- This event has passed.
Best case study of an environmental controversy from the course Description of controversies
The Transition Institute 1.5 launches its first edition of the TTI.5 Environmental Controversy Award. The prize will be awarded to the best case study of a controversy dealing with an environmental topic, selected among the papers written by students of the civil engineering program of Mines Paris–PSL. These controversy studies are carried out as part of the course Description of Controversies supervised by Madeleine Akrich, sociologist and Research Director at the Center for the Sociology of Innovation (CSI).
The award will be granted to the best project, based on the vote of the public, after the presentation of the 5 nominated projects during the 1st TTI.5 Forum “Security issues related to climate change”. The event is on May 31st, 2023 at the Maison de l’Océan, 195 Rue Saint-Jacques, Paris 75005. The award will be presented by Matthieu Mazière, Director of the Civil Engineering Education Program at Mines Paris-PSL.
Limited Seats, registration to 1st TTI.5 Forum is required here. Discover the full program.
Controversy projects at Mines Paris – PSL
The course Description of Controversies is part of the curriculum for third-year students in the Civil Engineering program at Mines Paris-PSL. This course aims to educate engineering students about the evolution of their professional and civic context. The aim is to introduce them to the uncertain world of scientific and technical research by describing an object: a socio-technical controversy.
The topics proposed to the students have the following characteristics: an ongoing controversy, on a targeted subject (for example: not “GMOs” but “the problems raised by the authorization of the cultivation of a transgenic potato plant which is controversial in a specific period and in a specific territory”), involving a diversity of protagonists (scientists, experts, jurists, institutions, members of parliament, associations, etc.), for which various sources of information are available (general press, scientific press, professional press, discussion forums, blogs, websites, parliamentary reports, etc.).
The controversy study consists in a case study. A group of students follows a controversy in real time to discover its complexity and singularity. A team of sociologists specializing in the analysis of science and technology supervise the students in the development of a pragmatic and argued empirical point of view.
The 5 projects nominated for the TTI.5 Environmental Controversy Award
Of the controversy study projects dealing with environmental issues, the five projects with the highest rated papers, reflecting depth of analysis, are:
« Betteraves, oiseaux et néonicotinoïdes » [Beets, birds and neonicotinoids] by Sylvain Caillaud, Arsène Ferrière, Grégoire Michel, Léopold Moeneclaey, Aymeric Plessier, Joseph Redaud, Victoire Rossignol and Maud Roux-Salembien
« La réforme de l’assurance des récoltes en France. Quels enjeux et débats autour de la loi du 22 mars 2022 ? » [The reform of crop insurance in France. What are the issues and debates surrounding the March 22, 2022 law?] by Damien Caperaa, Jean Catry, Jean Baptiste Flieller, Pierre Frode, Loïc Fouquet, Corentin Hennion, Thomas Labro and Lucille Lacoste
« Le déclin des insectes, une réalité inquiétante ? » [The decline of insects, a concerning reality?] by Jorge Luis Ardila Villabona, Jeremy Costanzo, Candice Courbière, Antoine Gauchot, Jeanne-Marie Hays, Sophie Laperrouze, Stephen Piet and Léo Simplet
« L’éolien en mer : atout essentiel de la transition énergétique ou nuisance inutile ? » [Offshore wind power: an essential asset for the energy transition or an unnecessary nuisance?] by Matthias Avice, Cynthia Balech, Maëlle Baronnet, Myrtille David, Shuyu Ding, Xinbei Jang, Louis Pont and Matthieu Suire
« L’exploitation minière sous-marine, une nécessité pour la transition ou un désastre écologique à venir ? » [Undersea mining, a necessity for transition or an ecological disaster in the making?] by Youmna Bahout, Timothée Blondel, Théophile Candela, Alice Dagicour, Quentin Guitet, Marine Papet, Maïlys Quilhot and Léa Trin
Join us on May 31st for the award ceremony
