Great success of the annual symposium of the Renewable Materials Research Centre (RMRC) « Intersectoral synergy as an approach to the circular economy » – November 30, 2022 – Laval University
Under the theme « Intersectoral synergy as a circular economy approach», the annual symposium of the Renewable Materials Research Centre (CRMR) was a great success! This event was conducted entirely in presential on November 30, 2022 at Laval University in Quebec City and has gathered more than 95 participants.
The symposium has created a multidisciplinary space for sharing and exchange of scientific findings and expertise between all members of the CRMR and conference speakers from the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences (FSAA), the Center for Technology Transfer in Industrial Ecology (CTTÉI) and the industrial field (Tafisa).
The symposium commenced with two conferences as part of a multidisciplinary program, intercalated by two student poster sessions on the different research axes of the CRMR, namely: i) knowing and characterizing the renewable resource; ii) transforming the resource and designing eco-responsible products and systems; iii) using the innovative products and systems and analyzing their environmental performance; and iv) accessing the market.
CRMR students’ posters sessions
The first conference by Samuel Bédard, technical coordinator at Tafisa, focused on the advantages of using recycled wood to manufacture particleboard in a circular economy context. The second presentation by Élisabeth Viry, a researcher at the Centre de transfert technologique en écologie industrielle, focused on the different aspects of the circular economy. Thirty-eight students from the CRMR presented their research work in the form of scientific posters that were evaluated by a 10-judge committee, composed of professors, research professionals, and postdoctoral fellows.
Elizabeth Viry’s conference
 The afternoon was reserved for two pairs of conferences and an enriching discussion around a panel on « The Circular Economy ». Each pair of conferences shared the same research theme: « waste and residue valorization » and « carbon sequestration in soils». Each theme was composed of two successive presentations given by two professors, one from the FFGG and the other from the FSAA of Laval University, followed by a question period between the two professors. This scientific marriage aims to create links between the two fields of expertise and consequently to create new research collaborations in the future.
The first pair of conferences regrouped Alain Cloutier, a full professor in the Department of Wood and Forest Sciences at FFGG, and Seddik Khalloufi, a professor in food engineering in the FSAA, and focused on the valorization of wastes and residues in relation to their respective fields of expertise, which are wood-based composite panels for Alain Cloutier and food products for Seddik Khalloufi.
The second pair of conferences gathered Évelyne Thiffault, aggregate professor of forest soils in the Department of Wood and Forest Sciences at FFGG, and Marie Elise Samson, assistant professor in the Department of Soils and Agri-Food Engineering at FSAA, who respectively addressed carbon sequestration in forest and agricultural soils.
Évelyne Thiffault’s conference
 
Marie Elise Samson’s conference
The last activity of the afternoon was a panel discussion on «Circular Economy in the Wood and Agriculture Sector», which was animated by Nancy Gélinas, dean of the FFGG since 2020 and full professor in the Department of Wood and Forest Sciences. Participants in the panel discussion were: Alexis Achim, full professor in the Department of Wood and Forest Sciences and Vice-Dean of Research at FFGG, Pierre Blanchet, full professor in the Department of Wood and Forest Sciences at FFGG, Lucie Beaulieu, full professor in the Department of Food Sciences at FSAA, and Hortense Montoux, project manager at the intersectoral research and study center in the circular economy of the School of superior technology (ÉTS). The main objective of the discussion is to understand the concept of circular economy and the approaches and challenges of applying circular economy according to each area of expertise. The links between the circular economy and waste valorization were discussed and avenues for the valorization of agricultural waste into wood products may see the light in the close future!
From left to right: Alexis Achim, Lucie Beaulieu, Hortense Montoux and Pierre Blanchet
This post-pandemic conference offered an opportunity for collective reflection, as well as a space for meetings and exchanges between researchers and students interested in the valorization of renewable resources in its various forms (wood materials, organic residues, etc.), the transformation and design of ecoresponsible products and systems, as well as the analysis of their environmental performance, in a circular economy context. The symposium also allowed the creation and development of relationships and research partnerships with the Faculty of Agriculture and Food Sciences of Laval University interested in the valorization of food residues.
Before closing the event with a convivial cocktail that gathered all attendees in a large room to exchange and extend their knowledge, Véronic Landry, Director of the CRMR and full professor in the Department of Wood and Forest Sciences at the FFGG, closed the conference by expressing her thanks to the organizing committee for all the effort and energy spent in organizing this conference and for having mobilized the resources necessary for its success. She also thanked the participants (graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, professors, and employees) for their involvement, sharing and exchange of constructive ideas, and expressed her great willingness to forge new collaborations with researchers from the FSAA, the CTTÉI and the ÉTS. Véronic ended her speech by announcing the winners of the poster competition prizes.
 Congratulations to our student poster winners:
- Assira Keralta won the best science poster award ($350)!
- Charles Breton won the second best science poster award ($250).
- Lady Cardona won the third best science poster award ($150).
- Sandrine Paquin won the « Prix coup de cœur» ($50).
The first three prizes are offered by the CRMR, while the « Prix coup de cÅ“ur» is awarded by the «Association des étudiants gradués en foresterie de l’Université Laval (AFOR ). We would like to thank the AFOR for its financial support.
From left to right: Alexis Achim, Sandrine Paquin, Assira Keralta, Lady Cardona, Nancy Gélinas and Véronic Landry
The organizing committee of the annual conference of the CRMR
The realization and success of this symposium are due to the perseverance and involvement of a small group of people who have worked tirelessly since June 2022: Besma Bouslimi, Hossein Emami, Roberta Dagher, Adrien Gaudelas, Baptiste Giorgio, Antoine Harel, Zahra Hosseini, Véronic Landry, Alex Mary, Solène Marie Anne Pellerin, and Caroline Trahan.
Acknowledgments
The organizing committee would like to express its sincere thanks to all the participants and speakers for their involvement and for sharing the results of various research and development projects. A special acknowledgment also to to our graphic designer, Julie Ferland, and to the team that contributed to the logistical and technical support of the conference: Michel Roy and Kaven Després!
Responsible for the article: Besma Bouslimi
Photo credit: Antoine Harel and Besma Bouslimi