Regional Projects

Title: Vaccination at the Intersection of Health, the Humanities and Social Sciences, and Evolutionary Biology

Project Leader: Sylvain GANDON

UMR: CEFE

The Vaxinter projectexamines how to integrate different disciplines to address the questions raised by vaccination at the intersection of science and society. This project involves two researchers in the humanities and social sciences to foster dialogue between the biomedical sciences and the humanities and social sciences. A study will be conducted in experimental economics to explore the impact of media coverage and vaccination on healthcare workers. Research will be carried out in communication sciences to strengthen the ties between science and the public.

Title: Infectious Risks in Urban Areas: Health Ecology Applied to Interactions Between Nutrias and Humans.

Acronym: RIVIERE

Project Leader: Olivier GIMENEZ

UMR: CEFE

The Rivière project, titled “Infectious Risks in Urban Areas: Applied Health Ecology of Interactions Between Nutrias and Humans,” studies human-nutria interactions in the Lez River basin and focuses on the health risks associated with leptospirosis, a zoonotic disease transmitted by these rodents. The project employs an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approach to assess these risks.

Title: Citizen Engagement and Exposure to Tick-Borne Risks in Occitanie

Acronym : MobiTiques

Organizers and partners: Association Le Graine, Gilles Sarter, and Mariline Poupaud

The Interfaces team organized, hosted, and facilitated five 3-hour workshops bringing together researchers in tick ecology (Vectopôle Sud), researchers in the humanities and social sciences (education, social psychology), representatives from the ARS (vector control), associations (CTIQUE, Graine Occitanie), and a representative of livestock farmers (director of the Groupement de Défense Sanitaire Occitanie). This pilot project is aligned with the goals of Occitanie’s Regional Health and Environment Plan 4.

This incubation process led to an action plan for 2025, spearheaded by the environmental education association Le Graine. This project aims to develop and implement educational initiatives designed to increase citizen engagement with tick-related risks in their local communities, as well as to test one or more scientific research questions in the field of sociology. The goal is to foster growing citizen engagement while scientifically measuring and evaluating the impact of public awareness campaigns on behavioral changes through a dedicated research protocol.

Title: Aude Institute for Environmental Health and Eco-Citizenship

Acronym : IECSEA

Organizers and partners: Christelle Gramaglia and Viviane Thivent

The Eco-Citizen Institute for Pollution Monitoring in the Aude received support from ExposUM in 2024. This institute was inspired by the Ecocitoyen Institute for Pollution Research in Fos-sur-Mer, which, since the 2010s, has brought together academics and local residents who work together to conduct research addressing questions about the long-term consequences of rapid industrialization that began in the late 1960s and has been regularly reignited. These institutes promote the integration of different fields of knowledge—particularly in the area of environmental health—and serve as regional initiatives that can facilitate the implementation of preventive measures in environmental health, as part of a broader transformation of regional dynamics.

Social science training courses have been offered to volunteers in the Aude department. The courses areavailable online.

A festival was held in November 2024 to help residents of the Aude region learn about the critical environmental health issues in the area in a fun and engaging way. The festival brought together experts, activists, scientists, and artists to offer a rich and informative experience.