Anne Solaz and Jacques Véron

Today’s INED is not the INED of 1945, when it was founded. The Institute has grown up to become one of the world’s main demographic institutes, a leading national, European and international actor.

INED was founded immediately after World War II in response to the pro-natalist concerns of the time but also out of a desire to involve the human and social sciences, demography in particular, in contemporary advances in knowledge. In 1986 INED became a “scientific and technological public research establishment” on the model of the CNRS and others.

INED developed along with society, tackling the major demography-related issues—the baby boom, contraception, abortion rights, divorce, etc.—that disrupted and revolutionized our society. Society turned to research for answers and, conversely, research seized on the major changes society was undergoing.

That’s why, for our September 22 anniversary day, we chose to organize roundtable discussions on current major demographic changes—the family, health and ageing, migrations—that would enable researchers to exchange with actors of civil society and the audience to discover thelr different viewpoints. These debates were very enriching. We also made a film for the occasion, made up of INA archive images and interviews, that retraces the history of INED and society from 1945 to 2015.

Yes, participation was very high, and the fact that people stayed for all the day’s events is strong proof of interest in INED. The day brought together all INED staff— administrative and technical staff as well as researchers. And what a pleasure to talk with so many people—young, not so young, older and quite old, former INED staff and associates, people from France and elsewhere in the world! It was also a way of honouring the men and women who “made, make and will make” INED. Our national and international partners were present too, and we thank them for coming in such numbers, some from quite far away! It was a real moment of sharing and exchange that clearly demonstrated INED’s place not only within the scientific community but also with decision-makers and the public at large.

To prolong the anniversary spirit, we have created a special mini-website with a « bonus » section offering a wide range of key figures, documents, books—to which we will soon be adding videos of the day’s great moments.

Demographers don’t just describe populations and their movements; they also seek out the causes and effects of those movements, what is behind them. Demography and the population sciences in general study phenomena over the long term, taking into account the distant past as well as the immediate present. They are attentive to a variety of areas, comparing not just neighbouring countries but also North and South. They emphasize people’s life courses while taking geographical and social contexts into account as well.

As we were saying, INED participates actively in public debate, and we are continually taking up the new challenges raised for research by a changing, moving world.