The ANR MEDSALT project aims to consolidate and expand a scientific network recently formed with the purpose to use scientific drilling to address the causes, timing, emplacement mechanisms and consequences of the largest and most recent 'salt giant' on Earth: the late Miocene (Messinian) salt deposit in the Mediterranean basin. After obtaining the endorsement of the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) on a Multiplatform Drilling Proposal (umbrella proposal) in early 2015, the network is planning to submit a site-specific drilling proposal to drill a transect of holes with the R/V Joides Resolution in the evaporite-bearing southern margin of the Balearic promontory in the Western Mediterranean - the aim is to submit the full proposal before the IODP dealine of April 1st 2017, following the submission of a pre-proposal on October 1st 2015. Four key issues will be addressed: 1) What are the causes, timing and emplacement mechanisms of the Mediterranean salt giant ? 2) What are the factors responsible for early salt deformation and fluid flow across and out of the halite layer ? 3) Do salt giants promote the development of a phylogenetically diverse and exceptionally active deep biosphere ? 4) What are the mechanisms underlying the spectacular vertical motions inside basins and their margins ? Our nascent scientific network will consit of a core group of 22 scientists from 10 countries (7 European + USA + Japan + Israel) of which three french scientists (G. Aloisi, J. Lofi and M. Rabineau) play a leading role as PIs of Mediterranean drilling proposals developed within our initiative. Support to this core group will be provided by a supplementary group of 21 scientists that will provide critical knowledge in key areas of our project. The ANR MEDSALT network will finance key actions that include: organising a 43 participants workshops to strengthen and consolidate the Mediterranean drilling community, supporting the participation of network scientists to seismic well site-survey cruises, organising meetings in smaller groups to work on site survey data and finance trips to the US to defend our drilling proposal in front of the IODP Environmental Protection and Safety Panel (EPSP). The MEDSALT drilling initiative will impact the understanding of issues as diverse as submarine geohazards, sub-salt hydrocarbon reservoirs and life in the deep subsurface. This is a unique opportunity for the French scientific community to play a leading role, next to our international partners, in tackling one of the most intellectually challenging open problems in the history of our planet.

NICH-Arctic proposes transdisciplinary investigations of Human, Cultural and Environment interactions in the Arctic-subarctic North Atlantic in a context of climate change and industrialization. The Arctic-Subarctic coastal regions are subject to large amplitude changes of climate and sea ice conditions, which play a vital role in accessibility through navigation and livelihood of the cultural communities since prehistoric times. The history of this regions is however poorly documented from instrumental data. Disciplinary knowledge has been developed, but with limited communication across disciplines, and between scientists and stakeholders. Hence, it appears urgent to improve sectorial exchanges to develop an integrated perspective on climate, habitat, archeology and culture in the context of accelerated changes in the Arctic and subarctic areas. With the aim to assess on resilience and vulnerability of the Arctic-subarctic North Atlantic the project will integrate multidisciplinary information according to three foci: (i) natural variability of sea ice, climate and vegetation, (ii) adaptation of local human populations to their habitat and (iii) cultural representation and perceptions of the natural environments by local and outside-of-the-region populations. The target areas include the regions of northern Nunavik, Nain in Labrador, Nuuk in Greenland and Svalbarðshreppur, Iceland, where NICHArctic team members have gained experience and are willing to further conduct transdisciplinary studies. The variety of different climatic and environmental conditions in the study areas will permit to compare adaptation strategies and cultural representations of climate changes in polar settings. Expected outcomes include (i) the setting of a well-documented database of climate and ecological changes in the study area, (ii) an integrated documentation of climate, environmental and cultural variations over decades to centuries, (iii) resilience assessment in the study areas from both environmental and human points of view, (iii) a series of workshops and conferences involving researchers and local populations, and (iv) dissemination (translation, publication of books and articles, website, videos, etc.) of knowledge to scientific communities and the general public.

The arctic environment is changing at an alarming rate and it is essential to understand the consequences of such changes on arctic biodiversity. Longterm monitoring programmes of key arctic species are the backbone of scientific research aiming at studying these ecological consequences. The Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program of the Arctic Council recommends that such monitoring should be conducted and coordinated at a pan-arctic scale, and should involve indigenous participants. However, these monitoring programmes are still mainly operated by national research institutions, with a very uneven distribution of study sites across the Arctic and little involvement of local communities. In this context our project will handle the following key questions: What is the best, most efficient survey design for pan-arctic monitoring? Are current monitoring plans adequate, and how can they be improved? How can participatory citizen science best contribute to pan-Arctic long-term monitoring? What are the current participatory initiatives, and how can they be improved? We will focus on land vertebrates and seabirds which are acknowledged indicator species of arctic change and emblematic species for local communities. Using interviews of representatives of institutions funding arctic research and of representatives of arctic communities, we will assess their perceptions and expectations of pan-arctic, long-term participatory research activities on land vertebrates and seabirds. Further, we will use pan-arctic data on existing monitoring programmes of land vertebrates and seabirds, to test the hypothesis that this network of monitoring sites is unevenly distributed relative to environmental gradients. These analyses will allow us to propose a revised, ecologically sound network of key monitoring sites for land vertebrates and seabirds, that allows the most efficient study of these key species on a pan-arctic scale while fully involving local communities in participatory citizen science programmes.

Preserving marine biodiversity whilst maintaining the provisioning, cultural and regulating ecosystem services associated with marine fisheries in a context of global changes is a key challenge. While the need for Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management (EBFM), to ensure fisheries sustainability and resilience, is widely accepted, ecosystem-based approaches are still not operational for the management of European fisheries. SEASIDE will develop an innovative set of socio-ecosystem modeling, evaluating and projective tools to implement the next generation EBFM. Combining a participatory approach, Eco-Viability Analysis with the use of Models of Intermediate Complexity, SEASIDE will provide an integrated and transdisciplinary decision-support approach, enriching the evidence base and the transfer of science into advice. We will account for the multi-species, multi-trophic, multi-sector, dynamic and uncertain nature of fisheries systems, as well as the tradeoffs between the multiple ecological, economic and social objectives underpinning EBFM. We will identify and compare eco-viable management strategies in eight contrasting case studies ranging from the Arctic through temperate to tropical seas. We will draw on the multidisciplinary expertise in ecology, social sciences, modelling and participatory research of 26 academic and non-academic partners from 12 countries and including JRC, ICES, FAO and WWF. We will integrate this work within both existing regional advisory bodies, and relevant local stakeholder arenas, to bridge the gap between knowledge on the dynamics of marine social-ecological systems and EBFM. SEASIDE will effectively disseminate the project methodological, modeling and quantitative results via the production of generic software, data sets and evaluations, as well as guidelines adapted to the needs of stakeholders at multiple spatial scales. SEASIDE outputs will thus help improve policy coherence and implementation for sustainable European fisheries.