Metaprogrammes: An interdisciplinary approach to meet our challenges

The aim of our metaprogrammes is to:

• develop  interdisciplinary research and widen the frontiers of science to respond to major issues of science and/or society;
• form new scientific communities and support them in those subject areas; 
• enhance the visibility of INRAE research at the national, European and international levels and strengthen its impact.

For example, one of our metaprogrammes, Holoflux, has made it possible to explore something we had never before studied as such, i.e. the unit formed by a living being - animal, human or plant - and the microorganisms that coexist with it. The goal is to understand the relationships between hosts and their microorganisms, and the latter's effects on their host's health, for example.

Each metaprogramme is based on a founding document that sets out its scientific directions. This document is approved and monitored by the INRAE Management Board and is submitted to the Institute's Scientific Advisory Board. Over periods ranging from five to eight years, the financial support INRAE provides makes it possible to develop interdisciplinary actions such as scientific initiatives and the creation of scientific networks, along with interdisciplinary research projects and funding for doctoral theses.

GABI is particularly involved in :   

• HOLOFLUX: Holobionts and microbial flux within agrifood systems (2019)
• SANBA: Farm animal health and welfare (2019)
• METABIO: Scaling up organic agriculture (2019)    
• SYALSA: Food systems and human health (2021)
• DIGIT-BIO: Digital biology to explore and predict living organisms (2021)
• CLIMAE: Managing climate change in agriculture and forests: Adaptation and mitigation (2021)