Contenu du sommaire : Imaginaires du futur et construction des mondes

The discovery of straits or the opening of passages are localized events with global consequences, notably in terms of the reorganization of maritime traffic. In the discourses on these events, they often take on even greater importance : they enable encounters with the Other, the opening and closing of the world, the coming of a new world, etc. The discursive productions that proliferate during these events are therefore rich in information about the expectations of contemporary societies. Our hypothesis is that, depending on the period in which these events take place, we observe not only an evolving image of the world, but also a change in perceptions of time. We therefore propose to compare the discourses produced at the time of the opening of the Suez Canal (1869) and those produced with a view to the opening of the Northeast Passage at the turn of the 2000s, based on a corpus of texts contemporary with these events. There are a number of points in common. Firstly, the expression of utopias related to the spatio-temporal reduction of the global scale : improved journey times are the cornerstones of these discourses. Secondly, the expression of strong expectations in terms of the benefits linked to the trade of goods that will transit through these passages. Thirdly, they inspire discourses linked to their political impact on the appropriation of parts of the world : Suez represents an undeniable asset in the colonial conquest and management of European colonies, while the Northeast Passage exacerbates the expression of rivalries in the appropriation of Arctic space, particularly with regard to natural resources. However, these two projects belong to two eras with radically different visions of the future ; therefore, two registers of uncertainty reveal a divergence in how the future is envisioned. Thus, in the 19th century, the speeches surrounding the digging of the Suez Canal demonstrated faith in progress, whether technological or scientific, in the beneficial aspects of linking the world's societies and in the benefits of trade for populations as a whole. When uncertainties were expressed, they were technical in nature and concerned doubts about the canal's efficiency, often expressed in terms of profitability. Almost 150 years later, when the Northeast Passage is opening, there is no trace of progress in the discourses. On the contrary, the texts point to a cynical headlong rush to pursue a model of society whose limits we now know, and to the desire to take advantage of global warming, which is encouraging maritime traffic in polar zones, while uncertainties are becoming existential. We consider that these two registers illustrate a process of erosion of utopian visions of the future world, which is further illustrated by the presence of two radically different time horizons : indefinite for discourses linked to the Suez Canal, rarely exceeding 2050 for the Northeast Passage.

Children are affected on a daily basis (albeit unevenly) by globalised socio-spatial processes, but their own perspectives on global issues have rarely been studied. The research presented in this paper analysed how children portray the world and traced the social origins of representations of the global space in childhood. It is based on a field survey of 248 children aged 6 to 11 in four Parisian elementary schools with contrasting social profiles. I deployed a multi-methodological approach, composed of four activities (commented drawing, brainstorming, reconstructing an illustrated map of the world, small-group interviews), combined with classroom observation, interviews with teachers and analysis of teaching materials. This article specifically examines the construction of children's representations of the world, focusing on the temporalities that influence them, between the weight of legacies and the importance of imaginary futures. It explores the socialisation of children with respect to global issues and emphasises that the unequal socialisation of children around the world creates and reinforces the relationships of domination that structure the social world

In a society of individuals (Élias, 1997), processes of inventing futures can be observed among all actors (Lévy, 2021). This is especially true of children and adolescents, who seem to be constantly projecting and imagining possible, probable and ideal futures. Faced with a proliferation of catastrophic discourse on the future, and amid the accelerating circulation of anxiety-provoking information, has the power of imagination of children and young people remained intact ? The article aims to answer this question by analyzing their projections and their ways of imagining the World of tomorrow. Adolescents from Strasbourg and Cycle 3 pupils (aged 9 to 12) from a school in Laon (Aisne) were interviewed on this subject as part of two ongoing doctoral research projects. Listening to what they say amounts to postulating the existence of a multiplicity of future openings and developing future-related pragmatics. Their imaginary worlds are then as many thought experiments, constituting a pool of resources providing food for thought on a World to be (re)built.

Rewilding has emerged as a new proposition for ecological action promoted by environmental activists and scientists around the world. The idea has spread through accounts of the futures it proposes to bring about. This article is based on the textual data analysis of a corpus of European press articles gathered through the platform Europresse. It characterises the spatial and temporal references on which imaginaries of rewilding are built, as well as the motifs through which they are expressed. In particular, it establishes that these narratives seek to situate the futures envisaged through rewilding according to their degree of preferability and probability. The corpus is limited to Europe in order to focus on imaginaries specific to rewilding from a European perspective : in recent years, this idea has emerged as an innovative narrative proposed for the continent's territories, based on new pioneering narratives and supported by compelling storytelling. However, this corpus also provides information on the international mobilisation of the idea of rewilding, as seen from Europe. The article highlights the emphasis placed in these narratives on the past successes of rewilding initiatives (showcases) and on the role of spokespeople for these initiatives. In turn, it opens up a discussion on the narrative status of these accounts of rewilding initiatives, which are upheld as concrete utopias.

Non-governmental development organizations (NGOs) are political actors who tend to think of the future through two types of spatial imaginaries. While they are part of the international aid system – which mainly considers the World as a set of Nation-States –, NGOs also embody the ideal of a transnational actor. They are indeed seen as capable of implementing programs without taking State borders into consideration, so as to address the needs of citizens and territories. This article shows how the current dynamics of the international system tend to devitalize this ideal. It also shows how the generalization of funding based on a « call for projects » model, as well as the growing difficulties of access to the field in the light of postcolonial issues, both feed this tendency. This study, centered around the geographies of French development NGOs in the World, investigates the ways in which transnational actors such as NGOs struggle in their practices to transcend the Nation-State system when they address global political issues.

This article analyzes the link between Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and « Blue Carbon » ecosystems, as well as the connection between MPAs and national documents pertaining to the Paris Climate Agreements (specifically, the Nationally Determined Contributions – NDCs). MPAs contain extensive coastal and marine habitats that have the potential to sequester large quantities of atmospheric carbon. These habitats – including mangroves, seagrass beds, salt marshes, and macroalgae – are, however, often underrepresented in national climate change mitigation strategies and particularly in NDCs. To evaluate the role of MPAs in carbon sequestration, we estimated the annual CO2 sequestration rates by Blue Carbon habitats within MPAs in six West African coastal countries. These estimates were then compared to the annual CO2 emissions of these countries and to the greenhouse gas reduction targets specified in their NDCs. Our findings indicate that West African MPAs, despite their relatively small cumulative surface area, play a significant role in sequestering national CO2 emissions (ranging from 4 % to over 100 % of annual emissions depending on the country) and contribute effectively to the NDC targets (between 2 % and 19 % of the greenhouse gas emission reduction targets). Thus, promoting the establishment/strengthening of MPAs in West Africa could be beneficial if they are more closely integrated into national and international climate change mitigation policies. Additionally, their cumulative surface area should be substantially increased in the future to meet international commitments, such as the Sustainable Development Goals, former Aichi targets, and new Kunming-Montréal Global Biodiversity Framework.

This article looks at plant foraging practices in the city and examines their role in the appropriation of urban green spaces. It is based on a survey carried out between 2019 and 2021 at a dozen sites in the Greater Paris area. It relies on qualitative ethnographic methods, enhanced by photographic work carried out with an artist. We show how gatherers' practices shape singular territorialities through a survey of urban spaces in order to seek out plants and their nutritional and medicinal uses. This geography reveals original forms of territorial appropriation, characterized by knowledge, uses and representations focused on relationships with plants. These practices redefine the role of vegetated spaces in a metropolitan context, shaping shifting archipelagic territorialities that are both discreet and subversive. They integrate ecological and urban dynamics, partially freeing themselves from the dominant urban planning and development practices, while at the same time co-existing with them. They are spatially and socially distinct, and reflect the unequal appropriation of space as a function of people's socio-economic situations and migratory trajectories.