BRIDGES Schools

BRIDGES Schools are interdisciplinary training programs that bring together researchers, students, and practitioners to address major issues related to the study and management of the commons. These schools promote a socio-ecosystemic approach and address scientific methods, concepts, and impacts. In an interactive and international setting, they combine lectures, practical workshops, and field trips to promote learning, science-society dialogue, and the creation of new collaborative networks.

Objectives

The schools aim to:

Acclimate participants to scientific methods for studying marine social-ecological systems
Enable academic participants to better understand the realities and needs of practitioners
Promote exchanges on forefront knowledge and methods, in an interactive and less formal setting than traditional academic training.
Provide a place for networking and developing collaborations for future joint projects.

Target audiences

BRIDGES schools are primarily aimed at:

Students and young researchers recruited as part of the program (master’s students, doctoral students, post-docs, engineers).
Students from universities in the southwestern Indian Ocean region
BRIDGES partners and other professionals.

Places may also be available for researchers or students involved in projects not related to BRIDGES.

Details

Duration: 1 to 2 weeks, in English.
Format: scientific conferences, practical workshops, tutorials, and field trips.
Supervision: international experts and experienced researchers.
The schools are free of charge.
Participants are selected on the basis of their skills, motivations, and academic or professional needs.

We are open to and seeking collaborations with existing programs, universities, academic actors and other contributors to organize future schools in the region, in order to advance science in the service of biodiversity conservation and fair and sustainable fishing in the Indian Ocean.

Please feel free to contact us to discuss this further :

Sophie.boutin@cnrs.fr

Sarah.bareigts@cnrs.fr

In 2025

September 2025

BRIDGES x WIOMSA School 2025

Strengthening interdisciplinary approaches for the resilience of marine social-ecological systems in the Western Indian Ocean

Organized from September 22 to 26, 2025, ahead of the WIOMSA 2025 Symposium, the BRIDGES x WIOMSA school will bring together experts, young researchers and practitioners from the Indian Ocean.

November 2025

Field school in Mayotte

From November 3 to 8, 2025, BRIDGES funded and supported its very first field school, organized in Mayotte. This initiative upports the momentum around the creation of an Indian Ocean Regional Master’s degree led by the University of Mayotte.

BRIDGES x DATA TERRA Schools 2025 – 2026

Towards FAIR, ethical, and sustainable research data management for Open Science

BRIDGES, in partnership with the Data Terra research infrastructure, is launching a series of thematic schools on data management at its four partner sites.