Damien MARAGE

As an ecologist and geographer, plus a forest specialist, I endeavour to ‘reinstate a concern for the natural world into social intercourse’ as François Ost (1995) put it. And more especially I try to reinstate forest socio-ecosystems into territories past and present so as to anticipate their future. 

I have developed a multiple-scale territorial approach and an actor network analysis based on a systemic and holistic line of argument in order to pin down this solidarity between humans and more-than-humans within the social sciences.

I take up empirical (ecological data, surveys and interviews, serious games) and theoretical (companion modelling, governance of commons) approaches by emphasising the role of other living beings so as to further both social and environmental justice as one. 

My research is directed at interactions between ecological dynamics, stakeholder strategies and public policies, thereby building bridges between disciplines. To this end, I am currently developing georelationality with my colleague Anne Jégou, a new field of research in the environmental humanities. 

My teaching focuses on environmental geography (biogeography, governance of protected areas and regional development), geographical information (spatial analysis, modelling), statistics and decision support. 

Accreditation to direct research in geography: Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne [2018]

PhD: ENGREF and CEMAGREF / LERFoB UMR INRA 1092 [2000–2004]

Post-graduate diploma: Biological Systems Analysis and Modelling: Université Lyon 1 [1999]

Professor of Geography: UFR SLHS - Laboratoire ThéMA since 2021

Senior agricultural and environmental engineer, Head of the Territory Group, Biodiversity Water Heritage Department, DREAL Bourgogne-Franche-Comté [2013–2021]

Lecturer in forest ecology at AgroParisTech-ENGREF / Laboratoire LERFoB [2006–2013]

Associate lecturer at École des Ponts ParisTech [2005–2015]

Teaching and research assistant in biology and plant ecology at Université de Bourgogne [2004–2005]

ISAGA Best gaming award for Solutré Serious Game [2024]

Award winner “1000 researchers speak of the future” [2010]

PhD dissertation award from Société Botanique de France [2005]

Advisory board member: ThéMA research centre

Member: National Nature Protection Council (CNPN) [2022–2027]

Joint chair: Scientific Council of Doubs Horloger Regional Natural Park [2024–2030]

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) French Committee Specialist for the ‘Protected Areas’ Commission, member of the ‘Ethics in Action’ and ‘Wilderness et nature férale’ working groups

Member of the research collective of the Franche-Comté Forest Observatory, Jurassic Arc workshop zone, [2021–2030]

Instigator and joint lead of the SOLUTRE project – Serious game for territorial and landscape governance supported by central government and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regional Council plus ANR RITM 17-NCUN-0003 [2017–2022] - [2022–2024] - [2024–2026]

Instigator and lead of the MORVAN project – Transition of upland socio-ecosystems and forest landscapes in the Morvan. Ecological and societal impact of climate change - ISITE-BFC ANR-15-IDEX-0003 – [2022–2025]

UFC pilot for the Silva Numerica project – Learning about forests through simulation - ANR-22-e-FRAN-0012 – [2022–2024]

Instigator and joint lead of the ATABLE project – Territorial workshop for longitudinal biodiversity on the canal latéral à la Garonne, supported by the ITTECOP programme [2021–2022]

Lead of WP1, European Beech for the future (BEFOFU), ANR Biodiversa [2010–2013]

Instigator and lead of the EMIN2K project – Efficacy of incentive mechanisms in Natura 2000 site forests, supported by the Ministry for the Environment [2009–2012]

Instigator and lead of the TEECH project – Typification and evaluation of the state of conservation of French forest habitats and their associated plant species, supported by the Ministry for the Environment and MNHN [2009–2012]

Member of the European scientific network FLEUR piloted by Thilo Heinken (Potsdam University)

Reviewer for Annales de Géographie, Annals of Forest Science, Cahiers d’Agricultures, Ecological Modelling, Ecologia Mediterranea, Erdkunde, Géomorphologie, Forest Ecology and Management, Journal of Applied Ecology, Journal of Vegetation Science, Naturae, Plant Ecology and Evolution, Territoire en Mouvement, Revue Forestière Française, Revue Française de Gestion Industrielle, Vertigo 

More-than-human geography

Forests, Landscapes

Serious games

Territorial governance

Conservation, Protected areas

1. 1. Marage, D., Lemperiere Guy. (2024). La belle histoire des merveilles de la nature. Editions De Boeck Supérieur, Adapt-Snes. 252p.


2. 2. Blandin, P., Ducarme, F., Marage, D. (2023). Convivialité. L'alliance avec la nature. Editions de l'Atelier, 224 p.


3. 3. Philippe Deuffic, Marage, D., Elsa Richou (2023). Controverses autour des coupes rases en forêt : artefact médiatique ou problème de fond ?. Pour, revue du Groupe Ruralités, Éducation et Politiques,246, pp.63-71.


4. 4. Marage, D., Yves Petit-Berghem, Guy Lempérière, Laurent Simon (2023). Mieux connaître est-ce mieux gérer ? Recours à la casuistique socio-écologique. Rémi Luglia; Rémi Beau; Aline Treillard; Henri Jaffeux. De la réserve intégrale à la nature ordinaire., Presses Universitaires de Rennes, p. 127-138.


5. 5. Marage, D., Anne Jégou.(2022). Pour une géographie de la relationalité. Repenser la solidarité territoriale urbaine avec les non-humains. Bulletin de l'Association de géographes français, 99 (3), pp.386-399.


6. 6. Florence Nicolè, Marage, D., Guy Lempérière, Jorge Paulo Cancela de Fonseca (2022). Guide pratique de biostatistique : Choisir les bons outils pour analyser ses données. De Boeck Supérieur.


7. 7. Marage, D. (2022). Baselines and French Forests. Laurent Godet; Simon Dufour; Anne-Julia Rollet. The Baseline Concept in Biodiversity Conservation - Being Nostalgic or Not in the Anthropocene Era, ISTE; Wiley, pp.165-180.


8. 8. Heshmatol Vaezin, M., Marage, D., Garcia, S. (2022). Cost-effectiveness of Natura 2000 forest contracts for biodiversity conservation. Canadian Journal of Forest Research,53, DOI:⟨10.1139/cjfr-2021-0204⟩


9. 9. Heinken, T., Diekmann, M., Liira, J., Orczewska, A., Schmidt, M., Brunet, J., et al. (2022). The European forest plant species list (EuForPlant): Concept and applications. Journal of Vegetation Science, 33, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jvs.13132


10. 10. Choulak, M., Marage, D., Meinard, Y, & Gisbert, M. (2019). A Meta-Decision-Aiding approach to structure operational and legitimate environmental policies – with an application to wetland prioritization - Science of the Total Environment, 655(2), DOI:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.11.202