Associate researchers

PhD in development geography, specialised in the assessment and management of environmental and social risks, including involuntary resettlement of populations, and in the design and management of socio-economic observatories, David is a recognised expert in social and societal engineering. Over the past 20 years, he has participated in the development of information and evaluation systems for the CNRS (French National Institute for Scientific Research), various NGOs, mining companies, consulting firms and for the French Development Agency (AFD). Mainly in Africa, but also in the Maghreb, the Middle East and in Asia, he has developed deep experience regarding the management of intercultural and multi-partner projects, such as socio-economic baseline studies, or environmental and social impact assessments, among others. He has published in international scientific journals and communicates about his research in international conferences. In particular, he coordinated in 2012 the Atlas of Voluntary and Solidarity Commitments at international level.

Agro-economist and holder of a PhD in Development Geography, Pascal has over 15 years of experience in Africa, Asia and South America, gathered by working in community development and development research programmes with the French National Scientific Research Centre (CNRS), International funders and mining companies. He has developed an approach based on the understanding of local power relations in order to understand the methods of land management at micro-local scales. Pascal combines both field expertise and an up-to-date knowledge of leading issues in development policies. His work is regularly published in scientific journals and reviews, in particular on issues related to land rights, natural resource management, decision-making processes, justice conceptions and CSR in the extractive sector. He gives lectures at the Sorbonne University (Paris I) and the University of Djibouti on urban planning, research methodology and the extractive sector in Africa.

PhD in sociology at the University of Québec in Montréal (UQAM), in collaboration with Cirad, Marie has worked more than 10 years as a researcher on behalf of the Research Group on Mining Activities in Africa (GRAMA), based at UQAM, Canada. She has published several articles, book chapters and participated as a guest at international conferences on the themes of governance and reform of the African mining sectors. For more than 10 years, she has been an independent consultant. She has worked in the Central African Republic, DR Congo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, on behalf of USAID and UNDP, as well as various consulting firms such as Insuco, TetraTech, PWC, etc. She has specialized in the realization of social impact assessment and the question of CSR issue in the mining sector.

Joana is an environmental anthropologist (PhD, Colorado State University) with over 15 years of research experience on social-ecological systems and local knowledge of environmental change in East and West Africa. Working with Kenyan pastoralist and Bissau-Guinean farmers, in communities undergoing land use and tenure changes, she has investigated local knowledge of climate change, impacts of conservation policies, human-wildlife relationships, communities-protected areas interactions, non-economic valuation of the environment, and conflicts for access to natural resources. She is experienced in and most passionate about engaging local community members as co-researchers through participatory visual research methods (Photovoice and participatory filmmaking).
Joana is currently co-Chair of the “Climate Change & Food Security” Working Group of the “Drylands Facing Change: Interdisciplinary Research on Climate Change, Food Insecurity, Political Instability” COST Action (CA16233) research network (https://www.cost.eu/actions/CA16233). She also leads the Social Sciences Extreme Events Research Network “Covid-19 in African and Asian Drylands” Working Group (Natural Hazards Centers, University of Colorado-Boulder).

Socio-anthropologist and ethnologist (EHESS / CNRS), Mathieu has been working in West Africa for more than fifteen years, particularly in Guinea. His work falls within the field of techniques and conceptions of nature and Mathieu is particularly interested in socio-technical innovation processes and socio-cultural and environmental changes. He has evolved in different programs where he has been able to specialize in history and orality, and traditional forms of power and land tenure. His research interests currently concern heritage, particularly processes associating natural spaces with religious and ritual practices (PCI), the analysis of socio-environmental transitions, communication and awareness in transcultural contexts and social crises.