Isabelle Litrico is the new Scientific Director of Agriculture at INRAE

Isabelle Litrico joined INRAE in 2006 and was rapidly given managerial responsibilities in addition to her research career. Through this experience she has acquired in-depth knowledge of the Institute and its stakeholders that she can apply as she carries out her new responsibilities. 

Sustainable, multiperformance agricultural systems

The Scientific Director of Agriculture: an important link in the continuum connecting stakeholders on the ground and public policy makers.

Given the challenges that concern society as much as they mobilise researchers in food security and the environment, the role of scientific director of Agriculture, for Isabelle, is “a strategically important link in the continuum connecting stakeholders on the ground and public policy makers”. She takes over from Christian Huyghe. In operational terms, the key focus of Isabelle Litrico’s mandate is to address the high expectations of society and stakeholders by producing the highest level of knowledge possible and optimising its impact to ensure that agriculture can ensure food security, an income for farmers, and meet environmental challenges.
This approach to agriculture is part of the INRAE2030 strategic roadmap that Isabelle Litrico will help lead during her four-year term with INRAE’s scientific divisions, in coordination with the Directors of Environment and of Food and the Bioeconomy, along with the Deputy Director General of Science and Innovation, under the supervision of the CEO of INRAE.

An interdisciplinary and multi-partnership background 

Isabelle Litrico is well versed in finding connections between different fields and approaches thanks to her beginnings in genetics and population ecology and her time at the Plant Biology and Breeding Division. 
As the head of this division, for example, she helped develop the INRAE2030 strategic roadmap and took part in its implementation in the research units. She has also led this community in mobilising individual approaches and skills to contribute to the agroecological transition.
With as many as 44 research units, the division brings a rich and diverse range of expertise and savoir-faire to the study of a large number of plant species. This diversity has allowed her to get to know many INRAE partners and take part in decision-making processes.