CURRICULUM VITAE
(for more information see http://jeanpierremuller.blogspot.com/)
1. Surname: MULLER
2. First name: Jean-Pierre
3. Date of birth: July 18, 1946
4. Nationality: French
5. Marital status: Married (spouse of Indian origin)
6. Education:
| Establishment | National Institute of Agronomy, Paris Grignon (INA-PG) – 1967-1969 |
| Degree | Engineer in Agronomy (1969) |
| Establishment | University of Paris 7 (Jussieu campus) – Earth Sciences Division – 1980-1986 |
| Degree | State Doctorate (ès sciences), Physics of the Earth (1986) |
7. Language proficiency: (from 1 to 5, 5 being the maximum)
Language | Read | Spoken | Written |
| French | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| English | 4 | 3 | 3 |
8. Associations or professional bodies:
(a) 1979 – 1980 (Yaoundé) : see below
(b) 1980 – 1998 (Paris; ORSTOM, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), Universities of Paris 6 and 7): Member of various scholarly societies: French Society of Mineralogy-Cristallography (Vice-president from 1999 to 2003); European Union of Geosciences; Clay Mineralogical Society of America; Soil Science Society of America; International Association for the Study of Clays; …
(c) 1998 -2003 (Paris, French Research Institute for Development (IRD)): ex-officio member of numerous national and international consultative authorities as the Director General of the French Research Institute for Development (IRD)
(d) 2003 – 2008 (Pondicherry): consultant for several Indian authorities (education; research; government of the State of Pondicherry) in the capacity of Director of the French Institute of Pondicherry (IFP)
9. Other qualifications:
(a) Writing skills of analysis, argument and synthesis
(b) Mastery in written and oral communication techniques, and in conducting negotiations
(c) Mastery in standard word-processing software, spreadsheets and Internet
10. Current position: Director of the French Institute of Pondicherry
11. Number of years of work experience:
37 years of experience, of which 14 in management
12. Main qualifications / Experience:
MANAGEMENT: Proven abilities in management
- Good mastery of techniques in management and communication ; leadership skills
- Service record of guiding and managing research in positions of responsibility: Director General of the French Research Institute for Development, Paris (IRD / French Ministry for Higher Studies and Research (MESR)); Director of the French Institute of Pondicherry, India (French Ministry of Foreign Affairs); Director of a research unit of the ORSTOM (MESR & French Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE)); Leadership of teams and of numerous national and international research projects
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION: Experience in bilateral and multilateral cooperation
- Career entirely devoted to North-South scientific cooperation
- In-depth general knowledge of policies and issues pertaining to development
- Experience in intercultural dialogue and negotiation (good knowledge of African and Indian sociologies)
- Knowledge on how to organize research at the national, European and international levels
- Leadership of programmes carried out in cooperation with other countries (Africa, Latin America, Asia)
- Initiator of numerous agreements with national and international institutions of Northern and
Southern countries;
- Director of projects in partnership with numerous African and Latin American countries
- Representation activities, leading to numerous scientific and technical collaborations
- Strong scientific experience in research and training carried out in partnership
- Leadership of research and education teams on the environments of tropical regions; Diverse applications of this research (contracts with the private sector): condition, usage, promotion, management and protection of the environment
- Organisation of – and participation in-- numerous national and international scientific events
13. Work Experience:
| INDIA | February 2003 August 2008 | Director of the French Institute of Pondicherry |
| - Principal research centre of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE). Research, promotion and training: environment, contemporary social dynamics and Indian cultural knowledge and heritage. Projects in South and Southeast Asia. - In-depth reform of the structure and functioning of the Institute: policy by objectives; “ culture of projects ”; refocusing of themes; emphasis on excellence, mobilisation of partners (South Asia, Europe, USA), benefits for civil society; launching of innovative multidisciplinary projects; optimisation of human, financial and material resources - Creation of strong research support structures: Laboratory of Applied Informatics and Geomatics; an integrated and fully computerised Centre for Documentary Resources - Expansion and formalisation of the network of institutional partners (India, Europe, USA) - Spectacular increase in the number of students received (Post doc., doc. & masters) - Considerable increase in external funding (notably from the EU, Ford Foundation, French National Agency for Research (ANR), BIT/ILO, Indian governmental agencies) - Launching of an ambitious policy of communication and diffusion of knowledge and know-how (publications; multimedia materials; scientific events; WEB; etc.) “The French Institute of Pondicherry is emerging as a major player in Indo-French cooperation” (focus Frontline, August 2006) | ||
| FRANCE | May 1998- Jan. 2003 | Director General of the Research Institute for Development (IRD ; ex-ORSTOM) |
| - Missions (research, expertise and promotion, support and training, scientific information centred on the relations between man and his environment in Southern countries. Themes: environmental hazards and security of populations; sustainable management of ecosystems; resources and usage of continental and coastal waters; food security; health; economic, social and identity issues and spatial dynamics. 2500 personnel, budget of 1250 MF. Network of partners and operations in around fifty countries (Africa, Latin America, Asia, Oceania); 35 centres and representations (France, French overseas departments and territories, abroad). - Rewriting of the statutory texts and setting-up of new operational structures: 93 research and service units of which 1/3 mixed with various universities, the CNRS (French National Centre for Scientific Research), the INRA (French National Institute for Agronomic Research) and the CIRAD (French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development) ; 5 scientific departments (to organise and lead research; to build expertise and economic and social partnerships; to train agents from Southern countries in research,) ; - Setting-up of new evaluation authorities: 6 independent evaluation commissions with a reinforced mission (4 sector-wise; 2 for Management of Research and its Applications) ; a Scientific Council, an authority for guidance in matters of scientific policies; - Reorganisation of the Administrative structure: 5 at the management level and 5 services; amendment of procedures; improvement in the employment policy; launching of a Plan for Administrative Modernisation and Simplification (PMSA) and of a Strategy document for Information Systems (SDSI) - Strengthening of partnerships through numerous inter-institutional agreements; - Drafting of a quadrennial contract between the IRD and the Government. | ||
| « The ORSTOM was threatened in its own existence. The IRD, the foundations of which have been firmly established, is now in the first rank of recognised research institutes » (CICID) | ||
| FRANCE (Africa; Latin America; Oceania) | June 1993 May 1997 | Director of the Research Unit « Geosciences of Tropical Environment » (ORSTOM) |
| - Research on the processes of deterioration and erosion of soils of the inter-tropical zone and recording of local and global climate variations. 55 researchers and technicians; 25 research fellows; Study fields in Central and Western Africa, Brazil, in the countries of the Andean Arc, in Oceania. - Defining of a new scientific strategy: refocusing the teams’ projects both at the thematic and geographical levels ,into 3 thrust areas (functioning of soils; metallogeny; palaeoenvironments and palaeoclimates); thematic broadening (pollution and environment protection) ; - Improvement in performance: visibility of programmes; optimisation of human resources; adaptation of structures to the evolution of disciplines; usage of sophisticated and adapted technologies; - Development of multidisciplinary approaches: insertion of projects in « large national programmes »; substantial increase in the number and level of publications; - Reinforcing of partnerships: increase in the number of foreign researchers and PhD candidates received; increase in the number of trainee programmes; development of technical transfers. | ||
| FRANCE (Cameroon; Brazil; Mexico) | November 1981 June 1993 | Research and Supervision of programmes on the superficial formations in tropical zones (ORSTOM; CNRS; Universities of Paris 6 and 7) |
| > 1987 - 1998: structure and properties of minerals and materials on the Earth’s surface (ORSTOM, CNRS, Universities Paris 6 and 7); fields in Cameroon, Brazil, Mexico and France - Usage of minerals as geological markers; tracing of transfers and exchanges of matter at the scale of the large tropical basins (Global Change perspective); environment protection; numerous applications (transfer of radioelements; tracing of toxic heavy elements; valorisation of materials; …). - Supervision of around thirty projects (national and international); education (Post graduate); supervision of Master’s and Doctorate degrees; contracts with industrial firms > 1981 - 1987: Genesis and properties of laterite formations (Physics of the Erath Division; University of Paris 7) - Mechanisms of transformation, transfer and accumulation of matter responsible for the cover alterations of humid and forest tropical regions; - Analysis of secondary mineral parageneses (kaolinite; iron oxy-hydroxides and aluminium): usage as tracers for conditions of formation and evolution of laterite formations - Numerous publications - Organisation of – and participation in - symposiums;” invited “ conferences | ||
| Gabon CAMEROON | November 1979 June 1980 | Mapping and taxonomy of soils of Central Africa – Consultancy activities |
| - ORSTOM Centre of Libreville then of Yaoundé; Office for Scientific and Technical Research of Cameroon (ONAREST) - Mapping of soils from humid forest regions to sub-Sahelian dry regions; taxonomy of soils with a view to drawing inventories and analysis of their cultivation aptitudes; structural and chemical characterisation of laterite formations. - Representative of Cameroon to the African Unity Organisation (1979, for Geosciences); consultant to various services of the Cameroonian government (Ministries for Planning, Agriculture, Health; Agricultural Services), institutions of research and higher studies (Universities, Higher National School for Agronomy, institutes other than the ONAREST), prospecting companies (BRGM, Mining project of the PNUD), farming companies (sugarcane, corn, hévéas,...), research departments (BDPA, GTZ, SEDA, ..), international funding agencies (World Bank, FED, FAO) | ||
