Ifremer publishes this Friday, May 15, a new comic strip, « On the seven seas of the world », published by Ouest France. Designed as a series of reports drawn within the French Oceanographic Fleet, it aims to make the ocean better known to the general public.
For Géraldine Guillevic, director of communication and institutional relations at the French Institute of Research for the Exploitation of the Sea (Ifremer), it is above all « a step aside« , a « different way » of presenting the oceans to the general public. The French Research Institute for the Exploitation of the Sea publishes its new comic book, « On the seven seas of the world » at Ouest France editions, this Friday, May 15, 2026.
A reference to the Seven Seas of the World to illustrate the actions of Ifremer on all oceans of the globe. Seven stories, in the form of comic reports on board the institute’s oceanographic fleet, explains Géraldine Guillevic. « It’s life at sea, science at sea. » A didactic book, which is aimed at « everyone ».
« We talk to all those who are interested in the ocean »
« We talk to young people, to children who dream, to all the people who are close to the sea, far from the sea and who are interested in the ocean, who want to understand it better. We learn a lot in this book. Lots of things about the sea, about the abyss, about our relationship with the sea and about the work of scientists. She can literally please everyone. »
From its conception to its realization, the comic took a year to see the light of day. Among the stories, Géraldine Guillevic has her favorite. A nautilus dive in which Thomas Pesquet participated. « I had exchanged with his team and him during COP 26 [in 2021, Editor’s note]. He was the commander of the international space station at that time. He told me that he would like to dive into our nautile one day. » It’s « done » in the summer of 2025. « He gave us his impressions, his sensations of going to the bottom of the sea in a very confined space, which is very close to what he experienced in space. » An adventure drawn by Emmanuel Lepage.
« Our democracies need science »
Géraldine Guillevic hopes, with this comic, to put important topics back at the heart of the public debate. « We, with my team, must be creative every day to carry the major stakes of the ocean, » she explains. « There is a growing distrust of science in our societies. In France, in the United States, but not only. »
Subjects that remain paramount, she believes. « Essential, even, since our democracies need science, they need this scientific expression, this knowledge of the ocean, the Earth system of which the ocean is a part. The ocean regulates the climate, the ocean makes habitability on Earth possible and therefore without this knowledge of what makes us live, our future can be compromised. »
On the Seven Seas of the World, published by Ouest France. In bookstores on May 15, 2026, 25 euros.
source : ici fr
