[Portrait] Florence Charles, Senior Lecturer in Plant Physiology - Post-harvest Technology

What are your current scientific activities?

I have just been accepted for a CIFRE thesis grant. This work will start in January 2021 in partnership with the company Futura Gaia and will aim to understand the effect of light radiation applied before and after harvest on the conservation of lettuce. Futura Gaia is a pioneering company in vertical agriculture and together we will study the effect of light on plant quality in an integrated manner.

I am also currently preparing the next seminar of the UMT IQUAR (Unité Mixte Technologique "Innovating to improve the post-harvest quality of fresh fruit and vegetables"). I have been co-managing this structure since 2017 with a colleague from the CTIFL (Centre Technique Interprofessionnel des Fruits et Légumes). The objective of this unit is to bring together the main players in research on post-harvest quality and to promote links between research centres and technical centres in order to maintain a significant national production of quality for consumers.

Why did you choose to work in academic research?

I chose to work in the research world to continue learning and to try to better understand the phenomena observed. The possibility of exploring a subject in detail and with a certain amount of freedom is an asset of the academic world. Teaching is also part of this choice. Every new year, I enjoy meeting new students. Passing on my knowledge to them and accompanying them throughout their course allows me to remain in a perpetual dynamic!

What advice would you give to students who want to do research?

I will use a well-known phrase in Avignon: "Don't wait for the future, do it"! Don't wait for thesis offers to be published, but go and see the researchers, visit the labs and talk about your desire to do a thesis in order to build your own project.

Which object or image from your research best illustrates you?

The first photo is of my last international conference in Bali. Research is also about meeting people from all over the world, making new friendships in distant countries that last. The second photo shows the last day of theUMT IQUAR in Avignon and shows the importance of networking and collaboration in our work.