Olivier Sartenaer's team: Doan Vu Duc, Maxime Hilbert, Charly Mobers, Olivier Sartenaer, Louis Halflants, Andrea Roselli, Gauvain Leconte-Chevillard, Eve-Aline Dubois.

"Several contingent factors enabled the creation of SPiN: the absence of a research structure specifically dedicated to these themes and the almost simultaneous arrival of four young philosophers of science. It's a bit like an alignment of the planets", explains Olivier Sartenaer.

At his side are Juliette Ferry-Danini (Faculty of Computer Science), Thibaut De Meyer (Faculty of Philosophy and Letters) and Gaëlle Pontarotti (Faculty of Science), who form the core of SPiN.

SPiN is part of a research dynamic committed to the heart of contemporary debates.

SPiN researchers explore a wide range of themes, against a backdrop of questioning our relationship to scientific knowledge. These include:

• the relationship between science and pseudoscience;
• reductionism in science;
• genetic determinism and heredity;
• medical ethics and public health (vaccinations, pandemics);
• ethology,
• perspectivism.

This research is carried out by an interdisciplinary team of teacher-researchers, doctoral students and post-docs from the various faculties of UNamur.

SPiN organizes weekly seminars devoted to current research in philosophy of science, as well as seminars linked to more specific themes: health, life sciences, cosmology and theories of emergence and reductionism in the natural sciences.

But SPiN is not limited to the academic sphere: the center intends to take these issues outside the university walls, through events and activities accessible to all. An inaugural event is already planned for next spring on a topical theme: mistrust in science. More info to come!

Democracy is by no means a fixed concept. It is the subject of debate, especially today. Louis Carré, Director of the Department of Philosophy and member of the Espace philosophique de Namur (Institut ESPHIN), proposes a three-dimensional definition: a political regime, a state of law and a way of forming society.

"Etymologically, democracy is a political regime that consists in giving power to the people," he reminds us. "Our Western democracies today are based on the idea that the people are sovereign, without governing directly. From this arises a tension between ideal democracy and real democracy."Vincent Jacquet, professor in the Department of Social, Political and Communication Sciences and president of the Transitions Institute supports the point: "Democracy is an ideal of citizen self-government, but it is in tension with more centralizing, authoritarian logics. [...] Our political systems are crisscrossed by these different tensions, with both authoritarian logics increasingly present, including in our own country, and logics of participation that are sometimes accompanied by a great deal of hope and disappointment too."

The second pillar according to Louis Carré: the rule of law. Democracy guarantees the fundamental rights of all citizens through the constitution. But here again, beware of paradoxes: "One could indeed imagine laws passed by a majority of representatives or by a referendum, but which contravene fundamental rights" the philosopher stresses. Democracy cannot therefore be summed up by the majority principle alone.

Finally, democracy is also a way of forming society. It is based on real pluralism: diversity of opinions, beliefs and values. "This presupposes the existence of a relatively autonomous public space in the face of the power in place, which at times challenges the decisions taken by the governments that have been elected,"insists Louis Carré.

In this context, what is the university's responsibility? Louis Carré begins by reminding us of a simple fact: a large proportion of our elected representatives have passed through university benches. But its teaching mission doesn't stop there. "It's about training enlightened citizens, not just rulers. Universities must offer quality higher education, open to as many people as possible", he asserts.

"Democracy does indeed presuppose citizens capable of debating, reflecting, problematizing issues", adds Sephora Boucenna, Dean of the Faculty of Education and Training Sciences and member of UNamur's Institut de Recherches en Didactiques et Éducation (IRDENA). It's all about training reflective minds, capable of questioning their times.

Universities also train those who, tomorrow, will educate future generations: teachers. And here again, democracy is at stake.

In addition to teaching, universities also have a research and social service mission. It produces knowledge that can enlighten public policy, but also question it. This critical function presupposes real independence from politics. "To analyze democratic mechanisms with lucidity, including those that governments put in place, the university must retain its freedom of research and speech," insists Vincent Jacquet.

This critical function of the university presupposes strong independence. In Belgium, however, university funding is largely a matter for the political authorities. "Celane must not mean being placed under tutelage", warns Louis Carré. "Conducting critical research that doesn't satisfy short-term sponsors requires independence, including in terms of resources. We need a large number of researchers who can analyze different types of dynamics. The more we cut research funding, as is the case today, the fewer researchers we'll have and therefore the less capacity for independent analysis and diversity of perspectives, insists Vincent Jacquet.

The "Université en colère" movement, recently launched within the universities of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, intends to denounce the effects of definancement. Its representatives are calling for "guarantee the conditions for the development of an open, independent, quality university accessible to the greatest number. Faced with the social, economic and political challenges of our time, and because other choices for society, and therefore budgets, are possible, it is more essential than ever to strengthen the institutions and players at the heart of knowledge production."

Democracy is therefore not limited to elections or institutions. It is based on collective vigilance, carried by citizens, knowledge... and the places where this knowledge is built. In this respect, universities are an essential link in the chain of democratic vitality. Provided it remains independent, accessible and open to society.

"Democracy is not just a matter of institutions. It's about citizens who bring it to life and organize themselves to assert their perspectives at different times", insists Vincent Jacquet. A clear invitation not to remain a spectator, but to participate, with lucidity and exigency, in the construction of a common democratic future.

Whether it concerns linguistics, economics, politics, sustainable development, law, history, educational sciences, literature or translation, research in the humanities and social sciences is as eclectic as it is rich and essential for tackling society's challenges. Of UNamur's eleven research institutes, seven are directly involved in SHS research. While there is a high degree of complementarity in these areas of research, better pooling of resources, sharing and easier access to certain services, resources and support will help to sustain and strengthen the excellence of SHS research at UNamur. It is with this in mind that the SHS impulse platform has just been created.

• Axis 1 - Support for the acquisition of databases, documentary resources and software
• Axis 2 - Subsidy for cutting-edge training in the use of specialized methods
• Axis 3 - Funding access to the SMCS "Support en Méthodologie et Calcul Statistique" platform at UCLouvain, thanks to an inter-university partnership.
• Axis 4 - Setting up an SHS space, containing a laboratory for running experiments and shared work tools promoting exchanges between researchers.

This initiative, launched in January 2025, addresses the specific challenges faced by SHS researchers. The long-term aim is to sustain and expand the services. "We will also hire a researcher expert in methodological analysis in SHS who will be able to inform innovative methodologies and frame the methodological design of research projects," emphasizes Sandrine Biémar, vice-dean of UNamur's Faculty of Education and Training Sciences, a member of the IRDENA institute and the SHS Impulse management committee. "The wish is also to support networking between SHS researchers at UNamur and to be a lever for setting up interdisciplinary projects," adds Sandrine Biémar.

The platform's management team is made up of representatives of the university's various SHS institutes, and ensures efficient management of resources. The platform's impact will be assessed during its initial phase (2025-2027), enabling strategies for its sustainability and development to be defined.

Ten members of UNamur's academic and scientific staff, accompanied by the International Relations Department and the NGO FUCID, the University Forum for International Development Cooperation, took part in an exploratory mission co-organized with UCAD. The mission was part of the university's drive to strengthen partnerships with the South, by promoting exchanges, raising researchers' awareness of the issues facing the global South, and helping new projects to emerge.

For a week, several activities were organized to enable members of the delegation to discover the Senegalese university: a visit to UCAD and discovery of its issues, exchanges around the concept of "One Health", meetings between researchers, a field visit and a closing moment in the presence of institutional partners.

Catherine Linard, professor at the Faculty of Sciences, was part of the Namur delegation "Going on site and exchanging with our Senegalese colleagues is very important. It allows us to discover the wealth of their research, in fields often directly connected to realities on the ground," she explains.

Since 2015, Catherine Linard has been collaborating with UCAD, notably as part of a research and development project supported by ARES. "From this initial collaboration a number of dynamics were born. Several Senegalese PhD students have come to Belgium to pursue their research. And conversely, one of my Belgian PhD students, Camille Morlighem, who is working on the creation of malaria risk maps in Senegal, has been able to benefit from mobility grants for research stays at UCAD. We've also established teaching exchanges: I went to Dakar to give a week's training to PhD students in geography, and a fellow health geographer, Aminata Niang Diène, comes to Belgium every year to speak in one of my master's courses," continues the professor.

The delegation brought together profiles from several UNamur faculties and departments:

• Francesca Cecchet, Faculty of Science, President of the NISM (Namur Institute of Structured Matter) Research Institute and member of the (NaRILIS Namur Research Institute for Life Sciences)
• Laurent Houssiau, Faculty of Science and member of the NISM (Namur Institute of Structured Matter) Research Institute
• Charles Nicaise, Faculty of Medicine and President of the NaRILIS Research Institute (Namur Research Institute for Life Sciences)
• Denis Saint-Amand, Faculty of Philosophy and Letters and member of the NaLTT Research Institute (Namur Institute of Language, Text and Transmediality)
• Laurent Ravez, Faculties of Medicine and Science and member of the NaRILiS (Namur Research Institute for Life Sciences) and EsPhiN (Espace Philosophique de Namur)
• Anne Vermeyen, member of the Cellule bien-être animal
• Flora Musuamba, Faculty of Medicine and member of the NaRILIS Research Institute (Namur Research Institute for Life Sciences)
• Florence Georges, Faculty of Law and member of the NaDI (Namur Digital Institute)
• Nathanaël Laurent, Faculty of Science and member of the EsPhiN (Espace Philosophique de Namur)
• Catherine Linard, Faculty of Science and member of the NaRILIS (Namur Research Institute for Life Sciences) and ILEE (Institute of Life-Earth-Environment)
• Rita Rixen, Director of FUCID, the University Forum for International Development Cooperation
• Amélie Schnock, member of the International Relations Department