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A few words from Denis Couvet, President of the FRB, and Nicolas Mouquet, Scientific Director of CESAB

The CESAB – Centre for the Synthesis and Analysis of Biodiversity – is an original, innovative program of the FRB, internationally recognized thanks to the work of an entire team and the support of the founding members of the FRB and the Ministry in charge of research. It provides researchers with a space and time to contribute to addressing the challenges related to biodiversity loss and to implement transformative change. The complexity of these challenges has led the FRB and its board of directors to focus on intermediation, which means connecting knowledge, researchers, and research with stakeholders and society. Innovation is also needed in this area so that knowledge circulates and is embraced by both public and private decision-makers. We can envision the FRB being a driving force in accelerating this flow of knowledge, particularly through the projects funded or hosted by the CESAB, which produce groundbreaking and highly relevant knowledge. This is because the young researchers recruited come from diverse backgrounds and countries, because the project leaders at CESAB are top-level researchers, because the FRB encourages translating these findings into societal issues, and because of its unique position in the research world. Its links with stakeholders make the FRB and its CESAB a laboratory where innovation in science-based messaging is fostered. Next December, two major reports will be published by the IPBES: the first on transformative change, and the second on the Biodiversity Nexus, which includes biodiversity, food, climate, water, and health. It will be interesting to explore how the projects and research results published within the CESAB framework contribute to the intermediation of the key messages from these reports.

Denis Couvet, President of the FRB and Professor at the MNHN

We are at a key stage in the trajectory of the CESAB, which is now asserting itself as a major player in biodiversity research. We have reached true maturity, with the stabilization of numerous research groups (over 30 active groups in 2024; 500 researchers involved) producing scientific syntheses of remarkable scope. This positive dynamic also extends to our postdoctoral researchers, several of whom have secured research positions, such as Aurore Receveur from the MAESTRO group, now a research scientist at IRD, Kevin Hoeffner from the LANDWORM group, now a research scientist at INRAE, and Aaron Sexton from the NAVIDIV group, now an assistant professor at Cornell University. Congratulations to them!

At the same time, we launched the CESABinars, a new format of virtual exchanges that has been very successful. These webinars provide a platform where our researchers can share their progress and engage with the international scientific community, further strengthening our network and impact. We are also organizing an international conference in Montpellier in December with the FISHGLOB group, “Fish Biodiversity Facing Global Change.” Finally, we will be welcoming a new data scientist dedicated to the groups formed through the Synthesis call “Human Pressures and Impacts on Terrestrial Biodiversity,” in partnership with MTECT and OFB, where more than 10 groups are creating a true ecosystem within the CESAB. The coming months promise to be just as exciting, with the selection of new groups as part of our 2024 General Call for Synthesis Projects. But it will be in 2025 that we reach a new milestone with the launch of “IdeaShare,” an innovative project call format designed to stimulate creativity and explore new research avenues.

This positive momentum is made possible thanks to the FRB team dedicated to the CESAB, the true driving force of our center. Their expertise, dedication, and passion are at the heart of our success. Thank you to them! We invite you to follow these exciting developments and continue to actively participate in the life of the CESAB.

Nicolas Mouquet, Scientific Director of the CESAB and Research Director at CNRS