Sophia Antipolis

From Vero - Wikipedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Template:Short description Template:Coord Template:Infobox settlement

Sophia Antipolis is a 2,400 hectare technology park in southeast France, and as of 2021 home to 2,500 companies, valued today at more than 5.6 billion euros and employing more than 38,000 people counting more than 80 nationalities.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Live in Sophia Antipolis">Template:Cite web</ref> The park is known to be Europe's first science and technology hub.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The technology park is also a platform, cluster and creation-hub for start-ups.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The "technopole" houses primarily companies in the fields of computing,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> electronics, telecommunication, pharmacology and biotechnology.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Several institutions of higher learning are also located here, along with the European headquarters of W3C, ETSI, European Society of Cardiology, etc.

The park is supported by the Sophia Antipolis Foundation, which aims to support "technological and scientific innovation and research projects at the service of mankind and our environment."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The foundation’s honorary chairman is Pierre Laffitte and its president is Jean-Pierre Mascarelli, who is also president of SYMISA, the Sophia Antipolis Joint Association, which is "responsible for managing land, equipment, marketing and upkeeping the park and is involved with coordination activities for harmonious development of the technology park."

Naming

Sophia Antipolis is named after Sophie Glikman-Toumarkine, the wife of French Senator Pierre Laffitte, founder of the park, and incidentally, Sophia, the Greek word for wisdom, and Antipolis, the ancient (Greek) name of a nearby seaside town Antibes. Many of the roads within the technology park have Greek names. There is a giant sculptured Greek urn as a centre-piece on one of the roundabouts.

The park is also termed a "technopole".<ref name="The Technology Park">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

History

Gérald Hanning was the consultant advisor to the DATAR for this industrial/scientific complex created 1970 to 1984.Template:Citation needed

French Senator Pierre Laffitte conceived the idea of Sophia Antipolis, calling for decentralization and "rural branch of the capital".<ref name=":0" />

In 2016, the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy was relocated from Montreuil to Sophia Antipolis.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The year 2019 marks the 50th anniversary of the park.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Agenda 2040

An agenda named "Sophia 2040" was created to "restore the former glory of the technology park's historic centre".<ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref>

Further novel investments e. g. into intelligent vehicle technology have been initiated.<ref name=":1" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Location

The technology park lies over an area that stretches into 5 municipalities or communes, much of it falling within the commune of Valbonne, which lies northwest of Antibes and southwest of Nice, France.

Residential community

Several neighborhoods within the park area exist, which make the area attractive to live: Garbejaire, Haut-Sartoux, Saint-Philippe and the Place Sophie Laffitte.<ref name="Live in Sophia Antipolis"/> The locations include typical public services such as a post office, shops, hairdressers, a primary school, sport complexes, hotels, church, children play areas, etc. The area is also surrounded by multiple golf courses and located north of the science park lies the large Regional Natural Park of the Préalpes d'Azur.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Public transport

File:Sophia Antipolis Bus Stop.jpg
A bus stop in Sophia Antipolis.

Several bus routes (27 urban routes and 64 school bus routes) cover the vast area of the technology park. The main bus route (Ligne A, formerly known as Ligne 1), that was redesigned in 2020, connects the central bus station of the park (Gare Routière Valbonne - Sophia Antipolis) with Antibes railway station and Juan les Pins, with bus stops at main universities such as Polytech Nice Sophia and SKEMA. Antibes railway station provides access to the Riviera coastal railway (TER Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur) with eastbound trains to Nice, Monaco and Ventimiglia, or westbound trains to Toulon and Marseille.

The technology park also has special express lines directly connecting the park with neighbouring cities:

  • Ligne 230 (Nice - Sophia Antipolis)
  • Ligne 232 (St. Laurent du Var - Sophia Antipolis)
  • Ligne 530 (Grasse - Sophia Antipolis)
  • Ligne 630 (Cannes - Valbonne)
  • Envibus Ligne A (Antibes - Valbonne)

The nearest international airport for the general public is the Nice Côte d'Azur Airport. Passengers travelling through private jets and non-scheduled flights can use the Cannes – Mandelieu Airport as an alternative.

Academic and research institutions

File:Research Lab Sophia Antipolis.jpg
A research lab in Sophia Antipolis
File:Polytech Nice Sophia.jpg
Building belonging to Polytech Nice Sophia engineering school in Sophia Antipolis

Companies

The technology park as of 2021 lists around 2,500 companies.<ref name="The Technology Park"/> The park also benefits from close proximity of other large corporations in the area, e. g. Thales Alenia Space (in Cannes), IBM (La Gaude) and Schneider Electric (Carros). Furthermore, the park is near the large city of Nice and its industries.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The following list is a partial selection without claim to completeness or actuality. For an up-to-date listing and map of "park stakeholders" refer to the main website.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Template:Div col

Template:Div col end

References

<references />

Template:Commons category

Template:Authority control

Retrieved from "https://wiki.sarg.dev/index.php?title=Sophia_Antipolis&oldid=351703"