The first FC3R call for projects, "The 3Rs in France: Collective Initiatives and Sharing Tools", aimed to fund projects to reduce, replace or refine the use of animals in laboratories by developing collaborative and structured tools. This call generated considerable interest, with 51 projects being submitted. Ethi.3R was one of the seven winning projects, standing out for the clarity of its approach to harmonising the training of members of Comités d'éthique en expérimentation animale or CEEAs (animal experimentation ethics committees)
Across the country, and for the soundness of its implementation.
The CEAs play a central role as regulatory bodies, reviewing scientific projects involving the use of animals and ensuring compliance with regulations and adherence to the 3Rs principle (Replace, Reduce, Refine). Currently, 76 ethics committees operating across France in various scientific, institutional and organisational contexts. Given this diversity, the need for national harmonisation of practices has become apparent over the years. To address this collective challenge, the committees have formed a national network dedicated to sharing best practice and pooling assessment tools.
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The Ethi.3R project aimed to reinforce this dynamic by proposing a significant advancement in the harmonisation of CEEA member training: the development of a free SPOC accessible to all CEEAs members. This original initiative was led by three members with complementary profiles: Valentine Bouet (university professor at UniCaen and chair of ethics committee No. 54), Laura Barrot (Inserm research engineer and member of ethics committees Nos. 10 and 42), and Laurent Chazalviel (CNRS research engineer and deputy chair of ethics committee No. 54). |
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Thanks to €45,576 in funding from FC3R in 2022, the Ethi.3R project has developed a training course comprising four complementary modules.
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Ethical considerations (Module 1 compulsory). This module covers the relationship between researchers and animals, the history of animal protection, the practical application of ethical principles, communication on animal research and limit points.
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The regulatory framework (Module 2 compulsory). This focuses on legal obligations, experimental procedures, the severity of procedures, and retrospective assessments.
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How to Evaluate a Project Authorisation Request (Module 3, Optional). This module focuses on the practical application of ethical evaluation, which is a key stage in the work of the committees.
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Statistics (Module 4 non-compulsory) aimed at strengthening understanding of statistical tests and experimental design.
A first positive assessment
The first training session, held between May and August 2025, attracted 587 participants. At the end of the session, 404 certificates of completion were issued, representing around 18% of C2EA members who have been trained at a national level. Participation and quiz completion rates were high, and the level of satisfaction among participants was high.
A second session, organised from October to December 2025, saw 606 participants register, confirming this enthusiasm. This new session introduced several improvements, including simplified access to the platform, improved quiz questions, downloadable documents and clearer information on certificates.
To date, Ethi.3R has trained almost 34% of the 2,200 members of ethics committees.
The Future of Ethi.3R
For its developers, the greatest success for Ethi.3R in five years' time would be if all members of French ethics committees had completed this training, and if all new members were trained on Ethi.3R in addition to the other available training courses (Gircor, Charles River and e-thiX) as soon as they joined a committee. The AfiS unit could then include these figures in committee audits and promote them to the European Commission. The developers also hope that the training programme will expand, particularly in other French-speaking European countries that could benefit from it.