Chair in Ecological Civil Engineering

MISSION AND AMBITIONS

The aim of the Ecological Civil Engineering Chair is to create a scientific, technological and partnership dynamic that will make it possible to work towards integrating biodiversity and the natural environment into construction and development projects, and to structure a sector that aims to be a bridge between the worlds of ecological engineering and civil engineering, around a number of key challenges:

Integrating ecological issues into civil engineering approaches
 
Designing future developments in a way that respects the functioning of ecosystems and conserves soil resources
 
Restore ecosystems and degraded soils, and remove obsolete structures, using nature-based solutions to help regions adapt to the effects of climate change.
 
Protect and safeguard biodiversity and the multitude of ecosystem services it provides.

OBJECTIVES AND WORK

Working for and with the living world, ecological civil engineering requires specific skills from all those involved.

Education: respond to the need to accelerate the skills development of those involved in the design and construction phases (construction companies and prime contractors in particular) in the field of ecological civil engineering, with the creation of training programs dedicated to the themes of ecological civil engineering (courses, educational projects), with the aim of ensuring the link between project design, proper execution of the work and the achievement of the targeted ecological objectives.
 
Research and innovation: set up and fund collaborative research and thesis programs to meet the needs of the industry (biodiversity, water cycle, living zones, soil functionality, materials, eco-design, resource efficiency, carbon neutrality, heat islands).
 
Attractiveness of the sector: to enhance the attractiveness of the sector's trades and products through joint communication initiatives and events, demonstrators and innovative equipment for teaching and applied research.