Two main themes stand out:

This theme brings together specialists in paleoecology, ecology, biology, archaeology and Quaternary geology, who reconstruct ancient environments and climates (physical and biological components) using a multidisciplinary and multi-conceptual systemic approach.

The existing scientific axes will be maintained and strengthened through collaborations with:
1) geologists and geneticists in order to integrate biomolecular markers and sedimentary DNA which will allow us to specify, on a taxonomic scale finer than that delivered by biological markers, the biodiversity of ancient ecosystems and agrosystems; 2) statisticians and geochemists in order to specify the climatic signal delivered by independent biological markers (insects, pollen, bacteria and archae) of the most remarkable sedimentary series such as those studied in high temporal resolution.

We concentrate our efforts on sites located in continental and insular environments in the Mediterranean, Middle-East and Central Asia, which correspond to areas where climate-man-environment relations have been crucial for the structuring of landscapes, ecosystems and the development of agriculture. We will also work on some sites in Western Europe and the boreal regions of North America to improve knowledge on the impact of global climate change on ecosystem dynamics.

Recent environmental changes (climate, land and sea use, pollution, etc.) pose considerable risks to the functioning of ecosystems, biodiversity conservation and human well-being. Current scenarios of different environmental forcings (urbanization, artificialisation and fragmentation of natural environments, greenhouse gases, agricultural and fisheries practices, etc.) all provide indications of aggravated risks in the future for human interactions Ecosystems. Given the importance of these environmental issues, research methods and the evaluation of trajectories leading to resistant and/or resilient systems have yet to be developed. This research involves socio-ecological approaches with better consideration of observations, results of controlled experiments, and numerical modeling.

This field of research is particularly important in the Mediterranean region where the various predictive studies suggest that environmental changes will be particularly acute, in particular in the areas of socio-economic and biodiversity changes, due to global warming leading to increased water stress, agricultural intensification, rising sea levels and acidification.

Advances in biogeographic and environmental modeling make it possible to compare the spatial patterns of the functioning of the socio-ecosystem and the distribution of biodiversity, both in retrospective approaches (weight of climatic and human impacts of the past, the importance of refuge zones) and predictive.

All this research is integrated in a context of interaction with social and political actors, at national and international level. The transition to a more sustainable ecological resource use, both short and long term, will require the recognized scientific expertise of the members of this team.

Team leaders : E. Gandouin, E. Brisset

Permanent staff

ALBERT Cécile (CR CNRS, HDR)
BELKACEM DOUME Dahvya (TCE CNRS)
BONDEAU Alberte (CR CNRS)
BRISSET Elodie (CR CNRS)
CHARRAT Eliane (TCE AMU)
CRAMER Wolfgang (DR CNRS, HDR)
DJAMALI Morteza (CR CNRS)
GANDOUIN Emmanuel (MC AMU, HDR)
GUIBAL Frédéric (CR CNRS)
GUITER Frédéric (MC AMU)
LERICHE Agathe (MC AMU)
LEYDET Michelle (ASI AMU)
LEYS Bérangère (CR CNRS)
MAGNIN Frédéric (CR CNRS)
MEDAIL Frédéric (PR AMU, HDR)
MIRAMONT Cécile (MC AMU)
PONEL Philippe (DR CNRS, HDR)
TALON Brigitte (MC AMU, HDR)
XUEREF-REMY Irène (PR AMU, HDR)

Invited researcher

DEHGHANI Mehdi (2023). Lecturer at the Department of Plant Sciences, University of Tehran (Iran) - VEGOPOL: Pollen-vegetation calibration in the Zagros Mountains (Iran).
STEVENS Lora (2023). Professor at the California State University Long Beach (USA) - Lateglacial to Holocene hydrological variation of Lake Maharlu, Iran.

Postdoctoral staff / ATER

ADROIT Benjamin (2022-2023). Postdoc at the Swedish Museum of Natural History, and associated researcher at IMBE-PPM.

PhD students

• ARGOTE DELUQUE Karolina (2021-2024). Réponse des communautés de microarthropodes à la fragmentation de l’habitat : de l’expérimentation de contrôle à l’application in situ. Co-direction : C. Albert (CNRS-IMBE), M. Santonja (AMU-IMBE), B. Geslin (AMU-IMBE). Bourse d’excellence du gouvernement colombien – COLFUTURO.
• BADEAU Justin (2021-2024). Chroniques et analyses spatiales des feux de forêt de pin laricio en Corse : interactions avec le climat et les pratiques sylvopastorales dans une perspective de gestion durable. Co-direction : F. Guibal (CNRS-IMBE), C. Carcaillet (LEHNA), P. Fulé (North. Arizona Univ). ENDEMYS.
• BOSIO Pauline (2022-2025). Caractérisation des sources anthropogéniques de méthane et de fuites potentielles d’hydrogène dans le cadre de la transition environnementale en région SUD-PACA. Supervision : I. Xueref-Remy (AMU-CNAP-IMBE).
• CARTEREAU Manuel (2019-2022). Extinction or persistence of warm drylands tree species face to global change? Biogeographic modelling approach and conservation genomics applied to dragon trees. Co-direction: F. Médail (AMU-IMBE), A. Baumel (AMU-IMBE) et A. Leriche (AMU-IMBE). Bourse doctorale ED 251 (Aix-Marseille Université).
• GILLET Cléa (2022-2025). Evolution des littoraux de l’Orb, 7000 ans d’interactions environnement/sociétés. Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3. Co-dir. : B. Devillers (ASM), E. Brisset (CNRS-IMBE). Bourse Région Occitanie.
• FINOCCHIARO Marie (2020-2023). Conservation de la flore face au réchauffement climatique : caractériser, cartographier et évaluer le rôle des microrefuges en région Sud-PACA. Codirection : F. Médail (AMU-IMBE), E. Meineri (AMU-IMBE). Bourse région PACA.
• GAMBA Emma (2020-2023). Dynamique forestière et activités humaines dans les Préalpes du sud. Approche interdisciplinaire et diachronique sur la longue durée des interactions entre l’Homme et la forêt sur le long terme. Co-direction : B. Talon (AMU-IMBE), D. Isoardi (CNRS-CCJ). Bourse doctorale ED 251 (Aix-Marseille Université).
• HAMONIC François ((2019-2022). Algorithmes pour la conservation et la restauration des habitats et paysages écologiques. Co-direction : Y. Vaxès (AMU-LIS), B. Couëtoux (AMU-LIS), C. Albert (AMU-IMBE). Bourse Région PACA.
• HUBERSON Natan (2022-2025). Réponse des populations et communautés d’arthropodes aptère à la perte et à la fragmentation du couvert en galets au sein d’un paysage dans la steppe de la Crau. Direction : C. Albert, (CNRS-IMBE), Co-direction : O. Blight (Avignon Uni-IMBE), B. Geslin (AMU-IMBE). Bourse European Research Counsil “SCALED”.
• LELANDAIS Ludovic (2019-2022). Etude de bilan du CO2 atmosphérique en région SUD-PACA : vérification des émissions fossiles et des puits naturels de CO2 dans le secteur géographique de la métropole Aix-Marseille-Provence. Co-direction : I. Xueref-Remy (AMU-CNAP-IMBE), S. Sauvage (IMT LILLE). Bourse Région PACA.
• NGUYEN Van Binh (2021-2024). Effet environnemental des gros impacts générateurs de champ de tectite au Quaternaire et méga-feux associés. Co-direction: P. Rochette (AMU-CEREGE), V. Andrieu (AMU-CEREGE), Encadrant : B. Leys (CNRS-IMBE). Chercheur invité, Ecole de Géologie et des Mines d’Hanoï (Vietnam), Bourse Gouvernementale Vietnam.
• RIANDET Aurélie (2019-2022). Variabilité de la hauteur de la couche limite atmosphérique et son lien avec l’îlot de chaleur urbain dans la métropole Aix-Marseille et caractérisation des sources de CO2 autour de l’étang de Berre Direction : Irène Xueref-Remy (AMU-CNAP-IMBE). Financement ANR projet AMm-COoL.

Former members

• SHEISHA Hader (PhD Student, dir : DJAMALI M., 2022)
• BOUREL Benjamin (ATER, Aix-Marseille University, 2021/2022)
• AUBERT Cyril (PhD student, dir. GANDOUIN E., 2019)
• BILOVARU Alexandra (PhD student, dir. ANDRIEU-PONEL V., 2019)
• BLAISE Chloé (PhD student, dir. PONEL P., BLIGHT O., 2021).
• BRASCHI Julie (PhD student, dir. PONEL P., BUISSON E., 2021)
• CASAZZA Gabriele (Postdoctoral researcher, dir. MÉDAIL F., 2018-2019)
• CILLEROS Kevin (Postdoctoral researcher, dir. LERICHE A., 2019)
• FERREIRA-DOMINGUEZ Alba (PhD student, dir. GUIBAL F., 2019)
• FUSCO Johanna (Postdoctoral researcher, dir. BONDEAU A., 2018-2019)
• HERVÉ Mathilde (PhD, dir. ALBERT CH, 2018 ; Postdoctoral researcher, dir. ALBERT CH, 2019)
• MAGNE Gwenael (PhD student, dir. GANDOUIN E., 2019)
• NATHAN J. Brian (Postdoctoral researcher, dir. XUEREF-RÉMY I., 2017- 2019)
• POHER Yoan (PhD student, dir. PONEL P., MEDAIL F., GUITER F., 2017) - Postdoctoral researcher (dir. CRAMER W., 2019)
• POURKERMAN Madjid (PhD student, dir. DJAMALI M., 2019)
• RASHIDIAN Elnaz (Postdoctoral researcher, dir. DJAMALI M., 2020)
• SHINDO Lisa (Postdoctoral researcher, dir. GUIBAL F., 2019)

The publications of the team PPM are available in Open Access in the HAL database

2023