The Collège de France is concerned by alarming news about the future of the Palais de la découverte, which was to have taken its place in the Grand Palais when the latter reopened at the beginning of June. The postponement of the opening and the allocation for five years of a temporary exhibition space to the Centre Pompidou raise questions that are fuelled by contradictory communication from the supervisory authorities.
More than ever, our country needs a science museum that facilitates transmission through human mediation and live experimentation, so that as many people as possible, especially young people, can familiarize themselves with science and understand the world around them. The Palais de la Découverte's reputation is based on this specificity, and it has inspired many scientific vocations and remained very dear to the hearts of the general public. This fundamental role complements that of the Cité des sciences et de l'industrie de la Villette, associated with the Palais as part of the joint Universcience establishment. Strong support for the project can be seen in the involvement of five major sponsors (Konica Minolta, MathWorks, QRT, SLB, Stellantis), nine founding sponsors (Air Liquide, CEA, EDF, FIEEC, L'Occitane-en-Provence, Dassault Systèmes, Maison Francis Kurkdjian, Qarnot, Syensqo) and numerous private donations.
During the five years of renovation of the Grand Palais, the teams at the Palais de la découverte worked with the scientific curators and a hundred or so experts to build a modern, ambitious version of their institution, broadening the disciplinary fields represented until now and bringing them into close association to meet the major challenges of the 21st century (artificial intelligence, biology and health, energy transition and climate change, new space, human and social sciences...) An immersive and interactive room, winner of the call for projects " Culture immersive et métavers " as part of #France2030, will take visitors to the heart of contemporary research, and the planetarium in its new version will feature innovative technology (opto-mechanical and digital), the fruit of a public/private partnership.
This mediation effort, combining active experimentation and cutting-edge technology, is absolutely essential to enlighten the citizens of our country, giving them the critical tools to combat the misinformation that is spreading ever faster than scientific truths.
The presence of the Palais de la découverte in the Grand Palais is a powerful symbol of the ever-increasing role that scientific culture must play within culture - a role that is essential to any democracy.
