Annick Castiaux's speech

Research, the heart of the University

Ladies and gentlemen, in your official capacity,

Dear colleagues,

Dear students,

Thank you for joining us in such large numbers for this ceremony, the last of the university academic year, which is always an opportunity to pass on several messages. This year, we wanted to put the spotlight on research. To do this, we wanted to give a voice to those involved in research at UNamur and you have just heard a whole series of testimonials which, I hope, have given you an insight into what goes on behind the scenes. All too often, I realise the extent to which university research is misunderstood by those outside the industry: public decision-makers, journalists, entrepreneurs, and the public. Research is the alpha and omega of the university. It initiates every university project, and it is to research that we return to take stock of each project. Being a researcher is much more than a profession, it's a vocation, it's even a way of being... sometimes to the great annoyance of those around us. Because it's always about cultivating the art of doubting, analysing, and criticising, with plenty of data and bibliographical references. And that's why it's so difficult for researchers who can't fulfil their academic ambitions to let go of this unique way of cultivating their identity and their qualities as researchers.

Belgian universities, like a large proportion of European universities, share a heritage: that of the Humboldtian university model, born in Berlin in 1810, during the great Prussian reforms. At least three dimensions of this model seem to me to survive in all our universities. These, I believe, are factors of excellence:

• The indestructible link between teaching and research: the teaching staff are all researchers, who draw on their research for the constantly renewed sources of their teaching, who use research-based teaching to introduce students to scientific methodology and critical thinking and to stimulate in them the culture of rational doubt (I'll come back to this);
• A unitary vision of science, transcending any disciplinary divide or hierarchy, based on the presence within the university institution of the major disciplinary pillars (humanities and social sciences, exact and natural sciences, medical and health sciences) to enable interaction between disciplines; the 10 Belgian universities can demonstrate the presence of these three pillars within their institutions;
• Academic freedom, which implies management independence, to be able to explore, beyond political or economic agendas (which are entirely respectable, by the way), research questions that are creative, novel, long-term and have not demonstrated their immediate usefulness.

As I said, this heritage lays the foundations for the excellence of our universities, which I would characterise by 4 dimensions:

• Many scientific discoveries, such as those of penicillin or the rosetta stone, were the result of chance; it is only when this chance meets the intelligence of someone who understands its importance;
• The practice of rational doubt, which leads researchers to adopt a critical distance before drawing any conclusions whatsoever, to avoid being led by their intuitions or wishes, and to constantly fight against dogmatism; doubt is also a source of creativity;
• A collective dynamic, rooted in constant and international interaction with peers, who question the results of research without complacency; a dynamic of openness, including and increasingly to other disciplines, as the complexity of the problems posed continues to grow; think in particular of the challenges of sustainability, which no university alone, no discipline alone, can hope to meet;
• And finally, scientific integrity, on which the trust that society and citizens place in scientific research depends, an integrity that requires the proper conduct of scientific processes, including the practice of rational doubt and interaction with peers, and that must be combined with respect for ethical rules and ethical reflection on the meaning and responsibilities of researchers.

These pillars of the university institution are in danger. Several abuses have become more pronounced in recent years, and I feel it is important to highlight four of them.

(1) Firstly, the hierarchisation of disciplines. This is a recent trend in the history of universities. It goes back to the 1960s, with the arrival of the neo-liberal model of universities. It was in the Anglo-Saxon countries that the questioning of the usefulness of university institutions began. In these countries, universities had become largely private. They are being questioned as to whether they meet the needs of students and society, while charging admission fees that few can afford. This questioning will spread throughout the world. Which is no bad thing. But it will also be accompanied by a progressive classification of university disciplines into those that can be useful as quickly as possible for economic progress (engineering sciences, for example) and those whose usefulness some people do not really see (such as philosophy or art history). This view persists and has an impact on the way research is funded. I'm thinking of the lack of support for the humanities and social sciences in research policies. Technology is still seen by many decision-makers as capable of solving all our problems, unencumbered by ethical, legal, political, or social considerations, for example. This is why the FNRS had to take charge of the Welchange programme, dedicated to transition issues approached from the point of view of the human and social sciences, because there was no place for such research in the innovation programmes supported by the Walloon Region. At UNamur, the rules for funding research institutes, which we modestly support from our own funds, are the same, regardless of the disciplines involved... This promotion of all disciplines is a battle that the universities must wage together.

(2) The hierarchisation of disciplines has been further accentuated over the last two decades by a 2nd drift linked to the quantification of the "performance" of individuals and institutions. Quantitative indicators such as H-Index and others have a deleterious impact on people's careers, with quantity replacing quality. They can lead to abuses that undermine scientific integrity. The universities of the FWB have therefore decided to sign the EUA Charter on the evaluation of researchers, which distances itself from quantitative indicators. Rankings also play a part in this quantification, promoting scientific production whose standards are exclusively quantitative and dictated by commercial publishers. In this context, the humanities and social sciences carry very little weight... A university like ours, with 4 out of 7 faculties in this field and no engineering faculty or teaching hospital, can be proud of reaching the level it has conquered in these rankings, which it has finally resolved to enter. We will not give in to the siren calls of progress if these lead us to devalue the importance of one discipline, which has less impact in the rankings, in favour of others, which are more favourable.

(3) A utilitarian and “short-termist” valuation of research. Researchers value research in many ways. First and foremost, through publications. But also, through popularisation, mediation, the increasing number of cross-fertilisations with the arts, action research and so on. So, it's not just a question of economic development. Reducing the usefulness of research to its possible short-term economic impact also leads to a proliferation of reporting and control procedures, and a growing demand for justification of funded projects on the basis of deliverables whose content and scope we need to be able to anticipate, increased bureaucratisation, which reduces the amount of time devoted to research itself and the ability to be open to the unexpected, which is often the source of discoveries that are all the more interesting because they cannot be predicted. This bureaucratisation also has an impact on the nature of the research profession and the motivation of those who have made it their raison d'être.

(4) The relativisation of knowledge and the crisis of institutions. An increasing number of citizens no longer trust institutions, including universities and scientists. While some have discovered and appreciated the role played by scientists during the health crisis, others have protested about what they perceive as the seizure of power by a dominant caste seeking to deprive them of their freedoms. Like all institutions, universities are facing the crisis of confidence that threatens our democracies. It is a crisis that demands our uncompromising attention. We need to work to rebuild trust by investing in science education, from compulsory education onwards, by taking the time to explain our approaches, and by participating actively in public dialogue, particularly when it comes to the major issues facing society.

All this is compounded by a context of definition that is clearly explained in the memorandum that the rectors drew up together in the run-up to the elections.

Faced with these trends, which threaten university research, the best way to act is to join forces to consolidate our resources, to free up research time, to speak up for universities and to highlight the virtues of the European university model. This is what all Belgian universities have decided to do by joining European alliances: it's a unique case in Europe! For UNamur, it's the Universeh alliance that we joined last November, an alliance dedicated to the theme of space, where we bring diverse and recognised skills in this field, but also a critical approach that UNamur has always developed in the field of technological innovation. We see our participation in Universeh as being open to other institutions in the FWB, which also have recognised expertise in the space sector. I believe that this spirit of openness also underpins the alliance that UMons and ULB affirmed at the start of their academic year together in Charleroi, joining forces to develop university teaching and research, particularly in Hainaut. And it is in this same spirit of openness that I am officially announcing that Vincent Blondel and I signed a memorandum of understanding this morning to create a strategic alliance, which we have named AULNE for Alliance Universitaire Louvain Namur Ensemble. The terms and conditions of this alliance have been approved by the Board of Directors and discussed at the UNamur General Assembly. They will be communicated to our two university communities in a few moments, before being the subject of a press release tomorrow morning. What this alliance is: an opportunity to strengthen each other in the context I mentioned earlier, and to intensify and develop our collaboration in teaching and research. These are already numerous: co-diplomas in many fields, including economics, biology, and pharmacy, to name but a few, research consortia in archaeology, space, water, and ageing, again by way of example. What this alliance is not: it does not constitute a withdrawal into ourselves, which would exclude collaborations with other universities (this would be contrary to the university spirit itself); and it is not a merger or a pre-merger approach. Both universities wish to retain their independence and autonomy, and each has its own raison d'être! This alliance will be evaluated in two years' time, both in terms of the results achieved and the problems encountered. There will then be an opportunity to adapt the terms of this alliance, to intensify it, to redirect it or, at worst, to reduce its scope... Obviously I don't want to do that: we signed up to build together...

In conclusion, university alliances have become indispensable. The Chairman of the Board of UNamur mentioned this in his speech at the beginning of this ceremony. Whether they are local or international, they help to support our university model. This model, which is over two centuries old, remains a pillar of our European democracies, offering students the guarantee of accessible, cutting-edge training, and enabling the development of research that lays the foundations for a sustainable future.

It is in this spirit of collaboration and openness, with the enthusiasm that accompanies the launch of any project in which we believe, that I declare the 2023-2024 academic year open!