Birth of a Stakeholder Committee at the Ifremer

by Ifremer, May 2021

From next September, Ifremer (Institut Français de Recherche pour l’Exploitation de la MER) will set up a new Stakeholder Committee (CPP). The objective is to open the institution to a society in search of science by inviting companies, maritime sector players, associations, NGOs, citizens and local authorities to join the governance of the institute. Applications remain open until 27 June 2021!

The need for collective and effective action

The ocean is our common property.
We are sharing it.
But we also have a responsibility to take care of it because our life on earth depends on its good health. It is also our duty as humans to pass it on in good condition to future generations..

Yet, for several years now, marine scientists have been alerting us to the deteriorating health of our seas and oceans, which are subject to strong anthropic pressure and the devastating consequences of the disruption of the ocean-climate machine.

There is therefore an urgent need to multiply and accelerate the effectiveness of education and awareness-raising actions for the preservation of the oceans. We should be pleased to see scientific knowledge of the marine environment progressing by leaps and bounds, driven by the digital and technological revolutions of recent decades. This knowledge can be the basis of innovative tools for disseminating and communicating marine sciences, provided that it is shared with as many people as possible. The link of trust between science and society must be re-established to enable collective and effective action.

An institutional opening to a society in search of science

Society as a whole is in search of science and knowledge. Many members of civil society are already actively involved in protecting the ocean, whether through their professional activities or their leisure time.

In this context and to better anticipate and respond to society’s expectations regarding marine sciences, Ifremer wishes to open its doors to actors involved in the maritime world through their profession or their associative or civic commitment, by inviting them to join the governance of the institute through its Stakeholder Committee (CPP). Within this new body, the Institute wants to give a voice to all actors of the civil society.

“On the eve of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Sciences for Sustainable Development (2021-2030), I would like Ifremer, as a reference institute in ocean sciences, to be the guarantor of a beautiful, useful and shared science,” says François Houllier, Ifremer’s CEO. Research is subject to specific ethical standards, but it must be open to society, beyond just the initiated, especially on a subject such as the ocean, a common good for which humanity has a shared responsibility.”

Companies, employees and craftsmen of the maritime sector, associations and NGOs, citizens and communities, you can apply before 27 June 2021!