Montpellier 2024

The intensive workshop in Montpellier is hosted by the Chair in World Food Systems (WFS) of the Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement, the institut Agro. The programme will be organised in collaboration with Terres en Ville (one of the project partners) and INRAe (Umr Innovation, Montpellier, France) and the municipality of Montpellier.

L'agriparc des Bouisses

The focus area will be the development of L'agriparc des Bouisses, Montpellier, with sub-themes such as "the food environment", and "water management". The concertation phase for the Agriparc is still ongoing and the workshop aim is to provide additional ideas, prototypes, and elaborations of the Agricparc.

An Agriparc is an agricultural park included in the urban space, combining different functions around agriculture. It is a landscaped place of production, marketing in short circuit, a refuge for fauna and flora, but also a place of green leisure open to all. Subjected to intense urbanization and heavy automobile traffic, the inhabitants of the western sector of Montpellier have suffered a degradation of their quality of life and their environment. With the Agriparc des Bouisses project, the ambition is both to create a new place of attraction for the entire sector and to offer the inhabitants a quality landscape and natural area. An innovative participatory approach has been launched with the inhabitants so that they can contribute to the Agriparc project (on which the teams of landscape designers, urban planners, and urban agriculture specialists will work).

The workshop will take place from July 05 until July 12, 2024. With travel days on July 4 and July 13, with the following programme.

Preliminary programme

Thursday, July 4 (travel day)

19.00 Welcoming dinner

Friday, July 5

Morning at l’Institut Agro Welcoming / Ice breaking / Introductions of the participants / Introductions on the programme and food system sustainability / on the metropole.

Lunch at L’Institut Agro canteen

Afternoon at Hôtel de Ville Introductions on the policies of the city on agriculture, food, agroecology with discussion. Introduction on l’Agriparc des Bouisses and the participation process

Samedi, July 6

Morning - at Bouisses Study tour in the area of l’agriparc des Bouisses with transect/analysis of landscape elements under guidance of researchers, civil society and municipality.

Lunch & debate at the villa des Grèzes

Afternoon at L’Institut Agro Inroductions and discussion on Les Bouisses, the general aims of Agriparcs and examples of agriparcs in Europe

Sunday, July 7

Exploring Montpellier and guided tour of the city and the Maguelone cathedral.

Self organised lunch

Monday July 8 at l’Institut Agro

Morning Working groups with structured work following the principles of Design Thinking.

Lunch at L’Institut Agro canteen

Afternoon Working groups continue and a lecture ‘les agriparcs : un maillage entre l’agriculture urbaine et péri-urbaine’ End of the afternoon : flash plenary group presentations on the results of the day.

Tuesday, July 9 at l’Institut Agro

Morning Working groups continue and a lecture ‘Les espaces agriurbains dans des métropoles françaises et européennes’

Lunch at L’Institut Agro canteen

Afternoon Working groups continue and an activity on campus End of the afternoon : flash plenary group presentations on the results of the day.

Wednesday July 10 at l’Institut Agro

Morning starting at l’Institut Agro, followed by a study trip Introduction on the network of agriparcs of Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole Study trip to the agriparcs de Montpellier Métropole : La Condamine, Le Mas Nouguier, Le Domaine du Viviers.

Thursday, July 11 at l’Institut Agro

Morning Working groups develop plans Lecture on the Food environments: the Montpellier case

Lunch at L’Institut Agro canteen

Afternoon Working groups: preparing presentations

Friday, July 12 at l’Institut Agro

Morning Final presentations of the working groups with invited persons Final wrap up, evaluation and good bye lunch

Saturday, July 13 (travel day)

Travel back