« Let's take nature’s values into account »
The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) published a report (August 2022) which lists and assesses the different values we place on nature. This is a huge task carried out over three years by experts from all over the world, including Nicolas Dendoncker, professor at the Department of geography and member of the ILEE Institute at the UNamur.
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BABots: a European bio-robotics project led by UNamur researchers
The design and analysis of the individual and collective behaviour of small biological vermiform robots: this is the objective of BABots, an ambitious interdisciplinary research project led by the University of Namur and conducted by a consortium of seven European partners. This project could lead to multiple and promising solutions in the field of agriculture, bio-industry or even industry and medicine.
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Women in science: a UNamur PhD student in geography wins award
Jelena Luyts has been awarded a prize for her research on climate migration in Senegal.
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Understanding epigenetics to preserve biodiversity
Do you know the rivulus? It is a small fish that lives in the Caribbean and has some amazing characteristics. It is indeed capable of self-fertilisation! But in this case, what happens to genetic diversity, which is essential for the evolution of a species? Welcome in the mangroves of Florida and Belize to find an answer.
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Synthetic choirs | A choir of robots created at the UNamur
A choir of robots sounds like science fiction! Yet it is a reality at the University of Namur. In the robotics laboratory of the Faculty of Computer Science, researchers from the naXys institute, led by professors Elio Tuci and Timoteo Carletti, some members of TRAKK, some artists and external partners collaborated on the "Synthetic Choirs" project.
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Researchers involved in ESA's JUICE space mission
Within the SPACE pole of the naXys Institute, researchers are interested in the evolution of planetary systems at different scales: space debris, natural and artificial satellites, asteroids, (exo)planets, etc. As part of the JUICE mission, post-doctoral researcher Alexis Coyette and Professor Anne-Sophie Libert are interested in Ganymede, one of Jupiter's moons, and are seeking to model its internal composition and rotation. It is believed that this satellite has a global ocean of liquid water beneath its surface. The study of its rotation will provide more information about this ocean and thus the potential habitability of this satellite.
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Prestigious visit by Prof. Jean-Luc Brédas
On 9 June 2023, the NISM and naXys Institutes, the Physics and Chemistry Departments and the Namur Research College were delighted to welcome Prof. Jean-Luc Brédas from the University of Arizona. A prestigious speaker of international renown, Prof. Brédas completed his doctoral thesis with Prof. Jean-Marie André at the University of Namur.
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From the twinkling of fireflies to the stripes of zebras: mathematics explain synchronisation
Very often in nature, we observe phenomena of natural synchronisation and the emergence of regular patterns: a crowd applauding in unison at the end of a concert, the cells in the walls of the heart pulsating in a coordinated fashion, black and white stripes on a zebra, brown spots surrounded by black in leopards... But how can we explain this uniformity if there is no global controller or explicit rule directing this coordination?
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ESA's BepiColombo prepares for its third Mercury flyby
BepiColombo will fly past Mercury on 19 June 2023. It will pass close to the planet's surface at an altitude of approximately 236 km. BepiColombo is an ESA/JAXA mission involving a team of researchers from the University of Namur (naXys institute).
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Research fields
ILEE combines a broad range of basic, applied and social science skills that focus on three key areas of study, including historical perspectives and extensive partnerships with the global South.
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Characterization and management of natural resources
The availability of natural resources for future generations can only be ensured through prudent use.
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Human-Environment Interactions
Through a variety of chemical, biological and physical factors, humans are modifying ecosystems, often with negative results. Environmental changes, in turn, affect the dynamics of human populations.
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