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UOH and French researchers join forces for forest ecosystem protection and socio-environmental health

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• The initiative emerged following a visit by scientists from the European country, motivated by the environmental research proposals being promoted at the Colchagua Campus of this university. 

Researchers from the Institute of Agricultural, Animal, and Environmental Sciences (ICA3) at the University of O’Higgins (UOH) and Paris Cité University in France agreed to develop projects aimed at jointly studying the effects of wildfires on forest ecosystems and their impact on nearby human communities. For this purpose, they plan to involve researchers from both countries.

This was announced by the coordinator of the meeting and ICA3-UOH academic, Claudia Rojas, who explained that the discussion with their French counterparts focused on evaluating shared interests in environmental studies, "methodological approaches, and applications of the research we intend to develop together, particularly in assessing the effects of wildfires on soils, water bodies, and vegetation, as well as their impact on human health."

The Doctor in Soil Science and Biogeochemistry noted that the collaboration between ICA3-UOH and Université Paris Cité researchers aims to "build an interdisciplinary project and an international team to better understand the medium- and long-term socio-environmental consequences" of wildfires, which significantly affect human health and forest ecosystems in both France and Chile.

Initially, according to the ICA3 academic, the Paris Cité University team would include Doctor in Geography Véronique Michot, Doctor in Geochemistry Marc Benedetti, and also Doctor in Geochemistry Mickaël Tharaud. This group specializes in climatology, environmental science, remote sensing, metal pollutant speciation, environmental epidemiology, the role of colloids in the environment, and techniques for detecting, quantifying, and characterizing nanoparticles in environmental matrices. Meanwhile, the ICA3-UOH team would consist of Doctor in Earth Sciences Morgane Derrien, Doctor in Forest Ecosystem Conservation Alejandro Venegas, and Doctor Claudia Rojas herself, forming a team of experts in aquatic and terrestrial biogeochemistry, ecology, conservation, and soil science.

Fieldwork and concrete steps
Regarding the French researchers' visit to the Colchagua Campus, Rojas explained that the interdisciplinary project began on the first day with a seminar involving other ICA3 researchers, as well as students from the Environmental Engineering program and the Master's in Environmental and Earth Sciences, to exchange knowledge about academic contexts and institutional operations. On the second day, they conducted "fieldwork at the Altos de Cantillana Natural Reserve, alongside the ICA3’s Soil Microbial Ecology and Biogeochemistry Laboratory, Biogeochemistry Laboratory, and Dendrochronology and Climate Change Adaptation Laboratory, where thesis work and applied research are currently being conducted." There, they collected soil, water, and vegetation samples while gaining insight into the specific context of the 2023 wildfires. The expert stated that this visit undoubtedly marked concrete progress in the project's advancement between the two countries.

Meanwhile, researcher Véronique Michot expressed that the Université Paris Cité team was "satisfied" with the research facilities provided at the Colchagua Campus, "which gives us confidence to develop collaborative work with the ICA3 team." She also announced that further meetings will take place in both Chile and France.