# What are the values that prevent action to reduce the C footprint of research activities?

Laurent Jeanneau, Emilie Jardé, Maïwenn Corrignan

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## To cite this version:

Laurent Jeanneau, Emilie Jardé, Maïwenn Corrignan. What are the values that prevent action to reduce the C footprint of research activities?. 3rd OZCAR TERENO Conference, Sep 2025, Paris, France. hal-05307361

HAL Id: hal-05307361

https://hal.science/hal-05307361v1

Submitted on 10 Oct 2025

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# What are the values that prevent action to reduce the C footprint of research activities?

Laurent Jeanneau<fnref n="1" />, Emilie Jardé<fnref n="1" /> and Maïwenn Corrignan<fnref n="2" />

In the face of climate change, it is necessary to rapidly reduce our greenhouse gases emissions. For scientific research, GHG emissions must be divided by a factor 5 by 2050. Against this backdrop, the French research community has organized itself around the LABOS 1.5 collective by developing a tool for calculating the GHG assessment of laboratories, structuring the community, sharing best practices and setting up experiments.

However, providing information is not enough, as the knowledge hypothesis is the sole driver of change is not borne out. Indeed, achieving such **reductions in the C footprint of experimental laboratories** implies rethinking why and how we do research, and these questions come into **opposition with our values**, with what we think is the “right” way to do research. This opposition creates cognitive dissonance, to which each individual can respond with a range of behaviors from denial to action to rejection or denigration.

**Identifying these values may be a first step towards sustainable research.**

## METHODS

During the 5th congress of the French Organic Matter Network, held in March 2024, a collective workshop brought 46 volunteer participants to reflect on these values. The workshop was introduced by a short presentation on the national context, the nature of the C footprint of an environmental science laboratory and the mechanism of cognitive dissonance explaining the place of values in the mechanisms of cognition. Then participants were asked to reflect in small groups (6 to 7 people) for 1h on two questions. The answers were classified according to their nature into four categories (Values, Mitigation strategies, Observations and Off topic) and those identified as values were grouped by topic and sub-topic.

# What beliefs/values do we hold that are in dissonance with reducing the environmental impact of research?

## IN RELATION TO OUR WORKING METHODS ?

<figure><img src="image_2.png" /></figure>

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■ Values
■ Mitigation strategies
■ Observations
■ Off topic

<figure><img src="image_4.png" /></figure>

## IN RELATION TO THE ORGANIZATION OF RESEARCH ?

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The pie charts represent the distribution of answers according to the four categories.

The barplots represent the number of answers identified as values according to their main topic.

<figure><img src="image_6.png" /></figure>

The newer the equipment, the better the quality of the result produced (4/6). « equipment race for innovation » « high tech = high concept ».

“Research is a priority”

The competition is divided into two topics: **recognition**: « We manage the competition. The important thing is visibility ».

the ever-increasing « race for data, race for projects, race for publications ».

The values on the protocols relate to effectiveness (5/6).

« It's cleaner to work with new equipment »

« Less harmful alternatives are less effective and more expensive ».

“Wanting to do cool things for yourself”

The theme of “more is always better” also applies to data production: « the more data I acquire, the better »

<figure><img src="image_7.png" /></figure>

The values relating to **structuring** focus on **efficiency** (5/13):

« A highly structured landscape makes research more efficient »

« Formal, extensive networks are the most effective way to develop research and visibility »

and on **administration** (4/13):

« Control and constraints imposed by the administration »

« Administrative burden »

« Freedom of research, not inhibiting creativity with low-carbon constraints »

The values relating to competition focus on **excellence** (3/8): « Competition is necessary and generates excellence ».

« Money-based management is more effective than basic funding »

The values relating to **assessment** focus on **indicators** (3/8):

« Quantitative rather than qualitative assessment »

and the **internationalization**

« Research evaluation: a lot of international collaboration is needed; it's better that way ».

## IN A NUTSHELL ...

Among the values/beliefs identified by colleagues as **barriers** to reducing the environmental impact of research are **technosolutionism**, the **digitization** of work, the **ever-increasing** data, publication, grants... and **competition** as a driving force behind innovation.

## ... AND TO CRACK IT !

The end of the workshop was dedicated to an **utopian projection** with the question: « What would a research laboratory be like in a society that had made its social/energy/environmental transitions? ».

Here, the values put forward are :

Respect

Mutualization

Slow science

Kindness

Organizational freedom

How to support these changes in values in order to find ways to conduct research sustainably ?

Do you have any ideas or practices that could contribute ?

<footnote n="1">¹ Univ Rennes, CNRS, Géosciences Rennes, UMR 6118, 35000 Rennes, France</footnote>

<footnote n="2">² Univ Rennes, Direction de la Transition Environnementale et Sociale, 35000 Rennes, France</footnote>