My Thesis in 180 Seconds · UNamur Final 2026
MT180 is much more than a competition: it is a real exercise in popularization that highlights the creativity, commitment, and ingenuity of young researchers. With humor, simplicity, or emotion, each participant recounts their research, its challenges, and their discoveries, in order to reveal science in a different light.Are you curious to see how sometimes highly specialized theses can become captivating stories in just a few minutes? Would you like to encourage the Namur candidates who will be taking to the stage?Save the date for Friday, March 27, 2026, and come support them!Practical information (schedule, location, registration details) will be announced shortly. Stay tuned: the event promises to be an inspiring evening that is accessible to all.
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Lucas Chancel: What kind of ecological transition for what kind of society?
Description
Why is the history of energy so closely linked to that of social inequality? How can we frame debates on energy transition in light of conflicts over wealth distribution?For thousands of years, the use of energy has shaped human societies, structuring their hierarchies and power relations. Its control is a vehicle for emancipation as much as it is a tool of domination. Ownership of energy resources and infrastructure is a battleground for social, political, and geostrategic struggles. Depending on who owns energy, radically different societal choices can arise.But how has the link between energy and inequality developed since prehistoric times? By combining the results of research in economic history, archaeology, and climate science, Lucas Chancel seeks to show how, over the long term, the technical and political frameworks that determine energy use are linked to the distribution of wealth among individuals, social groups, and nations.The history of energy cannot be reduced to its technical dimension, nor to the sum of past political choices. It opens up a diversity of possible futures, where the decoupling of energy consumption, material resources, and prosperity is inseparable from the question of social justice.This book advocates for an ecological transition based on a collective reappropriation of energy. Drawing on experiences of wealth redistribution from the past century, it outlines an alternative to ecological disaster and extreme inequality through the development of new forms of public and participatory ownership in the 21st century.
Biography
Lucas Chancel is a professor at Sciences Po Paris, at the Center for Research on Social Inequality, and co-director of the Laboratory on Global Inequality at the Paris School of Economics. He has taught at Harvard University in the United States.
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Exploring SEM & TEM: From Fundamentals to Applications
This event will provide students, researchers, and industry representatives with an opportunity to explore the evolution of electron microscopy, deepen their understanding of advanced analysis techniques, and participate in live demonstrations in a real research environment.Programme09:00 – 09:30 Welcome Reception with coffee and pastries09:30 – 09:45 Opening & Introduction of the Day10:30 – 11:30 Lecture with Emanuel Katzmann - Presentation: TEM / CRYO TEM.11:30 – 12:30 Lecture with Yamaguchi-san - Presentation: SEM imaging, CP and FIB sample prep.12:30 – 13:30 Lunch Break13:30 – 14:30 Lecture with Rick Verberne - Presentation: Analytical methods in electron microscopy - (EDS, windowless EDS, WDS, SXES, EBSD)14:30 – 14:45 Discover electron microscopy platform - General introduction before guided lab tour with J.-F. Colomer14:45 – 16:45 Hands-on Session - JEOL JCM-7000 Benchtop SEM - Discover how accessible and intuitive high-quality SEM imaging can be.During this session we will demonstrate:Suitable sample types and simple preparation guidelinesHow to choose the optimal observation mode (SE, BSE, low vacuum, etc.)Practical use of the instrument’s detectors and imaging featuresLive sample analysis — feel free to bring your own samples - Please inform us in advance which samples you plan to bring.Discussions, exchange ideas and NetworkingGuided Tour of the Microscopes and Laboratories16:45 – 17:15 Closing Sessions Q&A, drinks and snacks.The event offers 1 ECTS credit to PhD students and a certificate of participation upon request.
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Run in the Woods 2026
RUN IN THE WOODS – 2026 EDITION
On Saturday, March 28, 2026, we're doing it again with a new edition of Run in the Woods!PLEASE NOTE: this year, the starting point has changed ➜ we will no longer be starting from the lodge at No. 73, but from the villa at No. 75 on Route d'Andenne (right next door).Same street, same atmosphere... but a new official starting point!DISTANCES850 m for children – €2 (€3 on site) – Start at 9:45 a.m.8.5 km – €7 (€9 on site) – Start 11:30 a.m.14 km – €9 (€12 on site) – Departure at 11:00 a.m.28 km – €12 (€15 on site) – Start 10:00 a.m.ELEVATION GAINS:850 m: +11 m8.5 km: +240 m14 km: +400 m28 km: +800 mON SITERegistration from 9 a.m.Awards ceremony at 1:30 p.m.Canicross permittedCheff Burger (free burgers for participating UNamur staff and students)Inflatable castle with supervisionBar (soft drinks, lagers, specialty beers) NEW STARTINGADDRESS Villa Haugimont – Route d’Andenne 75 - 5340 Faulx-les-Tombes Advance sales & information: www.otop.be/runinthewoods Contact: Maxime Scavée - 0499231908 - maxime.scavee@unamur.be
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Screening of the film "Let the song begin" by Raphaël Volon
This film is a vibrant tribute to all those Raphaël Volon met during his stays in this colorful country. Their commitment, generosity, and courage had a profound impact on the director's career.A journey marked by commitment and rich in emotions to be shared.
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Romain Gary: from humanism to ecology
As part of its seminar, Centre Arcadie will be pleased to welcome Igor Krtolica for a session devoted to his book Romain Gary. De l'humanisme à l'écologie, Gallimard, 2025.Maître de conférences en philosophie à l'Université de Picardie Jules-Verne, junior member of the Institut universitaire de France, Igor Krtolica is the author (in addition to the work to be discussed) of Gilles Deleuze (PUF, coll. "Que sais-je? ", 2015), of Gilles Deleuze et Félix Guattari : Une philosophie des devenirs-révolutionnaires(Éditions Amsterdam, 2024) and of a commentary on an extract from Romain Gary's Les Racines du ciel entitled Antifascism, humanism and ecology (PUF, coll. "Classiques de l'écologie", 2025).After a presentation of the work, Igor Krtolica will be interviewed by Jean-Baptiste Vuillerod and Thibault De Meyer.Free admission. All welcome.Book presentation 1956: the Prix Goncourt is awarded to Racines du ciel, a novel whose hero, Morel, fights against the extermination of elephants in an Africa struggling for independence. Romain Gary described it as the first ecological novel. Ecology enabled him to resolve the unbearable political contradiction in which the post-war West finds itself: the impossibility of believing in man, the impossibility of giving up believing in man. How can we continue to give meaning to the idea of civilization? If we are to maintain the humanist ideal, we need to wage a battle in which man is no longer at the center. Such is the paradox explored here. This literary and philosophical essay reveals the complexity of Romain Gary's thought, his constant irony and humor, his contradictions, his rejection of dogmatism. And its modernity: ahead of his time, the novelist anticipated the controversies driving contemporary ecological thinking, where the human being is only a part of nature, but where nature itself becomes inseparable from history, society and politics. This previously unpublished synthesis of Romain Gary's work is an original analysis of the tension between humanist commitment and ecological cause..
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Zones: land, gender and science fiction
As part of its seminar, Centre Arcadie will be pleased to welcome Jeanne Etelain for a session devoted to her book Zones. Terre, sexes et science-fiction, Flammarion, 2025.Jeanne Etelain, PhD from New York University and Université Paris-Nanterre, teaches philosophy and contemporary theory at the École supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Montpellier.After a presentation of the book, Igor Krtolica will be interviewed by Jean-Baptiste Vuillerod and Thibault De Meyer.After a presentation of the book, Jeanne Etelain will be interviewed by Ludovic Dubois, Nathalie Grandjean and Sébastien Laoureux.Free admission. Welcome to all.Book presentation Zone: this ubiquitous term nevertheless remains elusive. In a stunning conceptual investigation at the crossroads of geography, psychoanalysis and science fiction, Jeanne Etelain explores how "zone" has become central to understanding space, in the contemporary context of a crisis in the planet's conditions of habitability. The zone thus emerges as a spatial modality that defies habitual categories, confronting us with space's power to act, whether it's nature, the Earth or the body.
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Hollywood vs Trump 2.0: The empire strikes back?
Conference organized by Centre Arcadie and the Department of Philosophy as part of the "Philosophie du cinéma" course and the "Cultures et pensées cinématographiques" Specialization Master's degree.Dork Zabunyan is Professor of Film Studies at Université Paris 8 Vincennes-Saint-Denis. His publications include Les Cinémas de Gilles Deleuze (Bayard, 2011), L'Insistance des luttes - Images, soulèvements, contre-révolutions (De l'incidence éditeur, 2016), Foucault va au cinéma (Bayard, 2011) with Patrice Maniglier, Jacques Rancière et le monde des images(Mimesis, 2023).In 2020 he published Fictions of Trump. Puissances des images et exercices du pouvoir(Le point du jour). In this conference, the aim will be to take up this work in the context of Trump's second term.Presentation of the workDonald Trump's body is almost everywhere, outside us, on our screens, caught up in information channels that disseminate still and moving images of him. He is also present within us, more or less floating, in the minds of his detractors and supporters alike. The 45th President of the United States of America is not, however, the book's only subject. Based on his countless audiovisual representations, both before and after his election, the aim here is to explore the function of images in the exercise of power today, the stories they tell and the discourses they condition. Two questions run through this essay: what is this strange love of power, conveyed by images of an authoritarian leader, to which individuals who have no interest in voting for him adhere? What filmic counter-fires, real or imagined, are likely to mobilize the powers of images to evade this power, or even to thwart it?
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Theoretical frameworks in science and mathematics didactics
Conceptual field theory and didactic situation theory
Two complementary theories for thinking about and organizing mathematical learningIn the first part of this talk, I'll propose an introductory situation in literal arithmetic (Barallobres & Giroux, 2008) that will enable me to introduce and illustrate the main concepts and methodological tools of the theory of didactic situations developed by Guy Brousseau (Brousseau, 1997; Bessot, 2024). In the second part, I will give a brief presentation of Gérard Vergnaud's theory of conceptual fields (Vergnaud, 1990; Durand-Guerrier and Saby, 2023), then show how this theory helps to shed further light on the introductory situation.The contributions of the anthropological theory of didactics The Anthropological Theory of Didactics (TAD, Chevallard, 2001) aims to explain why and how a given knowledge lives in a certain institution, and/or is transformed as it passes from one institution to another. This perspective and some of its evolutions will be presented and illustrated in this talk.Students' activities and teachers' practices in the mathematics classroom: analysis methodology with Activity TheoryIn this talk, we will present the founding assumptions of the Activity Theory framework adapted to the Didactics of Mathematics (TADM, Vandebrouck, 2008), showing how this theory gives importance to fine-grained analyses of mathematical knowledge to appreciate classroom developments. We will then exemplify some of these aspects on the teaching of limits at university (Bridoux and Grenier-Boley, 2024).BibliographyBarallobres, G., & Giroux, J. (2008). Environmental deficiencies and regulations in validation situations. N. In Berdnaz, & C. Mary (Eds). L'enseignement des mathématiques face aux défis de l'école et des communautés. Actes du colloque EMF 2006 (CD-ROM). Éditions du CRP https://emf.unige.ch/application/files/1414/5390/4857/EMF2006_GT8_Barallobres.pdfBessot, A. (2003). An introduction to the theory of didactic situations. Cahiers du laboratoire Leibniz, 91. hal-00078794Bridoux, S., & Grenier-Boley, N. (2024). What teaching practices should be used to introduce the limits of functions in the first year of university? A case study. In A. González-Martín, G. Gueudet, I. Florensa & N. Lombard (Eds.), Proceedings of the Fifth Conference of the International Network for Didactic Research in University Mathematics (INDRUM 2024, 10-14 June 2024) (pp. 791-800). Escola Universitària de Sarrià. Univ. Autònoma de Barcelona and INDRUM.Brousseau, G. (1997). Théorie des situations didactiques. Lecture given at the award to Guy Brousseau of the title of Doctor Honoris Causa from the University of Montreal. http://www.cfem.asso.fr/actualites/archives/Brousseau.pdfChevallard, Y. (2001). Organizing study: 1. Structures and Functions. In J.-L. Dorier, M. Artaud, M. Artigue, R. Berthelot, & R. Floris Proceedings of the XIe École d'été de didactique des mathématiques. (pp. 3-32). Editions la Pensée Sauvage.Durand-Guerrier, V., & Nicolas Saby, N. (2023). Usages de la théorie des champs conceptuels en didactique des mathématiques. The example of transitivity. Caminhos da Educação Matemática em Revista, 13 (4),118-134. ⟨hal-04585866⟩Vandebrouck, F. (dir.) (2008). La classe de mathématiques: activités des élèves et pratiques des enseignants. OCTARES Éditions.Vergnaud, G. (1990). Conceptual field theory. Recherches en didactique des mathématiques, 10(2/3), 133-170.
In practice
Program18:00: Presentation by Viviane Durand-Guerrier 18:40: Presentation by Ghislaine Gueudet 19:20: Presentation by Nicolas Grenier-Boley and Stéphanie Bridoux20:00: Q&A around the three presentationsModalities Required registration via the PhD school website or direct link to the registration form.Or online participation link (via TEAMS).
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Public defense of doctoral thesis - Arnaud BOUGAHAM
JuryProf. Guillaume BERIONNI (UNamur), PresidentProf. Stéphane VINCENT (UNamur), SecretaryProf. Carmen GALAN (University of Bristol)Dr. Louis FENSTERBANK (Collège de France)Prof. Raphaël ROBIETTE (Université catholique de Louvain)AbstractCarboxylic acids are ubiquitous in nature and inexpensive compounds. Decarboxylation has become a key chemical transformation and has been widely reported in organic chemistry except for carbohydrates. This reaction can be catalyzed by transition metal and can also be induced by light, thermal activation, or photocatalysis. Borylated compounds have stimulated the pharmaceutical industry's interest (Boromycin, Bortezomib or boron neutron capture therapy). Recent methodologies have been developed to transform carboxylic acids to boronate esters by metal-catalyzed or light-promoted or photocatalyzed reactions. In this thesis, we explored the synthesis of borylated carbohydrates through a decarboxylation pathway. More specifically, sialic acids being among the most important carbohydrates in glycobiology, we addressed the problem of the synthesis of borylated sialic acids. On the other hand, organophosphates play an important role in diverse fields: in materials chemistry, in agriculture, in organic chemistry, and in biochemistry. Phosphorylation is a key reaction in biological processes such as signal transduction and cell activity regulation. The formation of phosphorylated carbohydrates has been widely described through two-electron mechanisms. However, radical phosphorylation of carbohydrates remains unexplored. This Ph.D. thesis describes the development of new methodologies for the decarboxylative functionalization of carbohydrates, focusing on borylation and phosphorylation..
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Founding, building, praying. The origins of Cistercian abbeys in the Southern Netherlands (13th century)
The success of female Cistercian monasticism in the Southern Netherlands in the 13th century - over forty houses in the dioceses of Liège and Cambrai - is a powerful indicator of the aspirations of a society in transformation, enthusiastic about new forms of spirituality and religious life. For all that, the phenomenon remains surprisingly little studied, despite the wealth of archaeological and historical sources.
The program
Thursday, December 11, 20259:30am: Welcome10:00am: Introduction by the symposium organizing committeeSession 1 - Chair: Marie-Élisabeth Henneau (Université de Liège)10:30am: Alexis Grélois (Université de Rouen-Normandie, GRHis) - L'appartenance des moniales à l'ordre cistercien (XIIe-XIIIe siècle): False debates and real questions11:30am: Coffee break11:45am: Michel Dubuisson (Abbaye de Villers asbl), Patrice Gautier (Musées royaux d'Art et d'Histoire), Louise Hardenne (Musées royaux d'Art et d'Histoire) - L'abbaye de La Cambre dans la filiation villersoise12:35pm: Lunch breakSession 2 - Chair: Jeroen Deploige (Universiteit Gent)1:40pm: Marie-Christine Laleman (City of Ghent), Els De Paermentier (Universiteit Gent)- The Byloque Abbey in Ghent: between archaeological memory and archival wealth2:30pm: Pierre-Hugues Tilmant (SPW, AWaP), Marie Verbeek (SPW, AWaP), Sarah Cremer (Institut royal du Patrimoine artistique), Nicolas Ruffini-Ronzani (Université de Namur/Archives de l'État à Namur)- Dossier de fondation de l'abbaye Notre-Dame du Vivier: l'archéologie permet-elle lever un coin du voile?3:20pm: Coffee break3:40pm: François De Vriendt (Société des Bollandistes) - Memory and devotion in the female communities of Hainaut and Namurois. What place for local figures and traditions?4:30pm:Robin Moens (FWO/KU Leuven) - (What) spiritual walls? The spirituality of mulieres religiosae enclosed in and outside monastic space17:20: end of first day18:00: verre de l'amitié offered by SPWFriday, December 12, 2025Session 3 - Chair: Geneviève Laurent (SPW, AWaP)9:00: Philippe Mignot (SPW, AWaP) - Clairefontaine Abbey: archaeological data on the origins9:50am: Vincent Debonne (Vlaamse Overheid-Agentschap Onroerend Erfgoed), Robin Moens (FWO/KU Leuven)- Sisters a little slower than we thought. The Cistercian abbey of Val-des-Vierges near Oudenaarde10:40am: Coffee break11:00am: visit to the former abbey of Notre-Dame du Vivier, accompanied by AWaP archaeologists12:00pm: lunch breakSession 4 - Chair: Mathieu Piavaux (Université de Namur)1:00 pm: Virginie Boulez (SPW, AWaP), Alain Marchandisse (FNRS/Université de Liège) - La Paix-Dieu 1240-1244. Foundation of a Cistercian abbey under the episcopacy of Robert de Thourotte. Dialogue of historical and archaeological sources13:50: Marie Demelenne (Musée royal de Mariemont), Patrice Gautier (Musées royaux d'Art et d'Histoire), Jean-François Nieus (FNRS/Université de Namur)- The hermit, the lady and the clerics. Aux origines de l'abbaye de L'Olive (Morlanwelz)2:40pm: coffee break3:00pm: Emmanuel Bodart (Archives de l'État à Namur) - L'abbaye de Félixpré près de Givet. New revelations on its foundation and endowment (1246-1266)3:30pm: Paul Lambrechts (Herita vzw) - Herkenrode Abbey, a millennium of history: how to interpret myths, excavations and sources, and how to incorporate them into a project for the future?4:00 pm: Benoît Rouzeau (Université de Picardie Jules Verne, Trame UR 4284/ LAMOP UMR 858)- General conclusions4:30 pm: end of symposiumProgram in PDF format
Organizing committee
Aurore Carlier - Société archéologique de NamurPatrice Gautier - Musées royaux d'Art et d'HistoireXavier Hermand - Université de NamurFiona Lebecque - Société archéologique de NamurJean-François Nieus - FNRS/Université de NamurMatthieu Pignot - FNRS/Université de NamurNicolas Ruffini-Ronzani - Université de Namur/Archives de l'ÉtatPierre-Hugues Tilmant - SPW, AWaPMarie Verbeek - SPW, AWaP
Practical information
The Study Days organizing committee would like to thank the owners of the Abbey Notre-Dame du Vivier for their welcome and for making the premises available.Surrounding these Study Days revolves a multitude of events dedicated to the Abbey Notre-Dame du Vivier de Marche-les-Dames. To find out more, see the program at www.lasan.be
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