Student Science Popularization Competition 2026

The Pôle ISE-CIRODD-RIISQ is pleased to launch the fifth edition of its student science communication competition. The themes of the 2026 edition include: climate change, sustainable development, the energy transition, and science (environment, health, technology, etc.). If needed, you can validate your topic by contacting the competition coordinator at lalonge.catherine@courrier.uqam.ca.

The Pôle ISE-CIRODD-RIISQ is pleased to partner with UQAM’s Coeur des sciences and Johnson Controls for the 2026 edition.

COMPETITION PRIZES:

  • First prize: $1,500
  • Second prize: $700
  • Third prize: $400
  • Coeur des Sciences Award: $400
  • Johnson Controls Innovation in Action Special Prize:
    • A $400 prepaid Visa gift card and
    • Your choice among the following three major prizes:
      • An electric bicycle
      • An electric griddle
      • A professional filming kit (microphone, lighting, and camera) to enhance your scientific communications.

IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS

IMPORTANT DATES

  • Application deadline: April 7, 2026, midnight.
  • Winner announcement and Award ceremony: April 24, 2026, during the ISE Symposium.

À quoi ça sert? Comment ma recherche peut-elle être au service de la société? (What is it for? How can my research serve society?)

Congratulations to the winners of the 2025 Science Popularization Student Competition and thank you to all the participants!

  • First prize (1 500 $): Laurence Charbonneau (U. Laval) – Embouteillage sur nos rivières: Quand la glace bloque le passage (Traffic jams on our rivers: When ice blocks the way) Watch the video
  • Second prize (600 $): Baptiste Henry (Polytechnique Montréal) – De l’émotion à l’action, fusionner la science et l’art est-il un super pouvoir écologique? (From emotion to action, is merging science and art an ecological superpower?) Watch the video
  • Third prize (400$): Yachar Ben Arous (INRS) – Risque de contamination des puits privés lors des inondations dans la région de Stoneham-et-Tewkesbury au Québec (Risk of contamination of private wells during floods in the Stoneham-and-Tewkesbury region of Quebec) Watch the video
  • Special award of the Coeur des sciences UQAM (400$): Laurence Charbonneau – Embouteillage sur nos rivières: Quand la glace bloque le passage

Conference ‘Why is popular science important to our society?’
Closing Conference and Awards Ceremony of the ISE-CIRODD-RIISQ Student Science Popularization Competition. Speakers:

  • Laure Waridel, Ecosociologist and Associate Professor, UQAM, Co-founder and Spokesperson, Équiterre
  • Bruno Lamolet, Associate Editor-in-Chief, Journalist, Québec Science Magazine
  • Ariane Hamel, Doctoral Student in Social Work, Université de Montréal
  • Justin Rousseau, Scientific activity coordinator, Espace pour la vie (event moderator)

‘Popularizing your research: don’t panic!’ preparatory webinar

Hosted by Stéphan Chaix, Director of the Coeur des Sciences, UQAM, the Student Competition of Scientific Popularization preparatory webinar took place on 5 February 2025.

The Pôle ISE-CIRODD-RIISQ is pleased to announce the winners of the third edition of its student science popularization competition. The theme for this year’s edition was Communicating and Operationalizing Research in the Context of Climate Change:

  • First prize : Gabriel Magnaval, Polytechnique Montréal and Léo Righini-Fleur – “Une mobilité responsable pour communiquer la science” –View the pdf
  • Second prize : Ariane Hamel, UQO | Université du Québec en Outaouais – “Vivre plusieurs inondations : ce que les personnes résidentes nous disent” – View the pdf
  • Third prize : Iris Benoit, UQAM | Université du Québec à Montréal – “L’empreinte environnementale des logements au Québec : Un bien de consommation sous-estimé” View the pdf
  • Special award of the Coeur des sciences UQAM : Gabriel Magnaval, Polytechnique Montréal and Léo Righini-Fleur -“Une mobilité responsable pour communiquer la science”- View the pdf

PRIZES:

  • First prize: $1,500 
  • Second prize: $600 
  • Third prize: $400
  • Special award of the Coeur des sciences, UQAM: 400$ 

Closing conference organized by the Pôle ISE-CIRODD-RIISQ. Speakers:

Philippe Gachon – Director General, RIISQ (Quebec InterSectoral Flood Network); Regular Professor, Department of Geography, UQÀM; Researcher, Center for the Study and Simulation of Climate on a Regional Scale (ESCER).

Jonathan Martineau – Professor, Liberal Arts College, Concordia University; Director, Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Time, Technology and Capitalism (CIRTTC).

Mehran Ebrahimi – Full Professor, Department of Management, ESG, UQÀM; Director, International Observatory of Aeronautics and Civil Aviation; Director, MBA program, ESG, UQÀM.

Rémi Leroux – Editor-in-chief, illustrator, Unpointcinq, media for climate action in Quebec.

The 2023 edition of the competition was held under the theme Transitions, decarbonization and resilience. The winners of the Student Science Popularization Contest organized by the Pôle ISE-CIRODD-RIISQ are:

First Prize : Florent Amat (UQAM). Ecohamlets in France and Quebec, places to live and experiment with the socio-ecological transition 
Second Prize : Clement Hardy (UQAM). Ecosystems in the shadow of Jevons: when efficiency leads to destruction 
Third prize : Matthieu Souttre (Polytechnique). Québec’s Energy Transition: Planning Sustainable Paths 

The Jury’s special mentions (in alphabetical order): Alice Carle; Ariane Hamel; Souleimen Jmii; Catherine Lalongé; Hela Rekik; Valérie Vermeulen.

The winners of the Science Popularization Contest organized by the Pôle ISE–CIRODD–RIISQ and the RISUQ are:

First Prize : Catherine Lalongé et Lysanne Blais-Gingras – Cycle de vie des sacs d’emplettes: À la croisée des disciplines

Second Prize : Morgane Pellerin – La fermette de Pointe-Saint-Charles

Third Prize : Ivan Viveros Santos – Quel vin fera-t-il demain ? Les aires viticoles et la question de l’adaptation au changement climatique

Watch the conference here