théo carlucci

From March to July, Théo Carlucci, a French student studying international agro-development engineering at ISTOM, completed his end-of-study internship in Muanda, Kongo Central (DRC).

Supervised by our colleagues in the field, his main task was to identify plant species around the Mangrove Marine Park, located at the mouth of the Congo River, in order to quantify and model honey production potential over time and space.

For four months, Théo surveyed the area around the park with our colleagues and beekeepers from the surrounding villages to compile an inventory of the area’s honey plants and monitor their flowering at the beginning of the dry season.

These inventories were then used to create maps illustrating the weekly evolution of honey resources, in order to assess the production capacity of the area and optimise the positioning of local beekeepers’ apiaries. This research will also help to better guide future reforestation and revegetation projects in the area. Certain plants, such as acacia auriculiformis and chromolena odorata, are very important for the health of bees and, therefore, ecosystems.

This enriching experience has enabled Théo to play an active role in preserving local ecosystems while strengthening his commitment to sustainable development. Now back in France, he must analyse his results, write and defend his thesis to complete this study and his engineering degree.

This mission was part of a partnership with ISTOM’s Internal Research Unit (UPR), ‘ADISuds’, in connection with the PACAD Project (Programme d’Accompagnement au Changement par une Apiculture Durable – Programme to Support Change through Sustainable Beekeeping), led by the engineering school since 2020.