Alix Cosquer, Ph.D, Socio environmental scientist

Thematic and research approach

Based in environmental psychology and social geography, my research focuses on the study of human relationships with nature, in relation to contemporary environmental and social issues.

My work seeks to understand the representations, practices and processes of organization and transformation of human relationships with the living world, across a diversity of contexts and actors.

My research approach revolves around three complementary axes and issues associated with the theme of nature: biodiversity conservation, education and health.

A particular interest is given to interdisciplinary dialogue between the human and social sciences and the ecological sciences, and to the development of research-action projects co-constructed with social actors.

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Research

1 – Cross-cutting research areas

Biodiversity conservation : the need for “transformative changes between economic, social, political and technological factors” (IPBES 2019): the study of people’s relationships with nature is an avenue of research and action for the transition to more sustainable models of society.

Human health : “complete physical, mental and social well-being” (WHO), enabling an individual “to identify and to realize aspirations, to satisfy needs and to change or cope evolve with the environment” (Ottawa Charter).

Environmental Education : at the intersection of three related issues: (i) solving environmental problems, (ii) optimal development of people and social groups in relation to the environment, and (iii) improving teaching and learning conditions and methods (Sauvé 1997).

Keywords : nature experiences ; relationships with nature ; territory-based educational programs ; nature experiences in schools ; uses in protected natural areas ; nature experiences in medical and social settings ; nexus between biodiversity, human health, and education ; socio-environmental inequalities ; territories and public policy.

2 – Epistemological and methodological approach

Environmental psychology : study of “the individual’s interrelations with the environment in its physical and social dimensions” (Moser 2009), taking into account the psychic functioning of individuals and the functioning of the social system; importance of the spatialized dimension, through analysis of the perceptions, attitudes and behaviors of individuals in explicit relation to the contexts in which they evolve.

Interdisciplinarity : exchanging and crossing knowledge, analyses and methods between different disciplines (human and social sciences and life sciences) with a view to mutually enriching research practices.

Participatory action research : mobilization of mechanisms rooted in the production of knowledge through research, application to concrete problems in action, and involvement of citizens through their active participation (Chevalier and Buckles 2019, Reason 2001).

Environmental and conservation geography : analysis of territorial dynamics related to biodiversity preservation, the use of natural areas and educational and institutional mechanisms; highlighting the interactions between public policy, development, local actors, and experiences of nature.

Keywords : environmental humanities ; environmental psychology ; environmental geography ; conservation science ; interdisciplinarity ; mixed methodologies ; participatory action research.

3 – Environments

  • Urban environments
  • Coastal and marine environments
  • Forest environments
  • Protected areas

Keywords : nature in the city ; urban ecology ; conservation, health, and education issues in urban areas; education about coastal and marine environments ; health practices in forest environments ; conservation and management in protected natural areas.

Projects

Assessing the impact of mediation in ecology (EVAMED)

The project (CEFE, OFB, Montpellier city and metropolitan area) examines the conditions for designing, implementing, and evaluating mediation actions in ecology, in the context of deploying educational and biodiversity awareness initiatives.

The project is part of the BRAM (Biodiversity, from Research to Mediation) consortium, which aims to strengthen dialogue between academic research, management stakeholders, public policy makers, and society on biodiversity issues by combining scientific knowledge production, stakeholder training, and mediation.

The project is structured around two main areas: (i) a state-of-the-art review of frameworks and methodologies for evaluating mediation in ecology; (ii) the development of a generic evaluation framework based on case studies: mediation actions implemented within an institution dedicated to environmental education (Écolothèque de Montpellier), mediation mechanisms associated with the uses and management of a protected natural area (RNCFS Caroux-Espinouse), projects to transform and green schoolyards analyzed through their effects on students, as well as the continuation of research on educational areas.

The project brings together an interdisciplinary team of researchers in the humanities, social sciences, and ecology, as well as institutional actors involved in biodiversity, and is part of an action research approach aimed at producing common references and decision-making tools.

Contract researcher (co-coordination) (2025–2027)

Scientific research on marine educational areas - Alix CosquerThe project (VIPS2-ENS Rennes, CREAD-UBO Brest, CEFE Montpellier, OFB) examines the development contexts, implementation, effects and processes of the Aires Educatives (AE) scheme among local stakeholders. The research, articulated around a dual challenge of research and action, is composed of three main themes: (i) a historical and cultural perspective of the issues (sea/coastal, AE), (ii) a study of the effects of participation in individual and collective levels, and (iii) an analysis of the bodily dimension in AEs through the lived experience of students and teachers. Three transversal axes complete the project: (i) an inventory of teaching methods in AEs, (ii) a reflection on possible developments and adaptations of the system in the territories and (iii) the development and testing of training modules and teaching tools.
The project brings together an interdisciplinary team of researchers (sociology, history, physical education, psychology, geography) and actors involved in education and biodiversity conservation.

Researcher (co-coordination) (2024-2026)

Health, biodiversity, and territorial dynamics (SAINBIOTE)

The project (URCPIE) explores the links between biodiversity, living environments, and human health by analyzing the conditions for joint appropriation of these issues by stakeholders and territories. As part of an action research approach, it examines representations, professional practices, and mechanisms that use nature as a lever for health, with a particular focus on socio-environmental inequalities.

The research is structured around three areas: (i) territorial appropriation of the health-biodiversity link and stakeholder dynamics; (ii) experimentation and analysis of approaches to prescribing or recommending nature to healthcare professionals; (iii) evaluation of actions to raise awareness of the health-biodiversity link among diverse audiences.

The project develops analysis, evaluation, and capitalization tools designed to support local actors and inform health and biodiversity policies.

Researcher (support) (2024–2026)

The aim of this project (CEFE-LIRDEF, Montpellier) is to study the adaptation of tits to climate change in urban environment. One part aims to develop education about living beings in schools, through the construction, implementation and collaborative analysis of a device centered on tacking into account the tits’ point of view, i.e. its life conditions and experiences. The main hypothesis is that a science education that includes this point of view would be able to establish (re)connections with living beings, i.e. cognitive, affective and behavioral dispositions of affinity with living beings. The research involves actors from research (ecology, psychology, educational sciences), education (teachers, students, national education) and local authorities.

Contract researcher (2023-2025)

The project (CEFE, Montpellier) analyzes the processes and effects of participation in a scheme (Défi Familles à Biodiversité Positif) designed to support families in a local area through reflection and action in favor of biodiversity preservation. The research explores the action-participation and territorial dimensions of the scheme, through (i) a study of how the device is articulated at the level of local stakeholders, and (ii) the effects of participation on families. The study is intended to contribute to the debate on mediation and education in local areas.

Contract researcher (co-coordination) (2022-2023)

This participatory research-action project (CEFE-LIRDEF, Montpellier) studies the role of experiences of contact with nature and the participatory dimension of an educational system in the school setting in the construction of relationships with living beings. The approach, which involves teachers and children in reflecting on the place of nature in their school environment (schoolyard and outdoor school), documents (i) the representations and uses of pupils and (ii) the processes and effects involved in participating in the research scheme. The aim of this research project, which brings together researchers (psychology, educational science), educators and local authorities, is to encourage local actors to reflect on educational practices and urban environmental planning

Contract researcher (co-coordination) (2022-2023)

In a context of appropriation of the socio-environmental issues associated with urban biodiversity, the aim of the project (CEFE, Montpellier) is to raise awareness and engage middle school students in the challenges of the agroecological transition, by accompanying them in the development of a project for the schoolyard. The project aims to study the mechanisms that facilitate civic engagement, through analysis of participants’ motivations and limitations in pursuing and maintaining the urban agroecology initiative, and identification of the processes associated with the transformation of practices. The research mobilizes actors from research (soil science, psychology, participatory simulation) and education (students, teachers, scientific mediation association).

Contract researcher (collaboration) (2022-2023)

This project (CEFE, Montpellier) examines the mechanisms by which children’s relationship with nature is constructed in the school setting, and the associated socio-environmental issues. The research is structured around two axes: (i) the first axis studies the influence of territorialized and educational experiences of nature in the school setting on children, through the study of experiences and learning about the sea and coastline in the “Aires Marines Educatives” scheme and outdoor school practices; (ii) the second axis focuses on experiences of nature at school in an urban context, at the crossroads of health, education and environmental management issues. The project brings together actors in the fields of research (psychology, educational science, ecology), education and environment (students, teachers, environmental education networks, OFB) and local authorities.

Post-doctorate (coordination) (2018-2022)

Facing with the growing use of protected natural areas by nature sports practitionners, this research project (LETG, Brest) aims to gain a better understanding of user profiles (practices, representations) and the socio-psychological processes underlying the relationship between sports users and natural environments. The project includes (i) an exploratory study of the representations of their environment by sports practitionners, in relation to the problem of wildlife disturbance, and (2) a large-scale survey in Brittany and the Mediterranean of coastal users practicing nature sports. The results contribute to think about communication and mediation tools to support management and conservation actions in protected natural areas. The project brings together actors from research (geography, psychology, sociology), national and local authorities in the fields of sport and environment.

Post-doctorate (2015-2018)

During my thesis at the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle (CESCO, Paris), I studied the influence of biodiversity experiences in an everyday context on individuals’ knowledge, attitudes and practices towards biodiversity and conservation. The thesis focuses on several areas: (i) the link between people’s knowledge and practices in relation to biodiversity, depending on the type of everyday experience; (ii) the short and medium-term impact of biodiversity activities on participants’ individual attitudes and behaviours; (iii) the effects and processes of repeated individual experience of biodiversity through a participatory science program.

Ph.D (2009-2012)

Publications

Books

Le lien naturel. Pour une reconnexion au vivant.

Cosquer, A. (2021) Le Pommier, 172 p.

Le lien naturel, pour une reconnexion au vivant - Ouvrage par Alix Cosquer, docteur en sciences environnementales. This book examines the relationship between society’s difficulties in changing attitudes towards nature and the quality of the ties that humans maintain with living beings. Despite the unbreakable ties that bind humans to the diversity of the living world, the development of relationships with nature does not appear to be a central concern. Faced with this discrepancy, I argue that it is necessary to look beyond changes in individual behavior and consider the individual and collective representations that fuel our practices. I endeavor to demonstrate that the interactions between representations and lifestyles fuel a physical and psychic estrangement from living beings that is part of a social and historical framework. I argue that reconnection, understood as “a process of interaction that contributes to enriching relationships with the living and the state of its components, both human and non-human”, implies a recomposition, both of individuals’ relationships to society and of the way we look at the living. Finally, I explore a range of perspectives for nurturing the bond with nature.

La sylvothérapie.

Cosquer, A. (2021). Que-sais-je ?, PUF, 128 p.

La sylvothérapie, la thérapie par les arbres - Ouvrage par Alix Cosquer, docteur en sciences environnementales. The book, which explores the issues of human health and well-being in relation to forests, provides a case study for questioning the dynamics of relationships with nature and the social and territorial inscription of these relationships. The book presents the development of the notion of forest therapy in different contexts, documents the observed effects of therapeutic practices in the forest, describes the socio-ecological processes involved in therapeutic mechanisms and considers the diversity of practices through the description of central characteristics. Finally, I discuss forest therapy as a possible avenue for rethinking relationships with living beings.

L’amour de la nature. Pour une écologie sensible.

Cosquer, A. (2025). Presses Universitaires de France, 178 p.

L’amour de la nature. Pour une écologie sensible. The book starts with a central question: what if love were fundamental to our relationship with nature and living beings? I examine the place of feelings in ecology and the possibility of mobilizing love as a driving force to protect and respect nature.

I explore our environmental behaviors by linking them to a deeper need for contact, connection, and belonging to the living world. From education to knowledge about biodiversity, from agricultural practices to the appeal of the wild, I analyze how our emotions—both individual and collective—shape our relationships with nature, while often remaining implicit or largely unacknowledged in ecological action.

This journey is both ethical and intimate. By discussing the ambivalences of love for nature, and by considering it as a relational and socially situated process, I invite us to rethink the place of sensitivity in our societies. The challenge is to restore love, as well as nature, to a central place in our personal and collective lives, in order to nurture a more embodied ecology that is more attentive to the relationships we forge with the world.

Articles published in peer-reviewed journals

  • Gimenez, O., Lacombe, S., Barbu, L., Raulet, Y., Sablain, V., et al. (2025). Étude du retour de la Loutre d’Europe (Lutra lutra [Linnaeus, 1758]) sur le fleuve Lez (fleuve côtier, Hérault, France) grâce aux méthodes non invasives de suivi des populations et à une collaboration étroite entre structures académiques et territoriales. Naturae, (12), 147–168. Read the article
  • Cosquer, A., Gimenez, O., Grégoire, A., Girard, V., Noëll, T., Wasella, T. (2024). The Ecoformative and Transformative Issues of Nature in the Schoolyard: An Exploration of the Relationship Between Everyday Experiences of Nature and Well-being at School. Cities and the Environment (CATE), 17(2). Read the article
  • Le Corre, N., Saint-Pierre, A., Hughes, M., Peuziat, I., & Cosquer, A. (2024). Segmentation of visitor perceptions and attitudes as a tool for informing management and targeted communication strategies in Coastal and Marine Protected Areas. Journal of Coastal Conservation, 28, 57. Read the article
  • Couturier, T., Bauduin, S., Astruc, G., Blanck, A., Canonne, C., Chambert, T., Chiffard, J., Cosquer, A., Cubaynes, S., Curtet, L., Dortel, E., Drouet-Hoguet, N., Duchamp, C., Francesiaz, C., Grente, O., Jailloux, A., Kervellec, M., Lauret, V., Lebreton, J-D., Gimenez, O. (2023). Building spaces of interactions between researchers and managers: Case studies with wildlife monitoring and conservation in France. Ecological Solutions and Evidence, 4. 12245. Read the article
  • Cosquer, A., Feliot-Rippeault, M., Jeziorski, A., Morisseau, F., Reynaud, C., Gimenez, O. (2021). Appréhender les représentations territoriales de la nature : enquêtes en métropole et en outre-mer, THEMA « Société, nature et biodiversité », Ministère de la transition écologique.
  • Le Corre, N., Saint-Pierre, A., Hugues, M., Peuziat, M., Cosquer, A., Michot, T., Bernard, N. (2021). Outdoor recreation in French Coastal and Marine Protected Areas. Exploring recreation experience preference as a way for building conservation support, Journal of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism, 33, 100332. Read the article
  • Cosquer, A., Hugues, M., Le Corre, N., Peuziat, I., Michot, T., Bernard, N., Maulpoix, A. (2019). Recreation user knowledge, support and engagement in French MPAs: Are there reverse side-effects of the French soft regulation and management approach?, Marine Policy, Elsevier, 104, pp.108-117. Read the article
  • Prévot-Julliard, A-C., Cheval, H., Raymond, R., Cosquer, A. (2018). Routine experiences of nature in cities can increase personal commitment toward biodiversity conservation, Biological Conservation, Vol. 226, 1-8. Read the article
  • Cosquer, A., Prévot, A.C., Raymond, R. (2012). Observations of everyday biodiversity: a new perspective for conservation?, Ecology and Society, 17(4): 2. Read the article
  • Shwartz, A., Cosquer, A., Jaillon, A., Piron, A., Julliard, R., Raymond, R., Simon, L., Prévot, A-C. (2012). Urban biodiversity, city-dwellers and conservation : how does and outdoor activity day affects the human-nature relationship?, PLoS ONE, 7(6): e38642. Read the article

Book chapters

  • Cosquer, A. (2022). « L’éducation au risque du vivant : de la formation des élèves à la transformation des postures enseignantes » préface de l’ouvrage Grandir avec la nature : expériences d’école dehors en Lozère, Canopé.
  • Cosquer, A., Le Corre, N., Bernard, N., Michot, T., Peuziat, I. (2019). Pratiques sportives de nature et représentations de la nature dans les espaces naturels protégés, In, Peyvel (dir.). L’éducation aux voyages. Sensibilisations, apprentissages et productions touristiques. P.U.R., Rennes.
  • Cosquer, A. (2015). « Science participative et grand public », in Atlas de la biodiversité de Seine-et-Marne (4. Biodiversité et société en Seine-et-Marne), Raymond, R., Simon, L., Renault, O., Julliard, R., Guillet, F.
  • Gourmand, A-L., Legrand, M., Cosquer, A. (2012). « Vigie nature, quand la recherche en écologie devient participative », in L’exigence de la réconciliation: biodiversité et société, Prévot, A-C., Fleury, C. Fayard.

Reports and other publications

Cosquer, A., Cottereau, D., Feliot-Rippeault, M., Gimenez, O., Girard, V., Girault, M-L., Grégoire, A., Morisseau, F., Noëll, T., Reynaud, C., Zwang, A., (2023). Sensibilisation à l’Environnement par le Rapport à la Nature à l’Ecole (SIRENE) – rapport de projet (2019-2022), Centre d’Écologie Fonctionnelle et Évolutive, Montpellier, 37p.

Cosquer, A. (2022). 40 activités en ville. Éditions Belin Jeunesse.

Cosquer, A. (2022). « Pourquoi la nature nous fait-elle du bien? », Revue Rhizome.

Cosquer, A. (2021). « Une pratique qui fait du bien », le 1, n°361, 25-31 août.

Cosquer, A. (2021). « L’état de la recherche sur les bienfaits du contact avec la nature des personnes ». Les Cahiers Pédagogiques, Dossier Enseigner et Éduquer en plein air.

Cosquer, A. (2021). 40 expériences 100% nature. Éditions Belin Jeunesse.

Cosquer, A. (2019). « Les bonnes ondes de la nature », Cerveau et Psycho, avril, n°110.

Le Corre, N., Peuziat, I., Cosquer, A., Bernard, N., Michot, T., Pensec, C. (2018). Sports de nature dans les aires protégées littorales et marines. Profils des pratiquants, motivations à la pratique, rapports à la nature. Résultats d’une enquête nationale (2016-2018). Fiches de synthèse, Université de Bretagne Occidentale, 66 p.

Cosquer, A. (2018). « Une forêt de bienfaits », Pour la Science (Hors-série), novembre-décembre. n°101, p. 92-97.

Cosquer, A. (2018). « Comment (et pourquoi) aider les enfants à se rapprocher de la nature ? », The Conversation, août.

Cosquer, A. (2018). « Pourquoi la nature nous fait du bien ? », The Conversation, mai.

Cosquer, A., Le Corre, N., Michel-Guillou, E., Daviau, N. Derogis, P., Gicquel, C., Tachoires, S. (2015). Sensibilisation des pratiquants de sports et loisirs de nature au dérangement de la faune sauvage en Bretagne. Les apports de la psychologie environnementale, Laboratoire LETG-Brest-Géomer, UBO, Brest, 109 p.

Cosquer, A. (2012). L’attention à la biodiversité dans la vie quotidienne des individus. Thèse de doctorat, Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris.

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Curriculum vitæ

Areas of expertise

  • Cross-cutting issues between biodiversity conservation and/or management, education and human health
  • Environmental psychology and social geography
  • Articulation between individual representations/practices and social dynamics
  • Action and participatory research
  • Children’s relationship with nature
  • Coastal and marine environments
  • Urban environments
  • Protected areas

Academic background

  • 2012

    PhD, Conservation Sciences

    Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle and Université Paris 1, Paris, France ; Thesis : Attention to biodiversity in people’s daily lives.

  • 2008

    Master’s degree, Geography (social geography and sustainable development)

    Université du Maine, Le Mans, France

  • 2008

    Master’s degree, Philosophy (history and contemporary issues in philosophy)

    Université Paris Ouest, Nanterre, France

  • 2007

    Master’s degree, History

    Université Paris I Sorbonne, Paris, France

  • 2005

    Bachelor’s degree, Philosophy

    Université Paris Ouest, Nanterre, France

  • 2004

    Bachelor’s degree, Geography - History

    Université Rennes II, Rennes, France

Professional experience

  • 2025 - present

    Contract researcher

    CEFE (UMR 5175) / OFB, Montpellier, France

  • 2023-2024

    Contract researcher

    Université de Montpellier (LIRDEF) / CEFE (UMR 5175), Montpellier, France

  • 2022-2023

    Contract researcher / Implementation and analysis of biodiversity-related educational programs in schools

    CEFE (UMR 5175) / CNRS / Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole, Montpellier, Montpellier, France

  • 2022-2023

    Contract researcher / Analysis of a family biodiversity program

    CEFE (UMR 5175) / CNRS / Fédération des Parcs Naturels Régionaux, Montpellier, France

  • 2018-2022

    Postdoctoral researcher

    CEFE (UMR 5175) / CNRS, Montpellier, France

  • 2015-2018

    Postdoctoral researcher

    LETG (UMR 6554) / Laboratory of Psychology: Cognition, Behavior, Communication (LP3C EA 1285) / Université de Bretagne Occidentale (UBO), Institut Universitaire Européen de la Mer (IUEM), Brest, France

  • 2009-2012

    PhD student

    CESCO (UMR 7204) / LADYSS (UMR 7533), Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris, France

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Contact

Alix Cosquer, Ph.D., Socio-environmental scientist - France

Alix Cosquer

alixcosquer@gmail.com

+33 6.48.19.54.06

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