Nature right before our eyes holds treasures just waiting to be discovered.

That’s what two staff members from Sciences Po Grenoble – UGA—Christine from the finance department, a botany enthusiast, and Laurent from the communications department, an ornithology enthusiast—proposed during two tours of the courtyards and surrounding areas of their workplace.

As part of Biodiversity Month, organized by the University of Grenoble Alpes this June, about twenty initiatives are being offered.

This is an opportunity at Sciences Po Grenoble - UGA to rediscover its courtyards in a new light, where the palmate maple—a veritable pantry for wildlife—casts its cooling shade, and the majestic Paulownia is home to a pair of wood pigeons. Other bird species nest nearby, such as the Eurasian magpie, which has built its nest just a few meters from the school’s entrance on the west side!

Every nook and cranny is used for nesting.

Between the roof and the wall, a small colony of house sparrows chirps above the windows of the administration offices on the east side, along with a pair of European starlings. The black redstart has made its home above the Amhi A building!

A few other species observed or heard during the visits: the robin, the blackcap, the citril finch, the blackbird, the kestrel, the carrion crow...
A pleasant and friendly way to start the day with colleagues and outside visitors.

Sciences Po Grenoble - UGA aims to protect and highlight these natural and architectural treasures as part of its institutional development plan. An audit on staff perceptions of these patios was conducted by Nathan and Sidonie, members of the team of architects and urban planners OTOPO to initiate future coordinated actions aimed at making them more pleasant while preserving their natural character.

Grenoble Alpes University has been designated a "Biodiversity Refuge" by the LPO (League for the Protection of Birds and Biodiversity). Covering 200 hectares, it is the largest such refuge in the Isère department.