Publication of the opening lecture by Pr Franck Courchamp

Franck Courchamp

The paradoxes of biodiversity

A book that introduces the concepts of complexity, paradoxes and the holistic approach to ecology.

Inhabited by thousands of species interacting with each other and with the environment, biodiversity conceals a fascinating complexity. Even when systems seem simple, or interactions logical, this often unobtrusive complexity reveals surprising paradoxes. Using examples from his career, Franck Courchamp moves from paradox to paradox to demonstrate the complexity of biodiversity and ecosystems, and the need for a holistic approach to ecology. Complexity, paradoxes and holism : three concepts that feed this opening lecture on biodiversity.

Courchamp F., Les Paradoxes de la biodiversité, Paris, Collège de France, coll. " Leçons inaugurales ", ^no 337, 2026, 64  p.

ISBN : 978-2-7226-0874-0
Price : 12  €
Publication : 19  March 2026

Franck Courchamp is an ecologist. Director of research at the CNRS National Institute for Ecology and the Environment, he has contributed reports to intergovernmental panels such as the Convention on Biological Diversity, the IPCC and IPBES. Recipient of the CNRS Silver Medal in 2011 and appointed to the European Academy of Sciences in 2014, in 2024-2025 he will be visiting professor at the Collège de France on the Biodiversity and Ecosystems Annual Chair, created with the support of the Jean-François de Clermont-Tonnerre Foundation.