UPCité: Science With and For Society! – UPCitéSAPS

Université Paris Cité (UPCité) integrating the IPGP as a component establishment and the Institut Pasteur as a partner research organization, is one of the first intensive research universities in France (4th in the ARWU ranking, 1st in Leiden for the 1% of most cited publications). With a rich scientific scope covering health, formal and experimental sciences, and human and social sciences, UPCité relies on strong disciplines and promotes multi and interdisciplinary approaches for training and research. Supporter of an Excellence Initiative (Idex), UPCité aims to set up:
(i) Research that meets the best international standards, based on very high-level research platforms and the funding of breakthrough research projects with a strong impact on society,
(ii) With 31,000 students in the first cycle, 13,800 in the second cycle and 7,700 in the third cycle, UPCité offers a rich and diversified offer of national diplomas, its own diplomas and lifelong training and making a large place for interdisciplinarity.
(iii) An international policy supported by strategic partnerships with highly recognized institutions, such as Oxford, King's College London, the National University of Singapore, and the member institutions of Circle U, an alliance labeled European University in 2020.

UPCité has positioned itself since its creation to promote “science with and for society” (SAPS) dialogues by:
? Taking into account an "Idex" budget line dedicated to this action.
? The appointment of a vice-president (PR. Xavier Coumoul then PR. Sylvain Chaty) in charge of this action (scientific culture and its influence).
? Support for a coordinated strategy of several key poles for this, particularly around communication, culture, libraries or actions aimed at promoting this dialogue such as the open university.
? The development of scientific mediation actions supported by the three component faculties and the IPGP.
This structuring was therefore part of a transdisciplinary approach aimed at making the different teams of these poles work, the VP with the 3 component faculties of UPCité: sciences, health and human sciences.

Among the first actions carried out, several strategic axes have been identified with the desire to develop or strengthen them within the university:
* The establishment of an organizing committee for multi-thematic conferences in connection with the development of a network of partnerships (media, institutions, CSTI, international).
* The identification of “ambassadors” of the university (teaching, research) likely to be able to feed the aforementioned conferences through their interventions, but also to intervene on behalf of the university both at the media and institutional level, and in connection with the actions carried out by the associative and territorial partners.
* The establishment of a “fake news” follow-up unit that can be answered by the university via the aforementioned network of ambassadors.
* The establishment of a support cell for the mediation and popularization of science for scientists, teachers and students of the three faculties, with the aim of enhancing their teaching work, research for the general public or other academic institutions.

During this period, the Idex and certain faculties set up projects aimed at fostering dialogue between its scientific community and society, such as a) the launch of the first call for expressions of interest by the Faculty of Sciences for scientific mediation (with 8 projects submitted) b) the creation of the scientific mediation working group of the Faculty of Sciences which serves as a pilot experiment for the establishment of the UPCité mediation and popularization support unit.