The Oceanographic Institute is a charitable foundation established in 1906 by Prince Albert I of Monaco. An erudite sovereign and explorer, and a member of the French Academy of Sciences, he was one of the pioneers of oceanographic research, to which he devoted almost thirty expeditions since 1885, focusing in particular on deep-sea biology and establishing the first bathymetric chart. Today, the Institut Océanographique supports the implementation of sustainable ocean management, capable of reconciling the preservation of biodiversity with economic activities that respect marine ecosystems. Through its two establishments, the Oceanographic Museum in Monaco and the Maison des Océans in Paris, it acts as a mediator between the scientific community, players in the maritime economy, political decision-makers and the general public.
Since 1949, the Institut océanographique has awarded the Albert I Grand Medal each year to a highly qualified, world-class scientific researcher in the field of oceanography. This distinction is usually awarded alternately to a French or foreign scientist. Recipients include oceanographers John Swallow, Christian Le Provost and Carl Wunsch, geologists and geophysicists Xavier Le Pichon, Wolfgang Berger and Anny Cazenave, and marine biologists André Morel, Victor Smetacek and Paul Falkowski.
The Albert I Grand Medal was presented by HSH Prince Albert II to Edouard Bard at a ceremony on October 20, 2014 at the Maison des Océans, in the presence of Mrs. Ségolène Royal, Minister of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy, as well as numerous personalities from the academic world, including Mr. Bernard Meunier and Mrs. Catherine Bréchignac, President and Perpetual Secretary of the Académie des Sciences, and Mrs. Pascale Delecluse Director of the CNRS INSU.
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Article published in La Lettre du Collège de France n° 39, March 2015.
