Franco Indian Campus in Life Sciences for Health

The Franco-Indian Campus in Life Sciences and health (FIC) is a high-impact bilateral initiative between France and India, launched by the French government in 2022. Serving as a flagship of scientific collaboration, FIC unites 22 of the leading higher education and research institutions from both countries, alongside more than 60 internationally renowned research laboratories.

Structured around four interconnected consortia, the campus brings together scientists and academics to tackle critical challenges in life sciences and health. The four projects include:

• BIOSANTEXC, coordinated by ENS de Lyon,
• ILIADE, coordinated by Université de La Réunion,
• Integrated Health, coordinated by Sorbonne Université,
• SHIELD, coordinated by Université Côte d’Azur.

As part of this initiative, BIOSANTEXC and IN-HEALTH will be organising a Workshop in Paris from 8 to 9 December 2025.

Key topics will include global health and climate change, access to care and nutrition, mental health lifestyles and ethics. The event will feature keynote speakers and faculty talks from FIC partners, providing unique opportunities for knowledge exchange and networking. 

We encourage interested BIOSANTEXC partners/faculty members to contact us for more information.

Programme

Day 1: Monday 8 Dec 2025 (Venue: Salle des Actes, ENS PSL, 45 rue d’Ulm, 75005 Paris)

8:30–9:00: Welcome and registration

9:00–9:15: Introduction

• Frédéric Worms, Director of ENS-PSL
• H.E. Sanjeev Singla, Ambassador of India to France
• Representative from French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs

9:15–9:45: Keynote speech

Marie Gaille (CNRS/ENS-PSL): “Adaptation: an appropriate approach to addressing the health effects of climate change?”

9:45–12:30: Session 1: Global Health and Climate Change

Session coordinators: Kévin Jean (ENS-PSL), Joy Monteiro (IISER Pune), Giovanna Fancello (Sorbonne Université)

• Giovanna Fancello (Sorbonne Université, Institut Pierre Louis de Santé Publique): “Urban Heat and Vulnerable Populations in France: Impacts on Hospitalisation, Mortality and Medication Use”
• Ayushi Sharma (ENS-PSL): “Health co-benefits of improved air quality under various trajectories toward net-zero emission by 2050 in France”,
• Dimitri Lavillette (ENS de Lyon): “Characterization of African Neglected Arboviruses with Urban Transmission Potential”
• Fabrice Vavre (Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1): SHAPE-Med@Lyon: Setting up a transdisciplinary and transectoral One Health ecosystem in Lyon”

Coffee break

• Saurabh Tewari (IIT Delhi): “Making the Invisible Visible”
• Farhana Ibrahim, (IIT Delhi): “Climate adaptation and mental health – a case study from the Thar desert”
• Samuel Abiven (ENS-PSL): “Integrative Approaches to Ecosystem Functioning in Agro-ecosystems and its consequences on rural south Indian communities - presentation of the Indo French Cell for Water Science, Bengaluru”
• Bejoy Thomas (IISER Pune): “Wasterwater reuse and livelihoods: exploring the linkages”

12:30–14:00: Lunch

14:00–16:45: Session 2: Access to Care

Session coordinators: Françoise Guillo (Sorbonne Université), Angelie Multani (IIT Delhi), Mariappan Muthiah (Tata Institute of Social Sciences)

• P. Vigneswara Ilavarasan (IIT Delhi): “Enabling Healthcare Access in Rural India: The Role of Health-Tech Startups”,
• Jayan Jose Thomas (IIT Delhi): “Health, Jobs, and Justice for the Young: An Agenda for India and the World”,
• Mariappan Muthiah (TISS): “Access to Maternal Healthcare: India's progress and opportunities”
• Catherine Laffineur (Université Côte d’Azur): “IVF Success: A Global Approach”

Coffee break

• Sandeep Kumar (IIT Delhi): “Making AI Inclusive: Generalization and Equity in Neuroscience”,
• Thomas Maillet Mezeray (ENS PSL): “The Price to Access Care: One Health’s Economics”,
• Dulce Ferraz (Université Lyon 2): “Promoting Access to Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) to Improve HIV Prevention among Cisgender Female Sex Workers in France and Brazil”

Parallel session 14h-16h: Administrative topics and issues – for the Franco-Indian Campus admin team (ENS-PSL, salle 3 – Pôle Ressources Lettres + remote connection)

16:45-17:00: Day 1 wrap-up

17:30-18:45: FIC coordination meeting (Operational Committee members only)

19:00: Networking event (Venue: TIPI, Campus Pierre et Marie Curie, place Jussieu, 75005 Paris)

19:00–19:10: Welcoming remarks

• Guillaume Fiquet, Vice-President International relations, territorial and economic partnerships, Sorbonne Université
• Juan-Fernando Ramirez, Director, Alliance Sorbonne University Global Health Institute
• Audelin Chappuis, Sous-Directeur for Higher Education and Research, French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs

Poster session (PhDs)

Day 2: Tuesday 9 Dec 2025 (Venue: Institut du Cerveau – site de la Pitié Salpétrière – Hôpital Pitié, 47 Bd de l'Hôpital, 75013 Paris)

9:00-9:15: Welcome and Introduction to Day 2

Brian Lau, Scientific Director, Institut du Cerveau

9:15-9:45: Keynote speech

Catherine Tourette-Turgis, Founder of the Université des Patients

9:45 -12:30: Session 3: Nutrition, Mental Health, Lifestyles and Ethics

Session coordinators: Kiran Padmanabhan (ENS de Lyon), Alexandre Escargueil (Sorbonne Université), Divya Dwivedi (IIT Delhi)

• Eleonore Bayen (Sorbonne Université): “Paving the way to Dementia-Inclusive Societies thanks to brain health”
• Kamlesh Singh (IIT Delhi): “Positive Psychology and Mental Health: Integrating Cultural Wisdom with Scientific Practice”
• Nicolas Bogliotti (ENS Paris-Saclay): “Photocaged amino-acids and peptides for the control of biological interactions”

Coffee break

• Kalyan Chakraborty (Ashoka University): “Changes and continuity in traditional foodways and indigenous nutrition through archaeological lenses from India and Canada”
• Liane Schmidt (Paris Brain Institute): “Investigation of optimism biases in value-based, dietary decision-making”
• Filipe De Vadder (ENS de Lyon): “Modeling malnutrition in juvenile mice: sex matters”
• Krishnan Venktaraman (VIT Vellore): “The Role of Vitamin B12 in Health: Fortifying Functional Foods to Mitigate Cardiovascular Disease Risk”

12:30-14:00 : Lunch

14:00-15:30 : 3 Parallel sessions (outcomes and next steps)

• Session 1: Global Health and Climate Change
• Session 2: Access to Care
• Session 3: Nutrition, Mental Health, Lifestyles and Ethics

15:30-16:30: Final wrap-up and Conclusions

17:00: Visit of Chapelle  Saint Louis de la Salpêtrière 

BIOSANTEXC is a project co-funded by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs.

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