Cyril Castanet

Cyril Castanet is Professor of Geography at Paris 8 University Vincennes-Saint-Denis, serving as Director of the Geography Department (2022–present) and member of the Faculty of Studies, Research and Engineering in Territories, Environments and Societies. He holds dual laboratory affiliations as full member of the Social Dynamics and Space Recomposition Laboratory (LADYSS) and associate member of the Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP). His research spans three key geographical zones: Western Europe's Loire watershed, Mesoamerican Guatemala, and North Africa's Oued Sebou watershed.

His work centers on hydrosystem dynamics and morphogenesis of alluvial/karst/deltaic plains in response to anthropogenic and geodynamic forces (climate, eustatism). He investigates long-term human-environment-landscape interactions focusing on anthropization, water/soil resources, risks, and heritage. Methodologically, he pioneers LiDAR, GIS, and Webmapping applications for spatiotemporal analysis of environmental dynamics across Holocene, Last Glacial, and Anthropocene periods, with emphasis on Europe, Mesoamerica, and Mediterranean regions.

Castanet leads major international programs including NAACHTUN (Maya capital anatomy, 2010–2026), MAYANAT (Maya socio-ecosystem dynamics, 2020–2021), and AGES (Loire hydrosystem evolution, 2012–2016), securing funding from ANR, EU, Pacunam Foundation, and water agencies. He co-supervised A. Vayssière's 2018 PhD on Cher River fluvial metamorphosis and advises Master's theses in socio-ecological systems and heritage.

As elected CNRS Section 31 member and former French Geomorphological Society treasurer (2014–2018), he shapes national research policy while coordinating LabEx DynamiTe working groups on environmental changes and risk dynamics. His teaching spans geomorphology, hydrology, soils, and geoarchaeology at Bachelor's level, and socio-ecological systems innovation at Master's level.