Rational: Despite the development of unofficialy occupied living-places ("squats") in France and Europe, there is a lack of scientific data concerning these invisible living situations and precarious housing conditions that are difficult to reach. Hypotheses: People living in unofficialy occupied places in the city of Marseille are numerous and heterogeneous, combining complex life and health histories with precarious and risky living conditions. Objectives: This project is co-constructed by associations and community organizations, involved people, public authorities and scientific laboratorie. It aims to estimate the population of people living in squats in the city and to describe their pathways. The main objective is to understand their living conditions, to identify barriers and levers to access to essential social and health services, and to characterize existing resources and empowerment strategies. Methodology: The project will use a mixed, participatory and community-based methodology with: 1) a quantitative part using Respondent Driven Sampling (RDS) and a questionnaire survey (n=400) associated with the capture/recapture method and; 2) a qualitative part based on semi-structured interviews (n=30), focus groups and observations with the use of mind mapping. Expected results: This cross-analysis of statistical and empirical data aims to improve understanding of the situations of people living in squats, and to propose targeted actions to reduce risks and vulnerabilities and empower residents. The results of the triangulation and integration of quantitative and qualitative data will be discussed with all project partners, and will be the subject of scientific publications and presentations to the different stakeholders - institutional, community, associative and academic. This interdisciplinary and intersectoral (science-society) project is in line with the major priority issues of INSERM (Public Health), CNRS (Health and Environment) and INSHS (Shared Sciences and Experimental Approaches in SHS).

While France benefits from abundant and cheap food, and purchasing power is steadily increasing according to public statistics, food poverty has been increasing in this country as well as in other European countries for the last 10 years. To elucidate this paradox, this project implements research on food poverty in France. First, it develops an original statistical survey in general population, in partnership with Crédoc, in order to characterize and measure food poverty. In addition to this survey, ethnographic surveys are conducted at a territorial level, linking household budget adjustment strategies, material and temporal supply practices, solidarity and social protection issues. This project aims at renewing the view on the poor and their living conditions in rich countries by identifying the conditions for a transition to healthy and sustainable diets. By proposing a sociology of poverty based on living conditions, it contributes to the current debates on social solidarity, particularly around the establishment of a social security of food.

The DIGAP project confronts a problem observed in the field not only by its project leader, but also by Malagasy partners and humanitarian actors: the difficulty of anticipating humanitarian crisis situations linked to droughts. DIGAP argues that a consideration of groundwater status is crucial to anticipating water scarcity-related humanitarian crises in semi-arid regions that are almost devoid of surface water. In fact for some years environmental markers have provided scientific evidence on the hydric situation (e.g. rainfall deficit, drop in piezometric levels). We seek to determine how we can better use water status and more specifically groundwater status, in anticipating humanitarian crises. First (WP1), we will develop an innovative methodology based on remote sensing and modeling to characterize groundwater dynamics at the regional scale in an area that lacks basic documentation. Second (WP2), we will quantify the associations among various environmental factors and food security, in addition to human health indicators through the use of a multi-level epidemiological modeling approach. We expect that our results will unravel the effects of environmental and anthropic factors in the development of drought-related humanitarian crises and thereby sustainably strengthen Madagascar's early warning system.

The goal of the TRUST Project is to catalyse a global collaborative effort to improve adherence to high ethical standards around the world. Achieving equity in international research is one of the pressing concerns of the 21st century. Many international groups and organisations are working on governance frameworks and standards to guide research activities after progressive globalization. However, their efforts are disparate and lacking a guiding vision. In an interdisciplinary collaboration between multi-level ethics bodies, policy advisors, civil society organisations, funding organisations, industry and academic scholars from a range of disciplines, this project combines long-standing, highly respected efforts to build international governance structures with new exciting network opportunities between Europe, India, Sub-Saharan Africa, China and Russia. TRUST will open up new horizons in improving adherence to high ethical standards in research globally. The project's strategic output are three sets of tools based on participatory engagement covering all continents: (1) a global code of conduct for funders, (2) a fair research contracting on-line tool and (3) a compliance and ethics follow-up tool, which takes limited resources into account.