A think tank for the farming business, Agridées has been a unique place for questioning, debate and expertise since its creation in 1867, bringing together players in the agricultural, agri-food and agro-industrial sectors. The philosopher Gabrielle Halpern granted it a long interview in the latest issue of its journal, in order to present her philosophical research work on hybridisation to its readers and show how this can be applied to the agricultural world.
"I decided to work on the issue of hybridisation more than ten years ago now. I first devoted my doctoral thesis in philosophy at the École Normale Supérieure to it, and then the rest of my research work, because I felt that there were a certain number of weak signals around us testifying to a "hybridisation" in many areas of our lives", Gabrielle Halpern
"In my research work, I explore these weak signals of hybridisation to understand how they form a real trend in the world of tomorrow, why hybridisation can hinder us, unsettle us by making things emerge that no longer fit into our boxes, what obstacles this trend of hybridisation encounters and above all, what it can contribute to our society. I would add that I'm not just working on hybridisation, I'm living it professionally, since in parallel with my research work, I worked for several years in various ministerial cabinets, where I was in charge of foresight. I then joined a startup incubator to help young people develop their business and I now advise companies, associations, startups, schools and public institutions, while actively pursuing my work in philosophy", Gabrielle Halpern
"Today, when we hear the word "innovation", everyone thinks of "technology", whereas innovation can be organisational, legal, financial, commercial or even societal. For example, cofarming approaches that allow farmers to group together and pool their labour force so that each of them can take turns to have a free weekend to rest and spend time with their family is, in my opinion, an innovation for better work-life balance. Or, as the hybridisation of activities is a source of profit for farmers, they will be able to invest more, for example by creating a biogas filling station for vehicles or by building tourist attractions (escape games, etc.)", Gabrielle Halpern
"As experimenters at heart, farmers have a lot to teach us and their innovative and pioneering initiatives are an inspiration to other sectors. If it develops these multiple hybridisations even further, the agricultural world will become a real reference point for tomorrow's society", Gabrielle Halpern
