Dialogue between mountains and science

Les Rencontres Montagnes et Sciences (The Meeting of Mountains and Science) is an event designed to present the wealth of scientific careers through mountain films for the general public. The first edition was held in November 2014, as part of the Rencontres du Cinéma de Montagne, a mountain film festival held in Grenoble, France.

NOVEMBER 2014

In 15 years, the Rencontres du Cinéma de Montagne in Grenoble has become a major mountain film festival: more than 15,000 people participate each year. For them, the peaks around the city are not only a decoration but are part of their daily lives. As Grenoble is also a recognized scientific capital, two researchers proposed to expand the programming of new movies to include science in the mountains. Maurine Montagnat, a researcher at the Laboratory of Glaciology of Grenoble and also in charge of the research project on waterfall ice supported by the Petzl Foundation, along with Eric Larose, a researcher at the Institute of Earth Sciences, co-organized the first edition of The Meeting of Mountains and Science. They wanted to keep the spirit of discovery, exploration and eclecticism as presented in the films at Rencontres du Cinéma.

Evrard Wendenbaum presents his film on the Makay, in Madagascar.

The goal was to open the screenings to other approaches, showing scientific discoveries to address a wider audience. The choice of programming primarily focuses on films highlighting the story of human and scientific adventure. Seven original films were shown, including two on the projects supported by the Petzl Foundation: Scientific Itineraries into the Heart of Icefalls and Makay, Adventurers of the Lost World.

Showing young audiences how interesting the trades and scientific careers can be, while raising environmental awareness of the mountains, was one of the goals of this first edition. Their objective was achieved with two afternoon screenings which welcomed nearly 3,000 people, including 1,500 young schoolchildren on Friday. The Meeting of Mountains and Science proved their point and showed that a significant public may be interested in science-based films during this week of screenings related to the mountain. See you in November 2015 for a new edition.

Uploaded in June 2015

PROJECT - INTO THE HEART OF WATERFALL ICE

How are waterfalls formed? How does this very specific type of ice react to a climber's progression and temperature variations? All climbers have asked themselves these questions at one time or another (...)

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