The Foresight Committee, the Institute's central body, is comprised of seven internationally renowned experts who contribute an external view from a variety of professional angles and who define the overall direction for discussions.
The Institute also relies on an extensive network of researchers and experts around the globe.
Its activities are based on three instruments: the Foresight Research Program, international conferences and publications.
Since 2001, Institut Veolia Environnement, a center for reflection and debate, has been contributing to enriching ideas within the company and to its foresight vision for the major challenges facing the planet.
The Institute addresses issues at the interface between society and the environment such as climate change, urbanization, along with environment-related economic, sociological and cultural questions.
A tool for foresight reflection
The Foresight Research Program
With its academic partners, the Institute develops a research program addressing the main environmental trends.
Examples of recent studies are:
- "Indoor air pollution in India" with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA);
- "Comparing the carbon inventories of European cities" with the College of Europe (Belgium) and the Wuppertal Institute (Germany).
After this study, the Institute continued its reflection on sustainable cities. In 2011, a new study conceived together with the UNEP focused on the "environmental performance of cities" and the industries or sectors to integrate in a city to establish an appropriate measure as well as an inventory of existing or missing indicators. The findings were presented in Gwangiu, South Korea, late 2011 during the Green City, Better City Summit.
International conferences
Through its Environmental Foresight Conference program, the Institute is committed to contributing to debate and discussion each time about a different topic and in a different geographic region.
After three editions abroad (India, Canada and China), the Institutes proposed its 6th Conference in Paris on June 27-28, 2011 jointly with the Agence Française de Développement. This event gathered 600 participants and 70 speakers on the theme "Reconciling poverty eradication and quality of the environment: what are the innovative solutions?".
The Institute wishes to expand the scope of this Conference at the forthcoming United Nations Summit on Sustainable Development in Rio 20 June 2012 in Brazil. Brice Lalonde, Executive Coordinator of the UN Rio +20 has the opportunity to close the Conference in preparation for Rio +20.
Publications
In order to achieve its aim of capitalizing on and sharing experience and knowledge, the Institute publishes two original scientific journals: S.A.P.I.EN.S (interdisciplinary surveys and perspectives about environment-related topics) and FACTS Reports (field action science).
Through opportunities such as this, the Institut works with its partners to contribute to the reflections of international bodies on issues relating to a sustainable common future.
