The Climate-Environment-Society consortium was set up in March 2007, and forms part of the 2006 review of the "2004-2012 climate plan" decided on by the French government in order to combat climate change. It is funded to the tune of eight million euros over a period of five years (2007-2012) provided by the six founding members: the French National Center for Scientific Research (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique), the French Atomic Energy Commissariat (Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique), the University of Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, the Ecole Polytechnique, Pierre et Marie Curie University, the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (Agence de l'Environnement et de la Maîtrise de l'Energie), with the backing of the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research, and the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Planning.

Its missions: It aims to encourage, support and coordinate interdisciplinary research into climate change and its repercussions on society and the environment.

The laboratories taking part: the Climate-Environment-Society consortium relies on the research capacity of 17 laboratories in the Paris area working mainly in the fields of climatology, hydrology, ecology, health, and the humanities and social sciences. Six of these laboratories have joined forces within a federative structure focused on the environmental sciences, the Institut Pierre Simon Laplace.

Its key research areas: five major areas of research have been defined with a view to directing interdisciplinary initiatives between the various laboratories:

• Global climate, energy policies, and economic development,
• Climate extremes and vulnerable regions,
• Climate change, ecosystems, land use and water resources,
• Impacts of climate change on health,
• Climate change adaptation

Its methods: the Climate-Environment-Society consortium will apportion funds by using a system based on calls for projects, with the aim of:

• Offering chairs of excellence to top level researchers;
• Hosting young researchers or groups of young researchers on the basis of innovative projects that require the rapid setting up of a small team;
• Funding new projects, especially of an interdisciplinary nature, and possibly articulated with European and international programmes;
• Funding structuring projects or platforms that aim to improve interface with society about the issues addressed by the consortium;
• Funding international collaborations on the issues addressed by the consortium;
• Co-funding interdisciplinary PhDs;
• Setting up information and training activities. 

Governance

The consortium's Funding Members

The consortium's board

The steering committee

The scientific committee

The permanent team