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Claire ChenuView profile

Professor

• Soil Organic Matter
• Carbon Dynamics
• Bio-organo-mineral Interactions
• +7 more

Claire Chenu is a Professor at AgroParisTech in the Department of Sciences and Engineering of Agriculture, Forestry, Water and Environment, and an INRA researcher specializing in soil science. Working between the Palace of Versailles and the Palace of Grignon, she has dedicated her career to understanding soil organic matter, which she considers a keystone of food security, climate change mitigation, and biodiversity. Her exceptional contributions earned her the INRA 2019 Agricultural Research Award. Dr. Chenu's educational background includes: PhD in Earth, Ocean, Space (1985, University of Paris 7) DEA in Soil Science and Management (1982, University of Paris 7) Natural Sciences Agrégation with Earth Sciences option (1981) Master's in Natural Sciences and Geology (1980, University of Paris 6) ENS Fontenay-aux-Roses (1978-1982) Professor Chenu's research focuses on the fundamental interactions between minerals and organic matter in soils. She pioneered innovative approaches using electron microscopy techniques to study soil structure and aggregation phenomena. Her groundbreaking work demonstrated that soil organization into aggregates controls carbon dynamics - a world-first discovery that positioned INRA teams at the forefront of soil science research. She continues to explore spatial heterogeneity of microbial activity in soil, examining hot spots of microbial activity and the fate of plant residues. Analysis of her recent publications reveals a strong focus on soil carbon dynamics, organic matter persistence, and carbon sequestration potential. Her work spans multiple scales from submicron to national assessments, addressing critical questions about how agricultural practices impact soil carbon storage. The research demonstrates increasing interdisciplinary approaches, combining soil science with climate science, environmental policy, and spatial analysis to address global challenges related to food security and climate change. Professor Chenu's distinguished career has been recognized with numerous prestigious awards: INRA 2019 Agricultural Research Award 2019 Philippe Duchaufour Prize from the European Geosciences Union 2017 Academic Palms 2016 Prize from the French Association for Soil Study Correspondent of the French Academy of Agriculture since 2015 2005 Jean Dufrenoy Prize from the French Academy of Agriculture Throughout her career, Professor Chenu has actively mentored students and led significant research initiatives. She has directed the Soil Science Unit at INRA (1998-2003) and led the Organic Matter team at the Laboratory of Biogeochemistry and Continental Ecosystem Ecology (2004-2010). She coordinated major projects including MEPSOM (ANR 2010-2013) on multi-scale modeling of organic matter degradation and currently participates in the European EIJP Soil project (2020-2024). Her leadership extends to policy engagement as she served as Special Ambassador for the International Year of Soils (2015) and participates in the '4 per 1000' Initiative for soil carbon sequestration. Professor Chenu currently works within the Functional Ecology and Agroecosystem Ecotoxicology unit (INRA, AgroParisTech), where her team continues to investigate microbial functioning in soil microhabitats through projects like Soilµ3D. Her research group employs innovative methodologies, sometimes humorously involving custom-modified equipment like 'soil sandwich cutters,' to examine soil slices and understand the complex relationships between soil structure, microbial activity, and carbon dynamics.

• Cardiovascular Physiology
• Perivascular Adipose Tissue
• Obesity Research
• +7 more

Dr. Sarah Withers is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Salford within the School of Science, Engineering & Environment. Her academic career spans over two decades since completing her PhD in 2005 at the University of Manchester, where she investigated the role of apoptosis in restenosis. She has established herself as a leading researcher in cardiovascular physiology with a specialized focus on perivascular adipose tissue function. Dr. Withers' research interests center on understanding the relationship between inflammation, adipose tissue, and vascular function across various disease states. Her work particularly examines how perivascular adipose tissue exerts anticontractile effects on blood vessels in healthy conditions and how this function is impaired in obesity, with implications for cardiovascular disease. She has made significant contributions to defining immune cell roles in adipose tissue function and identifying key signaling pathways involved in vascular regulation. Her publication record demonstrates consistent research productivity with 26 outputs spanning from 2014 to 2025, including high-impact journal articles in journals such as Physiological Reviews , Journal of Vascular Research , and Experimental Physiology . Her recent work shows expanding interests into host-pathogen interactions, antimicrobial resistance, and the connections between metabolic health and neurological conditions. Cardiovascular Physiology Research Perivascular Adipose Tissue Function Obesity-Related Vascular Dysfunction Host-Pathogen Interactions in Critical Care Translational Approaches to Metabolic Disease Dr. Withers actively supervises PhD students and teaches across multiple courses including Inflammation and Cardiovascular Diseases, Human Physiology, and Pharmacology. She has redesigned curriculum to better prepare students for contemporary research demands. Her public engagement efforts through initiatives like MicrobiHome demonstrate her commitment to science communication and making research accessible to broader audiences.

Frank GrelkaView profile

Research Fellow

• History of Poland
• History of Ukraine
• East Central European Jewish History
• +6 more

Dr. Frank Grelka is a Postdoctoral Researcher and Academic Staff Member at the Viadrina Center of Polish and Ukrainian Studies, European University Viadrina. Specializing in twentieth-century Eastern European history, he focuses on Poland, Ukraine, and Jewish historical experiences under occupation regimes. His educational background includes studies in theater, film, television studies, and history at Jagiellonian University in Cracow and Ruhr University Bochum, where he earned his Ph.D. with a dissertation on Ukrainian nationalism under German occupation. Dr. Grelka's research centers on Holocaust studies (particularly forced labor systems in the Lublin district), East Central European Jewish history, German-Polish relations, and provenance research related to Nazi/Soviet cultural looting. His methodology emphasizes multilingual archival analysis across Eastern European collections, revealing how infrastructure projects like waterworks camps functioned as critical nodes in early Holocaust implementation. Recent publications demonstrate evolving focus from Ukrainian nationalism studies toward Holocaust infrastructure and cultural restitution, with increasing emphasis on Polish-Jewish experiences under occupation. His current habilitation project examines waterworks camps as systematic components of genocide rather than isolated atrocities. At the European University Viadrina, Dr. Grelka teaches multilingual courses including 'The Voices of the Dead. Powerlessness, Poverty and Solidarity during the Holocaust' and 'Warszawa - oblicza Paryża Wschodu', emphasizing transnational perspectives on Eastern European history. His research projects on Nazi occupation policies and Soviet cultural restitution reflect sustained engagement with complex historical legacies across national boundaries.

Tom AvermaeteView profile

Professor

• Urban Design History
• Intercultural Urbanism
• Material Culture of Cities
• +4 more

Tom Avermaete serves as Professor of the History and Theory of Urban Design at ETH Zurich's Department of Architecture since 2018. His research investigates urban design through three interconnected lenses: cities as material culture, cross-cultural knowledge exchange beyond Euro-American paradigms, and urban development as a shared civic responsibility. His scholarly work centers on intercultural urbanism, examining how architects and planners operate across geographical and cultural boundaries. Key research strands include the historical development of urban commons, postcolonial urban histories (particularly in Africa), pandemic-era spatial adaptations, and alternative historiographic methods for global architectural history. His approach emphasizes the material dimensions of urban design while challenging Western-centric narratives. Avermaete's recent publications reveal consistent thematic clusters: pandemic urbanism (notably balcony studies), cross-cultural architectural exchanges (especially in postcolonial contexts), and reconceptualizing urban commons. His work frequently employs 'contact zone' theory to analyze knowledge transfer in global urban development, with significant focus on African and European case studies. As chair leader, he supervises research projects including 'Codes and Conventions for Future Zurich,' 'Exploring the Contact Zone,' and 'Building the Commons.' His team investigates qualitative densification strategies, historical urban models, and communal land use patterns across temporal and geographical contexts. Co-organized 'Transects through Alpine Water Landscapes' summer school (2020) Coordinated research studio on Zurich's land/water/green commons Developed 'Swiss Coloniality' research program examining knowledge circulation The chair functions as an international hub for critical urban studies, with members conducting fieldwork across Africa, Asia, and Europe while developing new methodologies for writing inclusive architectural histories that center non-Western perspectives and collective spatial practices.