Françoise Gaill is a biologist and oceanographer specializing in deep marine ecosystems and adaptation to extreme environments.
Emeritus research director at the CNRS, Françoise Gaill participated in 1968 and for more than 10 years in the first French oceanographic expeditions in the North Atlantic. Specializing in the fauna of aquatic organisms, particularly marine invertebrates and isolated cells, Françoise Gaill collaborated, for 10 years, on missions to explore the ecosystems of hydrothermal vents in the Pacific.
Director of research at the CNRS, Françoise Gaill headed the environment and sustainable development department from 2008 to 2013. In 2013, she joined the scientific committee of the Tara Foundation and became vice-president of the Ocean and Climate Platform. Co-founder of the Fondation de la Mer, Françoise Gaill co-chairs the Specialized Committee for Maritime and Coastal Research of the National Council for the Sea and Coasts.