Marie-Françoise André, born 21 November 1953 in Paris, is a French geographer and geomorphologist specialising in the study of landscape architecture in the polar regions (Labrador, Spitsbergen, Lapland, Antarctica). She applies her knowledge of stone erosion in the field of heritage preservation, particularly in Angkor. Her research was awarded the silver medal from CNRS, the French national centre for scientific research.
Biography
A teacher-researcher in geomorphology, she was a member of CNRS's URA 1562 team in Clermont-Ferrand in 1993 and joined the Physical and Environmental Geography Laboratory (GEOLAB) in the same year, when it was created.[1] She was director of GEOLAB for nine years (1998-2007).[1]
After a third cycle thesis (fr:DEA) on the geomorphological evolution of Northern Labrador, her state doctoral thesis, defended in 1991, focused on the dynamics and evolution of the slopes in Spitsbergen.[5] She studies landscape changes over time and the influence of climatic variations in Swedish Lapland and the Antarctic Peninsula.[2] She also publishes epistemological work on geomorphology [6] and French research on the poles.[7]
Since the 2000s, Marie-Françoise André has focused her work on the speed of stone erosion in historic monuments.[8] As part of the multidisciplinary Ta Keo project in Angkor, using photogrammetry and geomatics, her team managed to show the protective role of the forest[9] and therefore link the acceleration of the temples' degradation to recent deforestation.[10] This work on the causes and rates of degradation of the epidermis of monuments, as well as the link between geomorphology and heritage,[11] was awarded a silver medal from the CNRS.[12] She continues her research in the French Massif Central,[13] in Southern America's Guyana[14] and in the Mediterranean islands of Malta and Cyprus.
Currently a Professor Emeritus, she has directed around 20 theses, published around 60 articles and written several general works on polar landscapes.[15]
Monique Fort, Marie-Françoise André (2016-10-02). Landscapes and Landforms of France. Springer. p. 296. ISBN978-9402406696.
Alain Godard, Marie-Françoise André (2013-07-30). Les milieux polaires. Armand Colin. p. 460.
Fabienne Lemarchand, Marie-Françoise André et Frédérique Rémy (2011-11-24). Cap sur les pôles : 100 questions sur les mondes polaires. Omniscience. p. 222.
Le monde polaire : Mutations et transitions. Ellipses. 2005-12-14. p. 187.
