The University of Rennes 1 and Inria confirm their strategic partnership and announce the creation of the “Inria Centre at the University of Rennes”

As the National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology, Inria has set itself the strategic ambition of helping to establish France as a scientific, technological and industrial leader, both in and through digital technology, within a European dynamic. This ambition is based on consistency and synergy between its national and regional policies - the institute is fully committed to the development of world class research universities, established within entrepreneurial and industrial ecosystems given fresh impetus by digital technology.

Through established relationships with national research institutes, the University of Rennes 1 has positioned itself as a hotbed of intensive research, helping to stimulate research at metropolitan, regional and interregional levels.

From a scientific perspective, its focus is on three main transitions – digital, sustainable development and health – which the university is seeking to support through the development of far-reaching, fundamental knowledge and innovative research topics.

Through the Inria Rennes – Bretagne Atlantique research centre, the University of Rennes 1 and Inria have worked closely with each other for many years, through joint initiatives such as the Comin Labs and Henri Lebesgue “Laboratories of Excellence” (LabEx), the university research schools (EUR) Cyberschool and DigiSport, and C3 – the Cybersecurity Competence Center, their joint participation in the mixed research units IRISA and IRMAR, the centre of excellence Images et Réseaux (“Images and Networks”), and the b<>com Technological Research Institute.

The two institutes share common core values: not only a belief that universities – whether in France or internationally – have a major role to play in the interlinked dynamics of education, research and innovation, but also that their actions must contribute to development at a regional level, bringing together academics, businesses, associations and regional authorities.

Convinced of the complementarity of their models, the University of Rennes 1 and Inria have now entered into a strategic partnership in which they will work together – and with all of the university’s partners – to strengthen digital science and technology and their interactions with other disciplines.

Working together to promote and develop interdisciplinary research

The University of Rennes 1 and Inria both share a desire to support the digital dimension in all fields of research, beyond digital science and technology as a discipline in its own right, and are keen to develop new modes of cooperation, including joint project teams involving personnel from different units specialising in biology and health, the environment, human and social sciences and materials. The joint work they carry out and the relationships they have forged with the university’s partner establishments revolve around six key priorities:

• cybersecurity and a safe digital society
• interactions between humans, robots and virtual worlds
• digital health
• digital ecology and smart environments
• smart campuses and cities
• images and networks

Tackling major research challenges and encouraging risk-taking in science

By promoting joint synergies, this policy will help to streamline interactions between the University of Rennes 1 and Inria, whether this involves working together to seek out human and financial resources, or implementing an aggressive and attractive HR policy in order to recruit and retain the brightest talents.

Promoting the involvement of researchers in education

Research-driven training, in specific shared aspects of digital science, is a vital component of the partnership between the University of Rennes 1 and Inria. Shared objectives include boosting the appeal of these subject areas in order to attract top-level students from both France and overseas to join courses and research teams.

Boosting the site’s impact and appeal

By pooling their strengths, the University of Rennes 1 and Inria are helping to increase the university’s international appeal in a manner that will benefit both teaching and research, in fields in which the two institutions have a shared mission. Joint initiatives will stimulate economic impact and help to create jobs in the region. 

This partnership between the University of Rennes 1 and Inria is embodied by the “University of Rennes Inria Centre”, which comprises both a shared vision and a joint implementation roadmap. The aim is for this strategy to be widely shared with other figures within further education, research and innovation at the university. In this context, the University of Rennes 1 and Inria – along with their partners – are committed to developing an "établissement public expérimental" (collaborative experimental public higher education institution), which will become both a driving force and a framework for restructuring the university.

@Frédéric Obé - UR1