SENAT
Report n° 230 (2006-2007) by M. Christian GAUDIN, Senator (for the parliament office for the evaluation of scientific and technological choices)
Disponible au format Acrobat (12 Moctets)
PROCEEDINGS OF THE 1 MARCH 2007 SEMINAR:
"OPENING OF THE INTERNATIONAL POLAR YEAR
IN FRANCE"
PART ONE:
LUNCH-DEBATE
I. MR. HENRI REVOL, PRESIDENT OF THE OPECST
Your Serene Highness,
Honourable Ambassadors,
Madam President,
Mister Secretary-General,
My fellow Members of Parliament,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is with great pleasure that I welcome you here today to the solemn opening of the 2007-2008 International Polar Year.
The International Polar Year is a rare and important event. Every fifty years, it gathers together the men and women from many different countries who share the same goal of making progress in our understanding of the poles and of our planet.
2007-2008 appears to be a year of transition, a year that international public opinion has been waiting for.
Threats to the world's climate and biodiversity, as well as to certain indigenous peoples require that we become aware of these issues and make decisions.
The research being carried out is therefore political , in the original sense of the word - in other words, it directly concerns life in the cities.
That is why today, it is the duty of the Senate - and, in particular, the Parliamentary Office for the Evaluation of Scientific and Technological Choices - to commit itself to this research. We wanted to give this day a particularly solemn nature, but we also wanted to use it as an opportunity for exchanges between the researchers and political leaders.
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I have expressed my feelings and my commitment.
I would also like to express my humility, at seeing gathered here such high-ranking and exceptional personalities.
I would like to express my particular thanks to His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco, whose presence among us throughout this day symbolizes the great personal commitment and the passion for research carried out in these regions.
We are also extremely fortunate to have among us two pioneers of French polar research.
I would first like to welcome Mr. Bertrand IMBERT, who led the French Antarctic expeditions during the International Geophysical Year of 1957-1958, laying the foundations for the Dumont d'Urville station and opening the way to so many others.
I would next like to welcome Mr. Claude LORIUS. This internationally renowned glaciologist participated in the very first French scientific wintering in the Antarctic interior at the Charcot base during the International Geophysical Year of 1957-1958. He also made a decisive contribution to science by reconstructing the Earth's climate via glacial records.
It is an honour and a privilege to be among you, gentlemen.
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This day will be divided into two parts: this lunch-debate, and then the official opening of the International Polar Year for France this afternoon.
The lunch-debate will also be divided into two parts:
The starter and the main dish will first be served. Then, at the end of the main course and while the service continues, we will hear the eyewitness account of the explorer Jean-Louis Etienne. We should have more than three-quarters of an hour for discussion.
Our debates will be chaired throughout the day by Bruno Rougier, science journalist for France-Info.
In the spirit of dialogue and openness that I mentioned earlier, we asked Jean-Louis Etienne to share with us his experience on the subject of: "Adventure, art and science: intersecting perspectives". Because, in our opinion, these are not parallel or divergent perspectives, but rather experiences which can converge and even intermingle when science becomes art or adventure and when adventure and art serve science. I hope his account will lead to many others.
I thank you for your attention. Bon appétit.