Dr. Christian Huyghe Le Chene RD 150 CS80006 France Webpage: www.inra.fr |
In today’s complex climatic, demographic and energy context, agricultural research must deal with major issues onvarious scales. Preparing worldwide food availability and security by 2050, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, and promoting alternative agricultural and forestry practices that can respond to non-reversible climate change are challenges the entire world must face. Some of the many underlying concerns that must be tackled include understanding individual behavior on a regional or market level; studying the relationships between plant, animal and human health; researching new ways of producing energy and materials from agricultural sources; and limiting overall environmental impacts. To deal with these issues, the French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA) produces scientific knowledge and works for economic and social innovation in the areas of food, agriculture and the environment. INRA has established partnerships with a wide range of players on varying levels – academic, economic, associative and regional – all around the world through its capacity for leadership, coordination, communication and knowledge transfer. All play a part in defining the directions of the Institute. These alliances make INRA an organization that conducts targeted research in a variety of scientific disciplines: life sciences make up the majority of the Institute’s work (68% of INRA’s scientific expertise), followed by environmental sciences and processes (12%), ecological engineering, ecotechnologies and biotechnologies (8%), and finally economic and social sciences (8%) and digital sciences (4%).