People Ask was a survey organised before the event.
In September 2020, the staff at ENGIE joined their partners specialised in collective intelligence and digital technology, such as bluenove, the emlyon Business School, the Grenoble School of Management and International Mozaik, to try to understand the fundamental issues of air quality. This joint effort resulted in a public survey that was conducted between November 2020 and January 2021. The survey identified the local population’s feelings and expectations regarding air quality. Almost 1,700 people took part in the survey. In their opinion, road traffic is the primary perceived cause of the deterioration of air quality. Most of them believe that the measures required to improve this situation must involve the regulation of road traffic and industrial activity. A joint project with ATMO Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes helped to better identify misconceptions about air pollution and the need to raise public awareness.
The People Lab event, organised by ENGIE and its numerous partners on 30 March, was attended by more than 100 voluntary participants, who opened the debate with citizens, industrial manufacturers and members of civil society. The event featured speeches by Gilles Boeuf, the President of the Scientific Council of the French Agency for Biodiversity, Isabelle Delannoy, a theorist in the symbiotic economy, and Jean-Luc Fugit, the member of parliament for the Rhône department and President of the French National Air Council. The participants worked together to provide solutions to the issues related to air quality, ranging from governance and funding, to awareness-raising, housing, mobility and health.
ENGIE is promoting collective intelligence through its People Labs
The event in the Rhône-Alpes region was the twelfth People Lab organised by ENGIE. The Group decided to promote the pooling of ideas and collective thinking several years ago. Since 2018, four or five People Labs have been held per year, covering a broad range of subjects, from the climate and education, to artificial intelligence and the circular economy, which are always addressed from a societal perspective. These open events bring together employees from ENGIE’s various internal communities, plus students, experts, partners, business people, opinion leaders and customers, who are always on hand to contribute to the debates. The events feature three highlights: inspiring presentations to introduce the subject, conceptualisation exercises to think together, and pitches promoting ideas that can come to life, which all help to accelerate innovation. These People Labs are now part of ENGIE’s DNA.
