its "climate-biodiversity and ecological transition" plan in order to meet the commitments made in the Paris Agreement.^[3]

The environmental transition is therefore no longer an option, but an obligation to prepare for the future. With this in mind, Avignon Université has drawn up its Schéma Director of Durability (SDS). Through this strategic document, we are committed to promoting professional practices that respect the environment and to integrating sustainable development principles into our operations. This environmental transition should be seen as an opportunity to make our lives richer by reconnecting with nature and strengthening our social ties. It will be an opportunity not only to enhance our cultural heritage but also to move it towards an ecological culture. In short, this is a major challenge, and Avignon Université, with its two key areas of identity: AgroSciences, Health, Environment & Culture, Heritage and Digital Societies, and its Sustainability Master Plan approved by the Board of Governors in February 2024, has all the cards in its hand to play its part.

Our SDS sets out our five-year objectives for transforming our university. Our goals are focused on four areas.

Firstly, the commitment of governance.

The university is fully aware of the climate emergency and the important role it plays as a public service for new generations. The resources are there, and they are illustrated in particular by the decision to set up an Environmental Transition team, made up of a Vice-President and three project managers: Stéphane Sammartino, in charge of soft mobility, Yannick Esteves, for responsible digital technology, and Joffrey Moiroux for biodiversity. We can also count on the administrative support of Aude Favre, in-house consultant and change coach, who helps us with the methodology and coordination of all our actions, which cut across the university.

The second area is the transformation of our campuses.

We have 52% SDS action sheets in this area, for example, actively promoting biodiversity on campus, encouraging re-use and committing to the circular economy, and implementing best practice in the catering offered by the school. A large number of staff are working hard to move the various projects forward. For example, we are working on the implementation of three important charters: "responsible goodies", "responsible events" and "sustainable food", which will be validated in September 2024. The first visible action already underway is to put an end to the distribution of bottled water at meetings and events. In this area, we must also carry out an annual carbon audit, making it easier and more reliable by upgrading our information systems, as well as developing a strategy to reduce carbon emissions. The 2023 report was submitted in June 2024 and the results are clear: it is the mobility of our students and staff that has the greatest impact on our greenhouse gas emissions.^[1]. So that's our first priority. With Stéphane Sammartino and the expertise of our researchers at UMR ESPACE, as well as in partnership with Greater Avignon and Avignon town council, we are working to promote mobility that emits fewer greenhouse gases and will be launching awareness campaigns during European Environment Week.^[2]For all the events linked to the environmental transition, we will be integrating the cultural dimension, because collective values, beliefs and representations play a crucial role in the way we perceive and treat our environment. Culture is a powerful lever for implementing change.

The second action we would like to highlight is biodiversity. A number of initiatives are underway, including the creation of a shared vegetable garden at the initiative of Severine Suchail, a lecturer and researcher in ecotoxicology at the AgES institute. On the Jean-Henri Fabre campus, this space is used for teaching urban agriculture in the Agronomy Professional Degree course in Agroecological Transition of Territories, but it is also open to other university students who wish to develop projects there. The kitchen garden is co-managed with the Jardins du colibri association and in partnership with Greater Avignon, and is intended to serve as a model for the development of Agroparc as an eco-district adapted to urban agriculture.

The third priority is to supportesearch teams in the development of their activities.

We need to work in synergy with research laboratory teams to implement eco-responsible practices. Many laboratories are already heavily involved in the transition, particularly through their research themes. For example, Konstantinos Chalikakis, a teacher-researcher at UMR EMMAH (Environnement Méditerranéen et Modélisation des Agro-Hydrosystèmes) is the holder of the GeEAUde partnership chair (inaugurated in May 2024), one of the aims of which is to propose strategies for the sustainable management of groundwater resources adapted to the Mediterranean context in the face of global change. Another example is the European Life VineAdapt project led by Armin Bischoff and Olivier Blight, teacher-researchers at the IMBE (Institut Méditerranéen de Biodiversité et d'Ecologie), which is studying the resilience of wine-growing agroecosystems to climate change. The researchers are studying the hypothesis that greater biodiversity and more rational management of irrigation in vineyards will enable better adaptation to future climate change. Or Julie Deramond, a teacher-researcher at the Centre Norbert Elias, who is leading the OLIVE4ALL project (Olive Heritage for Sustainable Development: Raising Community Awareness of Living Heritage), which aims to place the heritage of the olive tree, as a representative symbol of Mediterranean culture and identity, and its enhancement at the heart of regional development initiatives in response to current societal challenges.

QFourth axisthe sheightening awareness and training to the issues from sustainability.

The most significant action is the introduction of a teaching unit, which should be in place by September 2025. The Ministry is requiring us to train our students in a core set of skills and knowledge that is integrated into all degree-level courses, and recommends at least 30 hours of teaching as well as certification. The courses include climate change, biodiversity, resources and social equity, and must also enable students to take action through workshops and projects. The role of the university in this teaching is to help citizenship by giving everyone the scientific knowledge they need to understand the mechanisms at work, because knowledge is often a prerequisite for change. We are in the Anthropocene, and man's role in planetary dynamics is central. Humanity is the main cause of disruption, so we can do something about it!^[1] 

Our university is part of a global movement, but also a local one. Many local examples show us the way to sustainability, particularly in culture. For ten years now, the Festival d'Avignon has been engaged in an in-depth reflection on its environmental impact. In 2020, it set up a collective, cross-disciplinary internal working group to implement sustainable action. La Scierie, one of our cultural partners, embodies the concept of a third place resolutely focused on culture, ecology and the social economy. In Avignon's local landscape, this dynamic of third places is palpable, with initiatives such as the Tipi, l'éveilleur scop, Surikat, etc. and symbolises a new way of approaching life in society, favouring exchanges, creativity and sustainable development.

[1] If you would like to contribute to the construction of this EU, please join the working group led by our colleague Jean-Pierre Malrieu from the CPSN institute (e-mail to vp-transition@univ-avignon.fr).

[1] The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was established in 1988 to provide comprehensive assessments of the state of scientific, technical and socio-economic knowledge about climate change, its causes, potential impacts and mitigation strategies.

[2] IPBES is an intergovernmental body set up in 2012. IPBES is a multi-disciplinary body whose primary missions are to assist the governmentsto strengthen the resources of emerging countries on biodiversity issues, under the aegis of theUnited Nations (UN).

[3] The Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty on climate change. It was adopted by 196 Parties at COP 21 in Paris on 12 December 2015. Its overarching goal to continue efforts "to limit temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels." https://unfccc.int/fr/a-propos-des-ndcs/l-accord-de-paris

[1] Gases (carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, etc.) present in the atmosphere that retain some of the heat received by the sun in the atmosphere. An increase in the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere results in a rise in its temperature.

[2] From 16 to 22 September 2024 (Mobility Week)