The "Credits & Projects" call for proposals resulted in 12 grants being awarded for ambitious new projects. These include two "equipment" grants, eight "research credits (CDR)" grants, and two "research projects (PDR)" grants, one of which is in collaboration with the ULB. The FRIA call for doctoral research support will fund eleven doctoral scholarships and the FRESH call will fund three. 

Two prestigious Scientific Impulse Mandates (MIS) were also obtained. This three-year funding supports young permanent researchers who wish to develop an original and innovative research program by acquiring scientific autonomy within their department.  

We would also like to highlight the two projects funded under the "WelCHANGE" call, a funding instrument for research projects with potential societal impact, led by a principal investigator in the humanities and social sciences.

Call for Equipment  

• Xavier De Bolle, Narilis Institute, Co-promoter in collaboration with UCLouvain
• Luca Fusaro, NISM Institute 

Call for Research Grants (CDR) 

• Marc Hennequart, NARILIS Institute
• Nicolas Gillet, NARILIS Institute
• Jean-Yves Matroule, NARILIS Institute
• Patricia Renard, NARILIS Institute
• Francesco Renzi, NARILIS Institute
• Stéphane Vincent, NISM Institute
• Laurence Meurant, NaLTT Institute
• Emma-Louise Silva, NaLTT Institute  

Call for Research Projects (PDR) 

• Jérémy Dodeigne, Transitions Institute, Co-supervisor in collaboration with ULB
• Luc Henrard, NISM Institute; Co-supervisor: Yoann Olivier, NISM Institute 

Fund for Training in Research in Industry and Agriculture (FRIA)

• Emma Bongiovanni - Supervisor: Catherine Michaux, NISM Institute
• Simon Chabot - Supervisor: Carine Michiels, Narilis Institute; Co-supervisor: Anne-Catherine Heuskin, Narilis Institute
• Lee Denis - Supervisor: Muriel Lepère, ILEE Institute
• Maé Desclez - Supervisor: Johan Yans, ILEE Institute; Co-supervisor: Hamed Pourkhorsandi (University of Toulouse)
• Pierre Lombard - Supervisor: Benoît Muylkens, Narilis Institute; Co-supervisor: Damien Coupeau, Narilis Institute
• Amandine Pecquet - Supervisor: Nicolas Gillet, Narilis Institute; Co-supervisor: Damien Coupeau, Narilis Institute
• Kilian Petit - Supervisor: Henri-François Renard, Narilis Institute; Co-supervisor: Xavier De Bolle, Narilis Institute
• Simon Rouxhet - Supervisor: Catherine Michaux, NISM Institute; Co-supervisor: Nicolas Gillet, Narilis Institute
• William Soulié - Supervisor: Yoann Olivier, NISM Institute
• Elisabeth Wanlin - Supervisor: Xavier De Bolle, Narilis Institute
• Laura Willam - Supervisor: Frédérik De Laender, ILEE Institute 

Fund for Research in the Humanities (FRESH) 

• Louis Droussin - Supervisor: Arthur Borriello, Transitions Institute; Co-supervisor: Vincent Jacquet, Transitions Institute
• Nicolas Larrea Avila - Supervisor: Guilhem Cassan, DeFIPP Institute
• Victor Sluyters – Supervisor: Wafa Hammedi, NADI Institute
• Amandine Leboutte - Co-supervisor: Erika Wauthia (UMons); Co-supervisor: Cédric Vanhoolandt, IRDENa Institute.

Scientific Impulse Mandate (MIS) 

• Charlotte Beaudart, Narilis Institute
• Eli Thoré ILEE Institute 

WelCHANGE Call  

• Nathalie Burnay Transitions Institute, in collaboration with UCLouvain
• Catherine Guirkinger, DeFIPP Institute

Congratulations to all! 

The findings are nuanced: "Unsurprisingly, today's elected representatives are very much rooted in an electoral and representative logic. Many are wary of citizens' ability to get involved beyond electoral processes. Obviously, there are differences between elected representatives and political parties. To simplify, we can say that the further left a party is and the younger its elected representatives are, the more open they will be to extra-electoral mechanisms", explains Vincent Jacquet.

So, the question is whether those in power are really integrating these citizen processes into their political decisions. "In politics, things change slowly. So it's not surprising that we're not seeing major reforms in the short term. But that doesn't mean the results aren't taken into account," nuances the political scientist. In some cases, the recommendations of citizens' assemblies feed into public policy. In others, they go unheeded. He points out, however, that the lack of impact has less to do with a desire for manipulation on the part of elected officials, than with the fact that participation is thought of alongside decision-making circuits.

To strengthen their impact, three levers are identified by the researcher:

• Inscribe assemblies over time to feed public action over the long term.
• Define upstream the timetable and the way in which decisions will be made in relation to citizens' recommendations.
• Guarantee support for the recommendations by politics or civil society.

The Irish example is often cited. Citizens' assemblies paved the way for referendums on marriage for all and abortion. "It was the interaction between the deliberations of an assembly drawn by lot, social mobilization and the organization of a referendum that enabled these reforms to be carried through."

A reminder that these devices do not replace representative democracy, but can enrich it, provided they do not remain at the symbolic stage.

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.