Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development) is an internationally recognised multidisciplinary organisation, working mainly in partnership with countries in the Global South and in the French overseas territories.
Our identity
IRD is a multidisciplinary French public research organization committed to equitable partnerships with countries in the Global South and in the French overseas territories for nearly 80 years.
As a contributor to the achievement of the international development agenda, its priorities are aligned with the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Together, scientists and the Institute's partners propose concrete solutions to the global challenges facing societies and the planet. This win-win relationship makes science and innovation major levers for development.
The Institute operates under the joint authority of the ministry responsible for higher education and research as well as the ministry for european and foreign affairs.
A science committed to a sustainable future
Scientific progress is necessary to further sustainable and human development: IRD carries this conviction with it wherever it is present, and wherever it works with its partners.
IRD is a key French player on the international development agenda. Its work is founded on an original model: equitable scientific partnership with developing countries, primarily those in the intertropical regions and the Mediterranean area.
IRD sets its priorities in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations in September 2015, to steer development policies. Combining critical analysis into the implementation of these goals, IRD seeks to tackle the challenges facing us today: global, environmental, economic, social and cultural changes that affect the whole planet.