Workshop TTI.5: the role of Mines Paris – PSL in public policies related to the ecological transition

An event for discussion and exchange

The ambition of this workshop is to give participants the opportunity to present their work, exchange ideas and collaborate in an environment conducive to discussion and reflection, so that they can make a significant contribution to the advancement of climate change research and to the collective understanding of the issues associated with mitigation, adaptation and biodiversity. These roundtables, structured around TTI.5’s research areas, enable in-depth, collective reflection on environmental debates.

Through their expertise and commitment, some of the School’s researchers play a key role in the development, implementation and evaluation of public policies. Collaboration between the various players and continuity of analysis are crucial to ensuring a successful ecological transition. The Transition Institute 1.5 promotes this integrated approach, where science and public policy feed off each other to tackle environmental challenges. By capitalizing on the thoughts and experiences shared at this event, Mines Paris – PSL is strengthening its position as a major player in the ecological transition and sustainable development.

Transition design: a theoretical and practical framework

Axis 1 of the “Designing the transition” research program aims to unravel the mechanisms and dynamics of transitions, enabling the identification of processes to be implemented in order to align as closely as possible with the goal of mitigation, while also taking into account adaptation-related issues. The School’s researchers working in this area are developing models inspired by various analogies, such as those drawn from the physics of phase transitions, or from a variety of contexts, such as the semiconductor industry, in order to

• reflect on new organizational and governance forms adapted to the desired transitions
• define clear objectives and assess the actual state of transition of technical, social, economic and political systems.

This axis also explores the forms of organization and collective dynamics that could make this transition towards a desirable future a reality.

The round table: an institutional reflection on the contribution of Mines Paris – PSL

The round table entitled “The place of École des Mines in public policies linked to ecological transition” was part of TTI.5’s Axis 1, “Designing the transition”. The aim was to discuss how Mines Paris – PSL can influence and support public policies on ecological transition. Benjamin Cabanes highlighted the importance of financial and accounting tools for organizing transdisciplinary research. Management sciences, with their focus on collective action, play a central role in transitions, not least by organizing transdisciplinary research, which remains an arduous task. The importance of these sciences lies in their ability to study the financial and accounting tools needed to support these transitions, rather than the actions of decision-makers themselves. For example, the 2021 Climate and Resilience Act, which imposes food and textile display criteria to compare the environmental impact of products, illustrated the challenges inherent in harmonizing measurement tools. Manufacturers and organizations, faced with the complexity of converging on a common calculation method, often find themselves at odds. Revisiting these tools to identify and correct their shortcomings is a major challenge if we are to ensure the coherence and effectiveness of public policies in the ecological transition.

Pierre Fleckinger addressed the complexity of the interface between researchers, public authorities and industrial players, underlining the growing importance of ex-post quantitative analysis in assessing the effectiveness of public policies. He stressed the need to design robust public policies, implement them rigorously and evaluate them methodically. From the point of view of economics and other social sciences, however, the exercise is not confined to ex-post evaluation – on the contrary. Public policy can be broken down into several distinct stages: design, implementation and ex-post evaluation. At Mines Paris – PSL, the role of researchers is also to provide the intellectual tools needed to define these policies. Managing this interface therefore calls for a method involving a multitude of players, where academics bring specific added value compared with consultants. While ex-post evaluation requires massive data, by definition restrospective, and the most sophisticated data science tools, upstream analysis requires both a detailed knowledge of the players involved, and a capacity for abstract conceptualization – before the public policy object itself exists: an approach specific to research.

Nadia Maïzi illustrated the challenges faced by scientists within commissions such as France Stratégie, where the models developed by various teams have often given rise to delicate debates with political decision-makers and industrialists. Constant, constructive dialogue between scientists and decision-makers is vital to ensure the relevance and effectiveness of public policies. Initiatives such as the assessment of the value of carbon for investment projects, where a variety of approaches revealed major divergences between the perspectives of engineers and economists, are worthy of note. Discussions highlighted the tensions between rigorous scientific methods and political expectations. This lack of consensus can lead to a disassociation of stakeholders from scientific results, arbitrary choices of figures, and ultimately, ineffective policies, generating frustration and feelings of inconsideration among researchers.

Challenges and opportunities for Mines Paris – PSL

The discussions also addressed the challenges of implementing effective public policies and assessing their impact. Pierre Fleckinger spoke of the importance of researchers’ proximity to industrial and political players, highlighting the need to manage this interface with finesse to avoid conflicts of interest. The work of etilab, which provides public and private players alike with their scientific analyses of ETIs (Établissements de Taille Intermédiaire) to guide their policies or simply understand how this category of company operates, reveals that ETIs account for 35% of employment, a reality often overlooked by government and industry alike, thus hampering the development of effective measures.

Researchers, with their ability to ask the right questions and ensure long-term continuity, are best placed to have a lasting influence on public policy. TTI.5, with its recognizable brand, embodies this continuity by providing reliable analysis and historical reference. Despite organizational challenges, there is a real difference in impact between career researchers and one-off consultants, revealing real added value and expertise from Mines Paris – PSL.

Nadia Maïzi, underlined the importance of rigorous evaluation of policy implementation and effectiveness. Highlighting the challenges faced by researchers confronted with the evaluation of their work by political and industrial players, she stressed the importance of researchers’ commitment and conviction in the face of pressure from lobbies. The identification and recognition of researchers by their affiliated institutions should also be emphasized. Indeed, Mines Paris – PSL enjoys a considerable aura, with external perception of the quality of research work being excellent, highlighting the importance of a solid institutional brand in the academic and scientific world.