On November 17, a seminar was held in Rouen to mark the mid-term of the USINOVERT Chair, the fruit of an innovative collaboration between Lubrizol and Institut Polytechnique UniLaSalle.
Founded in November 2021, this Chair explores the coexistence of industrial activity with cities and territories, highlighting the challenges and opportunities associated with this complex relationship. The Chair, created at the initiative of Isabelle Striga, President of Lubrizol France, and UniLaSalle, aims to study the reintegration of industry in cities, analyze the environmental impacts associated with its activity and understand the factors that support its presence. UniLaSalle, mobilizing teacher-researchers, students and interns, is tackling the societal, environmental and scientific issues raised by industry in the urban environment.
Diverse perspectives at the seminar
The seminar brought together speakers from a variety of backgrounds, providing rich perspectives on the issues addressed:
- Geohistorian Simon Edelblutte contextualized the evolution of industry in France, from its paternalistic beginnings to the reinvention of the factory town.
- Caroline Granier, project manager for the think tank La fabrique de l'industrie, presented the legislative arsenal for the country's reindustrialization and explored related land issues.
- Stéphane Firmin, deputy director of the AGHYLE research unit and teacher-researcher in toxicology and chemical risks, presented the results of analyses at the Lubrizol site, highlighting the evolution of microbial life in the soil following the fire in 2019.
The requalification of these surfaces was also raised by other speakers:
- Anne Barbillon from SecurAgri-AgroParisTech Innovation focused on the assessment and management of risks linked to soil pollution in urban agriculture.
- Alioune Dabo, scientific manager of the Terres en ville network, stressed the importance of land issues in the requalification of industrial areas.
- Finally, Fabiana Fabri, head of the USINOVERT Chair, and Loïc Sauvée, Director of UniLaSalle's INTERACT research unit, presented various urban agriculture projects in Rouen and Le Havre in recent years, noting the economic, social and environmental benefits associated with these achievements.
The second session, "Factories in the city: from social acceptability to citizen appropriability of industrial activities", explored the territorial integration of industrial activities, focusing on their social dimensions. It addressed the ambivalent nature of these activities, which provide jobs but are also sources of mistrust, underlining the growing importance of the "social pillar" in any approach to industrial location or redeployment.
Speakers :
- Caroline KAMATÉ, Program Manager FONCSI - Foundation for a culture of industrial safety
- Marc SENANT, Continuing Education Manager - ICSI - Institute for a Culture of Industrial Safety
- Corinne GENDRON, Full Professor, Department of Strategy, Social and Environmental Responsibility, School of Management Sciences, UQAM, Quebec, Canada
The day concluded with a round-table discussion bringing together innovative perspectives and actions for the sustainable conversion of industrial territories in urban environments, highlighting the crucial role of the ecological transition. It also provided an opportunity to recreate links between factories and territories through new social, ecological, economic and spatial approaches, bringing together various players involved in this transition to share and develop innovative solutions.
- Experts: 1 - Cécile GRAND, ADEME project manager; 2 - Pierre LENEL, Sociologist. - Independent researcher. 2.
- Métropole de Rouen: Christèle MORIN-DEFORCEVILLE, Deputy Director General for the Economy, Attractiveness, Influence and Solidarity. In charge of Pôle Développement et transitions économiques 3.
- Industry - Elise LAPERDRIX, General Delegate of the UPSIDE - Boucles de Rouen association 4.
- Civil society - Christophe MANDEREAU, Shifter member of the SHIFT PROJECT "Territorial Resilience Strategy" WG, Director of ARISTO consulting firm
November 2025: A long-awaited conclusion
The next meeting is scheduled for November 2025, when the USINOVERT Chair will have completed its mission. Lubrizol and UniLaSalle will then bring together all interested parties to share the conclusions of their fruitful partnership, making a significant contribution to the debate on the place of industrial activity in towns and territories.
