We are launching a participatory research campaign in the week of 11 to 18 March.
Contexte : The ANR EGOUT project (egout.cnrs.fr) is a collaborative project involving a number of laboratories in the environmental sciences (LSCE, METIS, LEESU), the humanities and social sciences (LADYSS), the Ile-de-France wastewater service SIAAP, the scientific mediation association (ASTS), with the support of the City of Paris and volunteer citizens.
Objective of the participative action : The idea is to invite the residents of the 20th arrondissement of Paris to eat more fruit and vegetables than usual during this week. Waste water samples will be taken daily at the outlet of this district. We will be measuring certain tracers linked to diet (enterodiol, enterolactone, daidzeine, fatty acids, sterols) and comparing them with levels before (week of 5 to 12 February) and after (week of 25 March to 1 April). We will then come back to the residents to discuss the results with them.
This action was prepared since the autumn by in-depth work by participants in the project, volunteers from Paris with whom the strategy was co-constructed, students from the DDMEG Masters at the University of Paris 1, and the ASTS. Above all, the colleagues visited the École des Pyrénées (a central school in the neighbourhood) on several occasions to talk to the pupils, in collaboration with the teaching staff. You can watch the video of this work here.
To maximise the participation of local residents in this action, and the chances of measuring different levels in our food tracers, it is essential that the information is disseminated very widely. The information has just been published on the CNRS/INSU website. The poster produced by the students with the children is attached. We’re hoping that the local and national press will pass it on. The information is available on the EGOUT project website. We have also launched a campaign on our social networks (Twitter and Facebook). Finally, from 7 to 10 March, we will be leafleting markets with flyers and posters (attached) together with students from the DDMEG master’s degree course at the University of Paris I. You are welcome to join us.
Mobilisation is key : A massive contribution from local residents (by eating fruit and vegetables during the week of 11 March) is important if we are to measure a significant signal in waste water.