On September 20th, École normale supérieure opened its doors to almost 5000 people for a night. Researchers and thinkers from ENS-PSL and beyond discussed and questioned the various issues connected to this year’s theme – Energy – with about thirty conferences, ten round tables, workshops and performances. All fields of study and research at the school were represented during a night that demonstrated how interdisciplinary ENS is.
This sciences and literature festival collectively explores, every two years, an issue relevant to today’s world. After a Nuit de l’ENS dedicated to Uncertainty in 2022, the 6th edition’s theme was Energy.
In charge of the program of this year’s Nuit de l’ENS, Laurence Grimaud, research director at CNRS et vice-director of the Chemistry department at ENS, as well as Charles-François Mathis, Contemporary History professor at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, explain why Energy was chosen as the theme :
“Energy, which is linked to hard sciences, was illustrated by conferences on various subjects ranging from sports to waves, and even energy in the universe. Workshops offered experiences in physics and chemistry. Round tables aimed to collectively think about transitions, energy being at the core of social, economical and geopolitical current issues. Other environmental issues linked to energy were thought about in an exhibition and during the opening conference with Laurence Tubiana and Valérie Masson-Delmotte.”
Other figures in the world of research and industry also participated in conferences, including Jean Jouzel, climate expert at the IPCC, Lydéric Bocquet, researcher at ENS-PSL and recipient of a CNRS innovation medal, and Guillaume Texier, CEO of Rexel, patron for this event.
The event also involved the media in order to share this knowledge with a large public. Le Monde published several articles prior to the event, exploring its theme, and France Culture recorded podcasts about philosophy and energy, and recorded interviews with speakers on the night.
During the night, the school and the ENS Foundation welcomed about 20 big donors at the cocktail event, an informal space that offered the opportunity to talk further with speakers and organisers of the Nuit de l’ENS.