Écologie intégraleHigher EducationIcam
18 Mar 2026
“The future is not what will happen, but what we will make of it.” — Henri Bergson
Last February 5th marked the launch of CEC (Convention des Entreprises pour le Climat) Monde Académique, a program designed to support the profound transformations of higher education and the evolution of training models. ICAM has chosen to fully commit to this venture with a strong conviction: in the face of environmental urgency and the deep transformations of our society, training responsible and aware engineers today means going further.
Challenging a dynamic already underway at ICAM
Since 2022, ICAM has structured and deployed numerous actions in sustainable development and social responsibility (DD&RS). This approach continues with participation in CEC Monde Académique, which represents a key milestone to deepen and accelerate this transformation. It follows particularly in the continuity of the Act’Sup project, currently being deployed, by broadening the reflection beyond decarbonization actions alone.
Indeed, the CEC invites participants to fundamentally rethink their models by integrating planetary boundaries, biodiversity issues, social impacts and governance questions. It allows participants to question their practices and identify new levers for action.
For ICAM, this participation relies on a committed team composed of Gilles Vandecaveye, ICAM’s Director General, Lucie Donnizaux, ICAM alumna and administrator, and three students, Capucine Vincent, Sacha Juhel and Thaddée Dumoulin, who will actively contribute throughout the year to the work: “We no longer want to simply transmit knowledge: we want to become an engine of transformation.” Groups of staff and students will also be associated with this initiative, as well as the DD&RS collective led by Franck Cochez. This diversity of profiles illustrates the desire to cross perspectives and involve learners in this transformation.
A collective experience for lasting transformation
A first working session took place at HEC Paris on March 12 and 13, to concretely enter into this collective dynamic. On the agenda: biodiversity, water, resources, plastic pollution and social justice. Beyond the conferences, the cooperation sessions in smaller “base camp” groups allowed participants to work together to imagine other ways of learning, cooperating and acting in higher education. These moments also opened a more introspective space: everyone was invited to question their own representations, to explore the dissonances between what we know and what we do, and to reflect on the personal transformations necessary to support collective transformations.
Engaging in the CEC is also an opportunity to co-construct, with other institutions, concrete and sustainable responses to the challenges of our time.
This journey is only beginning, but it already stands as a structuring lever to accelerate the transition undertaken by ICAM and to train engineers capable of acting responsibly in a rapidly changing world.
