The research laboratories engaged actively in understanding the health crisis. Crises often correspond to a period in which society evolves at a very fast pace. It is important to respond rapidly to the problems raised by the crisis, but also to understand the social changes taking place.
Some examples of research carried out on the crisis are presented here.
The first lockdown demonstrated how primordial certain activities are for the life of the country, such as those linked to transport and logistics. In late March, the Logistics City chair of Université Gustave Eiffel (research in urban logistics), launched an initiative to study the impact and development of this sector during the lockdown weeks.
Corine Pelluchon, Professor of Political Philosophy and Applied Ethics, evokes her study themes and latest publications, seen through the prism of the health and environmental crisis.
The Institute of Management Research (IRG) is taking part in the ANR COVID-IN-UNI project, ‘Crisis management in Universities: Observation of French Universities during the COVID-19 Pandemic’, alongside the Centre for the Sociology of Organisations (CSO), a joint research unit affiliated with Sciences Po and the CNRS. This project forms part of a body of studies on the way organisations succeed or fail to anticipate and manage crises. Whether examining organisations at risk in the high-technology sectors, or analysing the organisations responsible for managing crises, all these studies highlight the effectiveness of ‘weakly linked systems’ in dealing with the crisis. What about organisations such as universities, which are characterised by weak functional inter-dependencies and flexible technologies? This research-action will provide new insight through its observation of French universities during the pandemic.
How were street-level areas occupied during lockdown and how did it affect mobility? Quieter neighbourhoods, new uses for building courtyards, more cyclists and joggers in the streets, etc. The lockdown led to a change in use of city streets.
The Smart Lab LABILITY is an ephemeral laboratory composed of 9 young researchers involved in an innovative programme to respond to resilience issues in the Île-de-France region in the wake of the health crisis. Two focal points are being explored: the threats and opportunities related to the development of teleworking, and the methods for a resilient management of transport networks. LABILITY was the winning application in the Smart Lab Île-de-France call for projects.
The Hannah Arendt interdisciplinary laboratory for political studies (LIPHA), a founding member of the Salpêtrière School of Ethics, contributed to the creation of a website for ethical reflection. The website, Faire face, is up dated regularly.
Overview of the initiatives led by units, laboratories and campuses of Université Gustave Eiffel in support of medical staff and hospitals.
Joint interview with two female scientists from Université Gustave Eiffel, appointed to membership of the IUF in 2020 for 5 years.
Romain Menini was awarded the 2020 CNRS bronze medal for his work on Rabelais, the Reception of Antiquity in the Renaissance and humanist philology.
Joint interview with Pierre-François Tissot, co-founder of the start-up In&motion, and Pierre-Jean Anoux, director of the LBA.