Presentation IRC-SAE

Agro-ecosystems are subject to a number of constraints, including climate change, declining biodiversity, the agro-ecological transition (which involves planned limitations on inputs and diversification of species), the need for regular, high-quality, and more local supplies, changing consumer eating habits, and changes in public perception of agriculture.

In this evolving context, production systems must be adapted to meet a triple challenge: economic, societal, and environmental. The projects developed by the International Research Centre for Sustainable Agroecosystems share a common objective: to optimise the integration of farming systems into their respective environments and territories. This means increasing their resilience and sustainability, while taking into accounttheir production and environmental performance, and meeting societal expectations.

The project is structured around three core issues and two emblematic crops on the site: cereals and grazing livestock.

    The objective is to design agro-systems that are adapted to future contexts and rooted in their territory and environment. This will be achieved by implementing the agro-ecological transition, which will limit the impact of agro-systems on their environment and promote ecosystem services. Furthermore, the circular economy will be developed by making the most of the synergies that exist between the different types of production in the region.

In order to meet these challenges , the International Research Centre (IRC) – SAE project on sustainable agro-ecosystems has been structured around four complementary areas of research.

Axis 1 : Adaptive capacities of animals and plants

Coordinators: Muriel Bonnet (INRAE, UMR Herbivore) & Vincent Allard (INRAE, UMR GDEC)

Board members: Christophe Tatout (UCA, UMR GRED), Sabine Leroy (INRAE, UMR MEDIS), José Pires (INRAE, UMR Herbivore), Jacques Le Gouis (INRAE, UMR GDEC), Bruno Moulia (INRAE, UMR PIAF).

Context: Livestock and crop production are faced with highly variable environmental conditions and a transition  towards low-input systems or systems that optimisef the utilisation of available resources in the lowland and semi-mountainous areas of the Auvergne-Rhône Alpes region.

Objectives : To investigate the extent to which  tolerance to constraints imposed by climate change is determined, or to identify and qualify this tolerance. The experimental unit selected for analysisAxis 1 is the individual organism: the plant (within its canopy) or the animal (within its environment) in the broadest sense, i.e. including interactions with the microbiome.

The objective is to gain insight intog the (eco)physiological and molecular mechanisms of tolerance. Tolerance will be defined as a genetic, morphological, physiological or behavioural trait that confers a survival or reproductive advantage to individuals displaying this trait in a given environment.

These studies should provide knowledge and tools to facilitate the phenotyping and selection of plants and animals best adapted to the constraints imposed by biotic/abiotic stresses induced by climate change.

Axis 2 : Systems approach to (re)designing agrosystems

Coordinators: Sébastien Fontaine (UREP), Claire Mosnier (INRAE, UMR Herbivores)

Board members: Philippe Malagoli (INRAE, UMR PIAF), Sylvain Dernat (UMR Territoires), Gaëlle Marliac (INRAE, UMR GDEC)

Context: Our aim is to design and evaluate with farmers novel complex agroecosystems based on the principles of agroecology, with increased connectivity between crops, herbaceous cover, trees and animals. The implementation of ecological systems and synergies between animal and plant production that promote the regulation of biogeochemical cycles and pests will be central to the long-term conservation of agricultural production and resources (water, soil, air, biodiversity).

Objectives: To develop new cover crops combining crops and companion plants that contribute to the ecological transition of arable farming and/or the development of more sustainable livestock production.

To develop new herd management systems that promote animal diversification to make better use of plant resources and reduce inputs.

To Implement methods for co-designing production systems with farmers to promote their acceptance, using the knowledge generated under the previous two points.

Axis 3 :Interactions between agrosystems and their environment

Coordinators: Pierre Amato (ICCF), Julien Pottier (UREP)

Board members: Alexandre Bec (LMGE), Anaïs Bompard (EPIA), Aurélie Colomb (LaMP), Maguy Eugene (INRAE, UMR Herbivore), Franck Jabot (UREP), Delphine Latour (LMGE), Erwan Rousel (GEOLAB).

Context: Interactions between agrosystems and their environment take the form of fluxes. The concept of fluxes implies transfers, transformations and gradients. All natural and synthetic, biological and chemical compounds circulate in our environment and undergo biotic and abiotic transformations. These compounds interact with terrestrial, aquatic and atmospheric boundaries. The aim is therefore to measure the interactions between agricultural systems and their host environment.

Objectives: To gain a better understanding of how flows lead to changes in ecological functioning.

To achieve this, e a number of challenges must be overcome: To gain knowledge of the negative and positive impacts of these interactions, as well as future developments of these interactions in the context of global change. Quantitative knowledge of chemical/microbiological fluxes and movement of organisms between agro-ecosystems and ecosystems is required, as is knowledge of their functional roles at different temporal and spatial scales.Application of the meta-ecosystem concept to agro-ecological transitions is also needed, as are insights on chemical and biological transformation processes to reduce the negative impacts of certain fluxes.

Axe 4 : Integration of agricultural systems in territories

Coordinators: Salma Loudiyi (VetAgro Sup, UMR Territoire), Jean-Denis Mathias (INRAE, LISC), Pascal Carrère (INRAE, UREP)

Board members : Didier Rémond (UNH), Isabelle Verdier-Metz (URF), Juliette Bloor (UREP), Jean-Baptiste Pichancourt (LISC), Anne Bonis (GEOLAB), Virginie Baritaux (UMR Territoires), Chantale Chassaing (INRAE, UMR Herbivore), Nathalie Vassal (UREP), Michel Streith (Lapsco), Corinne Rochette (CLERMA), Frédéric Dubos (ISITE-CAP2025), Sonia Schwartz (LEO).

Context: In the context of anthropogenic pressures, the adaptive management of agroecosystems requires an understanding of how their function at the territorial scale. The societal issuesassociated with the agroecological transition require an understanding of all the socio-ecological interactions related to the dynamics of actors, public policies and the agronomic and environmental problems faced by farms, their sectors and their territories.

Objectives: To develop interdisciplinary and integrated approaches to promote the resilience of agro-systems (understood as socio-ecosystems). To apply these approches at the regional level. Particular attention will be paid to territorial and sustainable food systems as well as on the links between rural and urban areas through integrative and multidisciplinary approaches.

The IRC-SAE is an interdisciplinary research consortium comprising 19 research units from INRAE, UCA, CNRS and VetAgro Sup. These units are affiliated with several institutes (HLHSS (Humanities, Languages, Humanities and Social Sciences), LSHAE (Life Sciences, Health, Agronomy, Environment), BS (Basic Sciences)), contributing to a diverse and collaborative research environment.

• 2 INRAE experimental units
• 1 PICE (Public Industrial an Commercial Establishment)
• 259 scientists

Phéno3C

The Phéno3C platform in a component of of the PHénotypage Au Champs des Céréales (PHACC) experimental unit. Its objective is to study the impact of key climate change variables on the performance of field crops in agronomic conditions, specifically in relation to water stress and an increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) concentration. High-throughput phenotyping methods can be applied to a large number of genotypes, enabling quantitative genetic approaches. The objective is to direct varietal selection towards varieties that are resistant/tolerant to future climatic conditions. Additionally, the platform serves as a resource for investigating, developing, and evaluating novel high-throughput phenotyping methods for characterising plant cover.
 

Herbipôle

Herbipôle is a multidisciplinary experimental platform for research on grazing livestock and grasslands with a regional, national and European remit. It is a multidisciplinary experimental platform for research on grazing livestock and grasslands, with a regional, national and European remit. It is open to scientific and professional partners and facilitates the integration of disparate scientific approaches and disciplines within a unified facility. The research projects conducted at Herbipôle concentrate on ruminant farming systems in mountain grassland regions, with the objective of maintaining the well-being of the animals and the quality of their products (milk, cheese and meat) while also considering their impact on the surrounding environment.

Site Web 

DIVAE - A French network of experimental orchards to study the impact of climate change on phenology.

DIVAE is a French network of experimental orchards established for the purpose of studying the impact of climate change on phenology. In order to assess the consequences of global change, a network of experimental orchards dedicated to the observation of fruit trees has been deployed throughout France at the initiative of INRAE. The network, which was established in 2015, is employed to investigate the influence of disparate environmental circumstances on the functionality of four fruit species: apricot, cherry, peach and apple.
The initial objective was to study phenology, defined as the seasonal rhythms of living organisms under the control of the environment. These include vegetative budburst, flowering, fruiting and leaf senescence. The system remains open to observation and study of any other characteristics of trees that are regulated by the environment, as well as any other component of the agro-ecosystem for which this context could prove relevant. This may include biotic factors (e.g. phyllosphere, insects, etc.) or interactions between the tree and the accompanying vegetation.

Partnerships:

The IRC-SAE is engaged in the development of two postgraduate courses within the 'Changing environments' Graduate Track at the CAP Graduate School.
These are:

• Master of Science and Technology in Agriculture, Food and the Environment, GLObal QUALity in European Livestock Production (GLOQUAL) course
• Master's degree in plant biology: Plant Science: Meeting New Challenges through

International Networks

The COPIL has initiated a call for proposal  fo PhD Theses co-supervision with an international team:

• 3 associated international laboratories (LIA) with China:
  • Yunnan University: PLANTOMIX - Plant Diversity and Mixture for Crop Protection
  • CAAS: Wheat genomics and improvement
  • Wuhan University: Environmental Processes and Remediation Laboratory (LPRE, awarded the International Research Project label by the CNRS)
• 2 International Research Networks (IR) with Canada, Spain and Latin America:
  • Canada: GALACTINNOV - Milk Production and Quality,
  • Spain
  • Latin America: LCR-RN - Measurement of GHG emissio

Strengthening partnerships

•  Public : chamber of Agriculture
•  Private : Limagrain 
•  Institutional : FRE (Federation for Environmental Research), LSHAE (Life Sciences, Health, Agronomy, Environment), HLHSS (Humanities, Languages, Humanities and Social Sciences), BS (Basic Sciences).
•  2 Living Labs : LIT GCA (Auvergne Field Crops Innovation Laboratory) , LIT EHM (Massif Grass-Fed Livestock Innovation Laboratory)
•  Association: Allier sauvage (More informations about the project: ICI) 
•  International