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Campus: where will our children learn tomorrow?

The explosion of the digital revolution; the push for sustainable development; greater flows; higher demand for lucrative degrees; and more competitive labour markets—all these factors are changing the campus's shape and historical functioning and shaking up the makeup of students.

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Connected campuses

No aspect of campuses is unaffected. The geography and everyday experience of education, modes of teaching and learning, the position of learners, and the structure of research are shifting in line with three main trends shaping the campus of tomorrow: connectivity, urban identity and socioeconomic awareness, and social responsibility. Campuses must rise to these challenges and find their footing in a context of stiffer international competition between higher education institutions.

6 
Connected objects in 2020
on average per person

Digital technology is changing how and where we learn, how research is conducted and even the cognitive profile of students. Campuses must now be connected and provide new methods of learning: distance education, supervision systems for the creation of smart campuses and dedicated to research. Support the rise of online and distance learning. Equipment and materials must be designed for multi-site learning. Application solutions coupled with physical devices within the facilities (microphones, cameras, etc.) can be used to facilitate exchanges between teachers and remote students. Campuses also produce audiovisual content and this entails setting up digital network infrastructure.

Workspaces and living spaces must be conducive to digital learning and be more flexible and modular: removable partition systems, rolling furniture, etc. They may also offer hidden furniture systems as well as multiple connectors. The shift to distance learning also concerns students' living spaces, in particular their accommodations. Student residences are set to become full-fledged components of campuses and will need very high-speed Internet access and integrated work spaces. Put an administrative system in place for each smart campus Central management of the campus requires the installation of a single administrative system to connect all campus services.

For example: connection of the site with information from real-time transportation systems to facilitate travel, connection of the facilities to manage occupancy or make them accessible to different individuals belonging to the general public, overseeing electrical consumption of buildings, predictive maintenance of the premises and equipment, etc. Design digital campuses made for collaborative and multi-site research Researchers need facilities to work in private as well as facilities to work together. Some campuses even design their facilities so as to bring researchers into contact with one another. Collaborative research also means that researchers travel a lot and thus that campuses need facilities to host them temporarily (such as serviced offices, etc.).

Reference: The Luminy Campus at Aix-Marseille University Bouygues Bâtiment Sud-Est and Scau, an architecture firm working with Marciano Architecture, won the 2017 Luminy Campus public-private partnership contract to renovate two large teaching and research buildings (while they were in use) and refit the Hexagon building. The aim? The aim was to turn the Hexagon into an environment conducive to interactions among undergraduate, graduate and PhD students, researchers, lecturers and businesses. Designed as a functional and spacious area, the Hexagon's central patio will abound with informal and modular spaces.

The Luminy Campus at Aix-Marseille University
testimonies
Yann Bergheaud
Head of the Support Centre for Digital Education, University of Lyon 3
Students need more electrical outlets, Wi-Fi access points and scanner printers available via Bluetooth
Sylvie Blanco
Professor of Technology and Innovation Management, Director of Innovation & Experimentation, Founder of GEM Innovation Campus, Grenoble School of Management.
Students are wading into the pool of experimental logic aimed at shaping the practices of tomorrow to respond to the major challenges of our society
Open campus concept
60
of 2030 jobs yet to be created
47
our jobs will be automated by 2030

Campuses will thus be tasked with preparing future workers for jobs that do not yet exist. Campuses will have to be urbanised to train the professionals and citizens of tomorrow to face future ethical issues: robotisation, use of data, etc. Campuses that are integrated into urban ecosystems become important flag bearers for a region, neighbourhood or urban renovation project. Its successful insertion is based on its architecture but also on its connection with the rest of the area and its surroundings. The campus can make its public spaces places of culture, sports activities or leisure activities open to all. The University of Liège which also serves as the location of an open air museum and is frequented by locals, visitors and educators of every stripe.

Inspiration: The University of Liège (Belgium) is situated in the Sart Tilman Park

Involve campuses in city life Opening up to new audiences is an opportunity for the university to obtain additional income or get other people to contribute to its educational project. Urbanites are taking advantage of new spaces and cities are stepping up the territorial offer. Several prerequisites would have to be met including adapting the spaces (compatibility of the revamped spaces with public-access safety regulations) and putting access and control systems in place. Providing local services on campus is one way to knit closer ties with neighbourhoods and develop thriving communities. Multi-service spaces such as concierge services and nurseries are likely to be used by the university and residents. Sharing services is also a way for campuses to ensure their economic viability.

Transform the student into an entrepreneur The ability to turn students into entrepreneurs and startup founders is a major drawcard for universities. This incubating role is manifesting in new spaces. The rise of digital technology combined with design thinking has introduced a generation of makers who put prototypes, tests and simulations at the heart of their processes. Fab labs, which use rapid prototyping technology (such as 3D printers) and digital tools and resources to manufacture goods in small quantities, can support these new modes of production.

Campuses and the socioeconomic sphere: re-establishing the link Hybrid facilities on university premises are one means to intensify exchanges between campuses and the socioeconomic sphere. Universities could turn valuable or unused property into facilities to host firms on their premises. This would extract value from existing assets and forge closer links with companies that could lead to cooperation. Campuses can support the growth in customized continuing education programmes for the business sector by setting up dedicated facilities—such as training halls and rooms, relaxation areas, and food and hotel services—that are better able to meet the expectations of corporate customers and compete with traditional places of learning.

Reference: Innocity, CentraleSupélec: on-campus VIP treatment It planned to renovate an existing building and erect two new structures; the design, construction and maintenance of one of these, comprising a total surface area of around 25,000 square metres, was awarded to a consortium led by Bouygues Bâtiment Ile-de-France. The project was marked by the bold decision to set up business-oriented hotel facilities at the heart of the campus and have them run by a private investor.

Innocity, CentraleSupélec: on-campus VIP treatment
Testimony
Zoubeir Lafhaj
lecturer in civil engineering at Ecole Centrale de Lille
Research and innovation go hand in hand. To succeed, universities need firms and firms need universities
A responsible campus

Optimize natural resources on campus Campus buildings and facilities, whether built from scratch or renovated, must be designed with minimal energy consumption in mind. By using various renewable sources of energy, electricity production can be evened out. For example, solar and wind energy complement each other depending on the weather and tidal cycles. Energy storage facilities are one way of offsetting the irregular supply of renewable energy and of managing peak demand on campus.

Systems to monitor and predict energy use can also adjust the configurations of buildings in real time so as to constantly keep energy consumption to a minimum. Another challenge in optimizing our resources: water management. In addition to reducing consumption, it involves recovering, purifying and storing rainwater and setting up a treatment and sanitation system. The zero waste objective is also at the heart of the establishments and requires the selection of responsible, eco-friendly service providers (university restaurants, cafeteria, etc.).

Encourage clean-living uses and behaviour At the same time as enhancing the energy performance of buildings, campuses must find ways to motivate their users to reduce their combined environmental footprint. As campus populations keep changing due to turnover, sustainable behaviour must be so intuitive as to facilitate rapid adoption. Campuses must also raise awareness with respect to transport issues, especially with respect to travelling to and from home and the campus. A wide range of solutions can be planned: applications dedicated to carpooling in the community, car-sharing or bike sharing system, pedestrian or bicycle lanes, bike repair shops, charging stations for electric vehicles, etc.

Reference: Renovation of the University of Bordeaux The Société de Réalisation Immobilière et d’Aménagement de l’Université de Bordeaux entrusted the first phase of the project in 2008 to a consortium represented by Bouygues Bâtiment Centre Sud-Ouest. Through this renovation, the University was particularly interested in reducing the energy consumption of buildings. A comprehensive solution was put forward based on technological innovation—the bioclimatic façade—and on educating users. Special section from the booklet entitled "New campus models for a learning society" produced by Bouygues Construction's Prospective and Strategic Marketing Department.

Renovation of the University of Bordeaux
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