During the second half of 2024, the INRAE team, in collaboration with the PP UGA, organized a series of 4 conference-debates, held in different locations in the Chartreuse area, open to the general public and with the aim of bringing knowledge to a wider audience. The impulse of these collective events arose when the diagnosis of the resort and the region was presented in a public meeting in January 2024. Participants (residents, elected representatives, economic actors, associations) expressed a need for more in-depth knowledge on specific topics related to climate change: forestry, water and water management, agriculture and biodiversity. Inrae therefore called on researchers and experts to take stock of scientific knowledge on a given topic, to highlight the issues in the Chartreuse region and to engage in debate with participants.
The first conference, on July 2nd, addressed the issue of forests: the impact of different climate scenarios on the distribution of forest species, phytosanitary risks and natural hazards. Frédéric Berger (forestry engineer at INRAE Grenoble’s Ecosystems and Societies in Mountains Laboratory) presented scenarios of species evolution and resilience, with, for example, a clear reduction in Epicea and Douglas fir in the Chartreuse massif by 2050, while Robinier faux-acacia will be more resiliant and therefore persistent.
The second conference, on September 23rd, addressed the challenges for farming and pastoralism in the Chartreuse region in response to climate change. Emilie Crouzat, Claire Deleglise (researchers at INRAE Grenoble’s Ecosystems and Societies in Mountains Laboratory) and Laurent Fillion (in charge of agriculture at the Chartreuse Regional Natural Park and Territorial Advisor at the Isère Chamber of Agriculture) presented the Alpine pasture monitoring and observation network (Alpage Sentinelles, see https://za-alpes.osug.fr/Alpages-Sentinelles). They drew a rather positive assessment of the adaptation of mountain agro-pastoral systems, which show the capacity to adapt in terms of farm organization and the complementarity of areas used. They also demonstrated the development of indicators of the climatic vulnerability of agropastoral systems, which are genuine decision-making aids in a changing context.
In the third conference dedicated to water resources on November 5th, Juliette Blanchet (researcher at the Institut des Géosciences de l’Environnement (IGE), Fabien Hoblea (lecturer/researcher at EDYTEM-Université Savoie-Mont-Blanc) and Arnaud Buchs (lecturer/researcher at PACTE-Université Grenoble Alpes and at the PACTE Laboratory) highlighted climate scenarios around water, at both national and local levels. They also highlighted the role played by the Chartreuse Regional Nature Park in the management of water resources and in the processes of dialogue that are essential when water resources are to be managed wisely.
The fourth and final “Climate, biodiversity, humanity: what kind of world are we living in?” conference, held on December 9th, was an opportunity for Gilles Escarguel, (Deputy Director LEHNA (Laboratoire d’Ecologie des Hydrosystèmes Naturels et Anthropisés, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1) and Bastien Moisan (Chargé de mission Biodiversité du Parc Naturel Régional de Chartreuse) to outline the current collapse of biodiversity, in particular in mountains which are biodiversity’s ‘hot spots’, and its correlation with climate change. Deforestation, overexploitation, pollution, invasive species and diseases, as well as ongoing global warming (+1.5°C in France since 1900), intensifying droughts, storms and rising temperatures, since 1900, 69 mammal species have disappeared, and 50% of the remaining species have seen their numbers drop by more than 60%, with harmful consequences for mankind (destabilization of ecosystems, impact on agriculture and health, and increased risk of pandemics).
Held in the evenings, these four conferences attracted an average of 50 participants each time. They were evidence of TranStat’s role in experimenting with new ways of producing and sharing knowledge about climate impact, adaptation and transition. More generally, this series of conferences underlined the interest shown by local residents and stakeholders in deepening their knowledge and exchanging views on various climate change-related topics, drawing in the debate on their personal experience or their involvement in the area. It also demonstrated the relevance of scientific mediation to support the emergence of a territorial transition process.
