UPCité Encounters: free talks in Paris in a 13-minute format

UPCité Encounters are back in Paris on Tuesday, May 19, 2026 with an evening of free talks at the Université Paris Cité. The program features 13-minute presentations exploring the major scientific, social and environmental transformations of our era.

The event runs from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Buffon Amphitheatre, on the Grands Moulins campus of Université Paris Cité, on rue Hélène Brion, in Paris’s 13th arrondissement. Admission is free, with mandatory registration.

On the program: science communication, natural hydrogen, enzymes, the dynamic between fishermen and researchers, the repetitive labor of women, and cabaret. Each session offers an accessible entry point to better understand research questions tied to the transformations shaping the contemporary world.

Register for free for the UPCité Meetings

Here's a tip for anyone seeking a free outing in Paris that revolves around science, society and the big issues of today.

The UPCité encounters program for May 19, 2026

From the lab to the stage: science told in a different light

Can science be conveyed through rap? Once deemed complex and reserved for an elite, scientific research often struggles to reach younger audiences. By blending humor, stand-up, and music, Yaëlle Wormser offers a fresher, more engaging way to tell the story of science.

Yaëlle Wormser is a microbiology PhD candidate at the Institut Pasteur, and, under the stage name Lady Pipette, she’s developing a show that blends rap, humor, and science communication. A recipient of the 2026 Germaine Poinso-Chapuis Special Jury Prize and a national MT180 finalist, she is exploring new ways to engage audiences with science.

A necessary transformation of the relationships between fishers and scientists

While fishermen are routinely called upon to contribute to the development of scientific, technical, and expert knowledge about their practices, this intervention examines the distrust and skepticism they may harbor toward the scientific world.

Alessandro Vacca is a contract-funded PhD student in anthropology at LESC, Paris Nanterre University. His research examines how Breton line fishermen are marginalized in decision-making processes.

Natural hydrogen: myth or energy revolution?

As the search for low-carbon energy takes center stage in public debate, natural hydrogen is capturing attention. Beneath our feet, the Earth naturally generates hydrogen: to harness it as a resource, we need to understand its formation, its circulation, and its storage.

Isabelle Martinez is a professor at Université Paris Cité and a geochemist at the Institute of Earth Physics in Paris. She holds an industrial chair as part of UPCité’s FIRE-UP project and studies the reactions that produce natural hydrogen.

Enzymes: speeding up and transforming life

Enzymes, the real accelerators of life, make possible the countless chemical transformations essential to living organisms. From the human body to medicines, everyday products, and the biotechnologies of the future, this talk explains the role of these indispensable molecules.

Fernando Rodrigues Lima is a professor of enzymology at Paris Cité University. He leads the Molecular, Cellular and Xenobiotic Perturbations team within the Functional and Adaptive Biology Unit, and his research centers on the structures and functions of human enzymes.

Rethinking work and its power to transform society

Reproductive labor — all the caregiving, education, and housekeeping tasks typically carried out in the private sphere and unpaid, by women or precarious workers — is, in fact, the beating heart of our society. History and statistics reveal its political role and measure its economic heft, helping us understand its potential to transform society.

Hugo Harari-Kermadec holds a PhD in mathematics and is a sociology professor at the University of Orléans, where he trains future teachers. He is the co-author, with Fanny Gallot, of The Heart of Capital: The Women Behind the Scenes Who Keep the World Turning, published in February 2026.

What are the UPCité Encounters?

Presented by Université Paris Cité, Les Rencontres d’UPCité form a public-facing series of events. They bring together researchers, scientists, artists, filmmakers, and specialists to exchange views on the major challenges of our times.

The cycle comes in three formats:

• Arts and sciences, bringing artistic creation and scientific research into dialogue;
• 13 minutes, featuring short talks that present a research topic in an accessible way;
• Cine-debate, screenings of fiction or documentary films followed by discussions with experts.

Join us on Tuesday, May 19, 2026 from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM at the Buffon Amphitheatre of Paris Cité University, Rue Hélène Brion, in the 13th arrondissement of Paris.

Free and mandatory registration

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