EDYTEM

What EDYTEM does

EDYTEM (Environnements, Dynamiques et Territoires de Montagne) is a French public research laboratory designated UMR5204, jointly operated by CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique) and Université Savoie Mont Blanc, and founded in 2003. It is headquartered in Le Bourget-du-Lac, Savoie, France, and is a member of the OSUG (Observatoire des Sciences de l'Univers de Grenoble) federation. With 41 personnel organized into four interdisciplinary research teams — Matières & Architectures Moléculaires, Morphodynamiques, Sociétés, and Zone Critique — EDYTEM conducts fundamental and applied research combining geosciences (geology, hydrogeology, geomorphology, sedimentology, palynology) with social sciences (geography, territorial economics, sociology) and, since 2020, environmental and green chemistry, all focused on mountain environments.

The laboratory's technical backbone is the PTAR (Plateforme Technique d'Appui à la Recherche), structured around five poles: PGASe (administration), I5D (cartography, topography, 5D imaging), PISTE (scientific information management and digital publishing), PINTE (field instrumentation and sampling), and PTAL (laboratory analyses and instrumentation). EDYTEM also manages distinctive scientific collections including the Fonds Choppy karstology resource centre, a sediment core library, a speleothèque, and a dendrothèque, plus digital tools such as the Corebook data synchronization software feeding the Cyber-Carothèque Nationale and the elabFTW electronic lab notebook. The lab holds scientific lead responsibility (Fabien Arnaud) for the Carottage Continental France (CCF) national coring instrument park, inaugurated in May 2025 at La Motte-Servolex.

EDYTEM operates as a public research institution under the French higher education and research system. It has no commercial product or service revenue; funding flows through public research grants from CNRS, ANR (Agence Nationale de la Recherche), ERC (European Research Council), regional and national agencies, and the USMB Foundation. The lab's 'customers' in a functional sense are the academic and public-policy research community, with research outputs disseminated via the HAL open archive, conference presentations, and open data repositories (data.indores, Nakala, EasyData). Notable research outcomes include reconstruction of Southern Indian Ocean climate variability over 12,000 years, agricultural pollution history in the Uruguayan Pampa since 1945, and demonstration that rock wall destabilizations in the Mont Blanc massif have more than doubled since the early 20th century. Governance is led by Director Yves Perrette and Deputy Director Clémence Perrin-Malterre.

Name

EDYTEM

Legal name

EDYTEM - Environnements, Dynamiques et Territoires de Montagne

Website

https://edytem.osug.fr

Company type

Public

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

EDYTEM is a French public research laboratory (UMR5204) jointly operated by CNRS and Université Savoie Mont Blanc, conducting interdisciplinary geoscience and social science research on mountain environments, supported by the PTAR technical platform and the national CCF coring infrastructure.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Research Laboratory

NAICS

Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology) (541715)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Environmental Data Management Platforms (EHS/EMS, LIMS, ELN, Compliance Data Hubs) (EUAHAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Scientific Data Management & Data Platforms (SDMS/Data Lakehouse for R&D) (HLAGAJAC)

Keywords

• Environmental research laboratory
• Mountain geosciences research
• Paleoenvironmental reconstruction
• Interdisciplinary environmental science
• Sediment core analysis

Headquarters

HQ city

Le Bourget du Lac

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

EDYTEM is a public research laboratory (Unité Mixte de Recherche UMR5204) jointly operated by Université Savoie Mont Blanc and CNRS that conducts fundamental and applied interdisciplinary research on mountain environments, combining geosciences (geology, hydrogeology, geomorphology) with human and social sciences (geography, territorial economics, sociology), environmental chemistry, archaeology, palynology, pedology, and sedimentology. It delivers research outputs through four interdisciplinary teams, the PTAR technical platform with five specialized poles (I5D, PISTE, PINTE, PTAL, PGASe), scientific collections (sediment cores, speleothems, dendrochronology samples, Fonds Choppy karstology centre), the open HAL publications archive, the elabFTW electronic lab notebook, Corebook data-synchronization software for the Cyber-Carothèque Nationale, and the Carottage Continental France (CCF) national coring instrument park.

Product overview

EDYTEM is a university/CNRS mixed research unit (UMR5204) focused on Environments, Dynamics, and Mountain Territories. It is not a commercial product company but rather a research laboratory structured around four interdisciplinary teams — Matières & Architectures Moléculaires, Morphodynamiques, Sociétés, and Zone Critique — supported by the overarching PTAR (Plateforme Technique d'Appui à la Recherche) technical infrastructure. The laboratory's 'products and services' consist of its research teams and their scientific capabilities, five internal technical poles (PGASe, I5D, PISTE, PINTE, PTAL), physical scientific collections (sediment cores, speleothems, dendrochronology samples), the Choppy Karstology Resource Centre, and digital tools including the Corebook/Cyber-Carothèque Nationale data synchronization system and elabFTW electronic lab notebook. The lab also maintains an open HAL publications archive. All offerings are oriented toward supporting interdisciplinary environmental and geoscience research in mountain contexts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Plateforme Technique d'Appui à la Recherche (PTAR) Overarching technical platform aggregating EDYTEM's technical competencies, human resources, and logistical capabilities, organized into five specialized poles (PGASe for administration, I5D for cartography/topography/5D imaging, PISTE for scientific information management, PINTE for field instrumentation, PTAL for laboratory analyses). It supports interdisciplinary research projects and facilitates data management and sharing across research teams.
• Corebook & Cyber-Carothèque Nationale (CCN) Software tool for synchronizing coring data with the Cyber-Carothèque Nationale (CCN), France's national repository for sediment core data. Enables researchers to import legacy coring inventory data and manage synchronization with the centralized national database.
• elabFTW (Electronic Lab Notebook) Electronic laboratory notebook platform used by EDYTEM researchers for digital record-keeping, experiment documentation, and collaborative data management within the laboratory.
• Fonds Jacques Choppy — Centre de ressources en Karstologie Major documentary collection on karstology and scientific speleology, aggregating successive legacies and donations from French scientists including Jacques Choppy, Jean Corbel, and Alain Mangin. Serves as a reference resource for the karstology research community.
• Carothèque sédimentaire (Sediment Core Library) Repository of sediment cores collected from lacustrine and continental environments, managed as a structured scientific collection for paleoclimate and geological research; currently under construction.
• Spéléothèque (Speleothem Library) Structured collection of speleothem (cave formation) samples maintained by the laboratory for paleoclimate and geological research purposes.
• Dendrothèque (Dendrochronology Library) Dendrochronology sample library supporting research in tree-ring analysis for reconstructing past climate, geomorphological events, and environmental changes in mountain environments.
• HAL EDYTEM Collection Open publications archive hosted on HAL Science, aggregating peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, and conference proceedings authored by EDYTEM researchers across all four research teams and interdisciplinary themes.
• Carottage Continental France (CCF) National Instrument Park National coring instrument park managed by OSUG in coordination with EDYTEM, enabling French national and international research teams to access high-quality continental geological records through coring operations across lakes, rivers, estuaries, and mountain environments. Provides continental coring services across terrestrial, lacustrine, and littoral environments.

Quantifiable outcome

• Reconstitution of Southern Indian Ocean climate variability over 12,000 years (Holocene)
• +2 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• OSUG (Observatoire des Sciences de l'Univers de Grenoble)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEDYTEM is part of the OSUG federation, a major research federation bringing together Earth and environmental science laboratories in the Grenoble region. OSUG provides infrastructure, shared resources, and a collaborative framework for joint research initiatives.
• TénéviacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTénévia is a startup company (startup) created from the research work of Georges-Marie Saulnier, a CNRS researcher at EDYTEM in the Critical Zone team. The company develops environmental monitoring technologies.
• EnvisolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEDYTEM and Envisol have established a joint laboratory (laboratoire commun) for the development of environmental sensors and expertise. This partnership is recognized as a joint laboratory under the CNRS SpecSole program.
• LLSETI (Université Savoie Mont Blanc)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrong collaborations in Social Sciences and Humanities (SHS) with LLSETI, including joint seminars and thesis committee participation. Also collaboration with the Centre de recherche en droit Antoine Favre at USMB.
• FREE Alpes FederationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with the FREE Alpes federation, including the PACTE Environnement team, for interdisciplinary environmental research. EDYTEM is also part of the Epistemology, Policies, Mountain Spaces transversal theme within FREE Alpes.
• CARRTELminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with CARRTEL within the Dipee 'LECA, SAJF, Edytem' grouping and the Zone Atelier Alpes network for ecological research.
• LECAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with LECA within the Dipee grouping and Zone Atelier Alpes for environmental and ecological research.
• ISTerre and IGE (OSUG labs)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGeoscience dimension collaborations with OSUG member laboratories ISTERRE and IGE for shared research projects.
• Protected Area Managers (Parcs Nationaux, PNR, CEN)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with managers of protected spaces including Parc National des Ecrins, Parc National de la Vanoise, PNR des Bauges, PNR de Chartreuse, and CEN Haute-Savoie Asters. Lab members participate in scientific advisory boards.
• Fondation USMBminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe USMB Foundation provides support for connecting the laboratory with non-academic partners and for funding research projects such as plastilac (microplastics in lakes) led by David Gateuille and Emmanuel Naffrechoux.
• Zone Atelier AlpesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerParticipation in Zone Atelier Alpes (ZAA) research infrastructure, a long-term socio-ecological research platform focused on Alpine environments.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• University of Oslo Department of Geosciences: Major Northern European geosciences department with climate, glaciology, and environmental geology research. Comparable to EDYTEM in environmental geoscience research focus but based in Norway rather than France.

Broad incumbents

• CNRS-INSU (Institut National des Sciences de l'Univers): Parent-discipline CNRS institute coordinating French Earth and Universe sciences research. Comparable to EDYTEM as the broader umbrella institution that funds and oversees much of EDYTEM's national-scale research agenda.
• ETH Zurich Department of Earth Sciences: Major European geosciences department with mountain, climate, and Earth-surface research. Comparable to EDYTEM in environmental geoscience research but with much larger scale and broader thematic scope.
• INRAE Centre Grenoble: Larger national research institute covering agronomy, ecology, and environmental science broadly. Overlaps with EDYTEM in environmental research but at much broader scale and with applied agricultural and ecological mandate.

Direct peers

• LETG (Littoral, Environnement, Télédétection, Géomatique): French CNRS lab network studying littoral and environmental geography using geomatics. Comparable to EDYTEM through shared CNRS geography and environmental research traditions, though focused on coastal rather than mountain environments.
• IGE (Institut des Géosciences de l'Environnement): OSUG federation lab studying glaciers, climate, and environmental geosciences. Comparable to EDYTEM in environmental Earth science focus, mountain/Arctic research, and shared OSUG infrastructure.
• LECA (Laboratoire d'Écologie Alpine): OSUG federation laboratory specializing in alpine ecology and environmental biology. Directly comparable to EDYTEM in alpine-environment research focus, joint ZAA/Zone Atelier Alpes participation, and OSUG membership.
• ISTerre (Institut des Sciences de la Terre): OSUG federation member laboratory focused on geosciences, geophysics, and Earth sciences. Directly comparable to EDYTEM through shared OSUG affiliation, joint research projects, and overlapping geoscience and environmental research scope.
• WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research (SLF): Swiss federal institute dedicated to snow, avalanche, and alpine mountain environment research. Comparable to EDYTEM in mountain-environment focus, but operating in Switzerland (Davos) rather than France.
• CARRTEL (Centre Alpin de Recherche sur les Réseaux Trophiques et Écologie des Lacs): INRAE/OSUG lab studying lake ecology and trophic networks. Comparable to EDYTEM through joint Dipee grouping (LECA, SAJF, Edytem), shared lake-focused research, and aquatic-environment expertise.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/edytem_fr
• YouTubeyoutube.com/playlist?list=PLQj84RQkFU-OSZELBD0cf4rl4wiOS3bzL&si=GPe4NbE2n7zk8qtl
• Facebookfacebook.com/EDYTEM
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/edytem

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about EDYTEM