Biogas: shedding light on the tensions surrounding support policies
IDDRI has contributed to the debate on biogas development in France by analyzing support policies for the sector and their environmental and economic effectiveness. In France, proposals aim to increase production nearly fourfold by 2030 and more than twelvefold by 2050, as part of the energy transition. Policies supporting agricultural anaerobic digestion also aim to reduce production costs while providing economic incentives for farming practices that support the agroecological transition. IDDRI's study highlights tensions between these three objectives. Published in October 2025, it received significant media attention, reflecting the novelty and relevance of the analysis.
Transformational adaptation is gaining momentum
Following its proposal, in March 2025, for a mechanism to monitor the French Climate Change Adaptation Plan (PNACC-3), developed in collaboration with regional authorities, IDDRI turned its attention to the governance of adaptation. As adaptation requires informed public debate, grounded in scientific evidence, governance must be organized to facilitate effective decision-making. A publication released in autumn 2025 sets out the scope of adaptation challenges, along with the governance framework and objectives, the stakeholders involved, and the tools and instruments deployed. Transformational adaptation, understood as changes to the fundamental elements of a system (as opposed to incremental adaptation), is gaining traction in France, alongside efforts to move beyond siloed approaches. For example, the integration of adaptation into ADEME’s 2050 foresight scenarios addresses governance issues, cross-border risks, and the prioritization of sectors under different adaptation strategies.
What strategy should be adopted to promote environmental issues?
IDDRI’s work in recent years on the social dimensions of the ecological transition, carried out in collaboration with the Parlons Climat agency, has focused on analyzing the strategies of change-makers—including IDDRI—and to provide proposals for adapting these approaches to the current context. The publication “A majority strategy for the environmental transition: moving beyond minority-based approaches?” has served both as a basis for dialogue with stakeholders and as a foundation for the development of IDDRI’s 2026-2030 strategic plan. It highlights the need to: diversify the figures who embody environmentalism, recognizing a plurality of approaches; act on enabling environments to make sustainable practices possible, rather than relying solely on individual behaviour change; consider social inequalities in the transition; and embed environmentalism within a broader project addressing everyday concerns (employment, purchasing power, etc.). The aim is to address the needs of citizens by focusing on living conditions rather than on environmental issues alone.
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