PhD: Ecosystem services available in mid-mountain agro-pastoral areas: multi-scale approaches for metropolitan areas facing climatic and human pressures (M/F)

Job Description

Thesis Subject

Mid-mountain regions are undergoing change due to the combined effects of demographic shifts in the agricultural sector and climate change. These factors are already having – and will continue to have in the future – far-reaching consequences for landscapes, agricultural and forestry operations, and individual plots of land. The consequences affect natural resources, environmental amenities and risks to the health of ecosystems, livestock and human health. Mid-mountain areas within the Clermont metropolitan area could be severely affected by these changes, with consequences for socio-economic interactions between rural and urban areas through changes in associated ecosystem services, in terms of provisioning, regulating and cultural services.
Against this worrying backdrop for the vitality of mid-mountain areas and the provision of ecosystem services available to the metropolitan area, this PhD project aims to lay the foundations for knowledge that will underpin a renewed social contract centred on the multifunctionality of these areas.

The central hypothesis of this thesis is that ecosystem amenities and services can serve as the cornerstones of sustainable regional development, even under the pressure of ongoing global changes. The thesis will develop a framework for analysing these services at the level of individual plots and farms, and explore how they might be applied on a larger scale. The availability of ecosystem services across the three major families, as classified by CICES, in agro-pastoral areas subject to change will be characterised. Data will be collected by combining empirical field-based approaches with modelling results (see, for example, the INVest tool). An assessment of changes in service availability will be carried out based on expected changes arising from climatic pressures and agricultural demographics.

A second strand will focus on assessing service expectations, taking into account the diversity of socio-economic stakeholders in both rural and urban areas, as identified through the analysis of forward-looking documents and, where necessary, supplemented by survey data. These expectations will be compared with the services currently available and, where necessary, will help to identify additional sub-services that might be relevant. Ultimately, the aim will be to identify sources of solutions that promote the vitality of territories and the development of connections between mid-mountain grassland areas and urban centres in the metropolitan area. The data gathered in this study will then be used to develop forward-looking scenarios for territorial management, designed to maximise synergies between services (and thus between stakeholders) and minimise trade-offs, whilst taking into account the climatic and anthropogenic changes that threaten current territorial functions.

Two key working hypotheses will guide the research
H1: Taking into account the complexity of services and sub-services (provisioning, regulating-maintenance, cultural) enables complementarity and compatibility between key ecosystem services that are decisive for territorial development and urban-rural interactions.
H2: the spatial scale (plot, farm, or even catchment area or region) can influence the trade-offs between services

This PhD thesis will take into account the diversity of stakeholders across the metropolitan area and the network of interconnections between urban and rural areas as sources of services (supply/flows). It will view the objective of territorial multifunctionality as an opportunity to enhance the diversity of landscape components and productive systems, and as a driver of adaptation. The aim of this work is to demonstrate that innovative solutions can emerge through renewed narratives of territorial development scenarios and the positions of stakeholders (link to the ongoing GIP Erable programmes, Territorial Food Plans).

Your Work Environment

This PhD research topic is being developed as part of the cross-disciplinary initiatives dedicated to the 'Territoires du Futur' challenge led by the CNRS, in collaboration with partners from the Clermont-Ferrand metropolitan area (https://miti.cnrs.fr/initiative-transverse/defi-societal-territoires-du-futur/versales). The concept of habitability will serve as the primary conceptual framework for the research. This PhD topic incorporates an interdisciplinary dimension. Joint supervision is planned with two supervisors from two laboratories in the metropolitan area.

Constraints and risks

-This thesis topic will be addressed through literature reviews, fieldwork and, possibly, modelling. The risks and constraints are those associated with these approaches.

Compensation and benefits

Compensation

2300 € gross monthly

Annual leave and RTT

44 jours

Remote Working practice and compensation

Pratique et indemnisation du TT

Transport

Prise en charge à 75% du coût et forfait mobilité durable jusqu’à 300€

About the offer

About the CNRS

The CNRS is a major player in fundamental research on a global scale. The CNRS is the only French organization active in all scientific fields. Its unique position as a multi-specialist allows it to bring together different disciplines to address the most important challenges of the contemporary world, in connection with the actors of change.

CNRS

The research professions