An international eye on Swiss news from NuseReal: 2023
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Events in Switzerland — myswitzerland — (LINK)
Solar-powered Swiss truck breaks EV altitude record at 6,500 meters, paving the way for greener mobility — techtimes — 27 December 2023 (LINK)
— The feat took place during an expedition to the western ridge of Ojos del Salado in Chile, the highest active volcano on Earth. The success is anticipated to draw increased attention to alternative drives and their applicability in challenging transportation tasks, including mining. The remarkable Terren, born from the ingenuity of Swiss company Aebi Schmidt, has redefined electric off-road capabilities.
CERN publishes its environment report for 2021â€"2022: CERN is well on track to meet the reduction objectives set for the end of Run 3 at the end of 2025" — CERN — 23 December 2023 (LINK)
— The Laboratory is committed to limiting the rise in electricity consumption to 5%, corresponding to a target of 1314 GWh, while significantly improving the performance of its facilities. A total of 1215 GWh was consumed in 2022 and the accelerator complex is now more efficient.
CERN is committed to keeping the increase in its water consumption below 5% despite a growing demand for water cooling at its facilities. Since 2000, CERN has radically decreased its water consumption by about 80%.
With respect to direct greenhouse gas emissions, CERN’s objective is to achieve a 28% reduction by the end of Run 3, which corresponds to a target of 138 300 tCO2e. In 2022, direct emissions of 184 300 tCO2e were generated. A comprehensive programme to ensure progress towards the objective is in place, which includes increased efforts by the experiments to limit gas consumption and work towards replacing current gases with more environmentally friendly ones.
ICRC taps new chief who quit UNRWA amid ethics, abuse & corruption scandal — unwatch — 22 December 2023 (LINK)
Swiss capital considers legalizing cocaine for recreational use in pilot program: 'War on drugs has failed' — nypost — 21 December 2023 (LINK)
— The proposal in Bern would be the first to make the white powder legal for recreational use, a radical step in drug policy if it goes through. Wealthy Swiss cities have some of the greatest amounts of cocaine usage among European cities, according to wastewater studies analyzing the presence of illicit drugs. Zurich, Basel and Geneva are all among the top 10 cities for cocaine use in Europe. "We have a lot of cocaine in Switzerland right now, at the cheapest prices and the highest quality we have ever seen," said Frank Zobel, deputy director at Addiction Switzerland. "You can get a dose of cocaine for about 10 francs these days, not much more than the price for a beer."
Hermes billionaire in Geneva wants to bequeath $13 billion fortune to his former gardener — CNN — 21 December 2023 (LINK)
— Nicolas Puech, 80, a fifth-generation descendant of the founder of French luxury goods company Hermes, wants to cancel a contract that would bequeath his fortune to the Isocrates Foundation, which he founded, and instead make his employee a legal heir.
Established by Puech in 2011 and funded by him since, the Isocrates Foundation supports public interest journalism and civil society organizations working toward a "healthy digital public space," according to its website. He would adopt the middle-agent servant, who is married with several children.
Rolex fined $100 million in France for thwarting online watch sales — Bloomberg ● — 19 December 2023 (LINK)
How Swiss authorities bungled Credit Suisse oversight: The bank was hobbled by a series of scandals and failed restructuring plans — Reuters ● — 19 December 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland: AI robot wins against human for first time in mental and physical task — euronews — 19 December 2023 (LINK)
— An AI robot has learned how to play a labyrinth game, using its robot hands to control two knobs to steer a marble through the maze without falling into the holes. After learning from its mistakes and even trying to cheat the game, the robot successfully managed to complete the task from start to finish in six hours, less time than it took humans to win the game. Researchers at ETH Zurich University in Switzerland unveiled the AI robot named CyberRunner on Tuesday.
Why people still fall for fake news about climate change — grist.org — 18 December 2023 (LINK)
— A recent study in Nature Human Behavior found that climate change disinformation was more persuasive than scientific facts. Researchers at the University of Geneva in Switzerland had originally intended to see if they could help people fend off disinformation, testing different strategies on nearly 7,000 people from 12 countries, including the United States, India, and Nigeria. Participants read a paragraph intended to strengthen their mental defenses — reminders of the scientific consensus around climate change, the trustworthiness of scientists, or the moral responsibility to act, for example. Then they were subjected to a barrage of 20 real tweets that blamed warming on the sun and the "wavy" jet stream, spouted conspiracies about "the climate hoax devised by the U.N.," and warned that the elites "want us to eat bugs."
The interventions didn't work as hoped, said Tobia Spampatti, an author of the study and a neuroscience researcher at the University of Geneva. The flood of fake news — meant to simulate what people encounter in social media echo chambers — had a big effect. Reading the tweets about bogus conspiracies lowered people's belief that climate change was happening, their support for action to reduce emissions, and their willingness to do something about it personally. The disinformation was simply more compelling than scientific facts, partly because it plays with people's emotions, Spampatti said (eliciting anger toward elites who want you to eat bugs, for example). The only paragraph that helped people recognize falsehoods was one that prompted them to evaluate the accuracy of the information they were seeing, a nudge that brought some people back to reality.
Norman says it's crucial that any intervention to stop the spread of disinformation comes with a "weakened dose" of it, like a vaccine, to help people understand why someone might benefit from lying. For example, when the Biden administration learned of Russia's President Vladimir Putin's plans to invade Ukraine in late 2021, the White House began warning the world that Russia would push a false narrative to justify the invasion, including staging a fake, graphic video of a Ukrainian attack on Russian territory. When the video came out, it was quickly dismissed as fake news. "It was a wildly successful attempt to inoculate much of the world against Putin's preferred narrative about Ukraine," Norman said.
For climate change, that approach might not succeed — decades of oil-funded disinformation campaigns have already infected the public. "It's really hard to think about someone who hasn't been exposed to climate skepticism or disinformation from fossil fuel industries," said Emma Frances Bloomfield, a communication professor at the University of Nevada, Los Vegas. "It's just so pervasive. They have talking heads who go on news programs, they flood media publications and the internet, they pay lobbyists."
The Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) has filed an appeal with the Federal Administrative Court in order to resume the shooting of wolf packs in Switzerland — swissinfo — 16 December 2023 (LINK)
— Since the authorisations were issued by the federal authorities, eight wolves have been shot in canton Graubünden and 14 in canton Valais, according to the latest count. The environmental organisations Pro Natura, WWF, BirdLife and the Swiss Wolf Group believe that the federal and cantonal authorities are not respecting the principle of proportionality with such wolf culls. They stress the important role played by the wolf in forest ecosystems.
Canton Valais halts wolf culling after NGO appeal — swissinfo — 13 December 2023 (LINK)
— The permit, which is valid until January 31, 2024, allowed the shooting of seven of the 13 wolf packs in Valais, which corresponds to around 34 animals out of an estimated population of 90 to 120 animals.
Switzerland blocks bid to end funding for UN Palestinian agency after outrage — Reuters ● — 14 December 2023 (LINK)
World Economic Forum at COP28: 12 high-impact business, government and civil society partnerships for climate and nature — eurasiareview — 12 December 2023 (LINK)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called talks in Switzerland for 14 January 2024 on the peace plan he is advocating, Swiss Foreign Ministry confirms. The meeting, announced by Zelensky on 19 December, will take place the day before the start of the World Economic Forum in Davos — Keystone-SDA (German) — 11 December 2023 (LINK)
— The meeting is to be attended by the security advisers of several countries.
Upper-Valais village of Grengiols votes by 190 to 70 with 80% participation to plant 230,000 solar panels at 2500m to provide enough electricity for 40,000 households — lenouvelliste (French) — 10 December 2023 (LINK)
UBS hit with $400mn of Credit Suisse-linked property costs: Bank had to break leases to vacate defunct rival's buildings — Financial Times — 9 December 2023 (LINK)
#herHACK winning team sustAInos presents "SustAInable shopper" app for Migros shoppers at Swiss Digital Days 2023 — digitalswitzerland/span> — 6 December 2023 (LINK)
— The innovative, AI-powered add-on for the Migros app, winning top prize at the Lighthouse Event, aims to revolutionise grocery shopping by analysing consumers' behaviour on the go and encouraging them to make sustainable shopping decisions. It matches these with extensive data on carbon footprint, aligns with their declared sustainability preferences, and provides a personalised sustainability performance metric at the end of each shopping visit.
#herHACK, the biggest female-led hackathon in Switzerland, motivates women to pursue a career in the tech industry, while at the same time, finding solutions for socially relevant challenges that contribute to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This year 160+ woman participated the national event and from 31 submitted projects, 6 made it to the final at the Lighthouse event.
Swiss bank Banque Pictet admits hiding $5.6 billion of Americans' money from IRS — cnbc — 4 December 2023 (LINK)
UBS sold a Credit Suisse private jet that was used by its ex-chair to fly to Wimbledon and the Euros, breaking COVID rules — and the Maldives for a family vacation: prompted resignation after just nine months — Financial Times — 4 December 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland's Pando joins the party, files for spot Bitcoin ETF — see_link — 4 December 2023 (LINK)
EPFL and ETH Zurich joint initiative for trustworthy AI: its purpose is to "position Switzerland as a leading global hub for the development and implementation of transparent and reliable artificial intelligence (AI). The new Alps supercomputer based at the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre (CSCS) provides the supporting world-class infrastructure" — epfl — 4 December 2023 (LINK)
— In February 2024 ETH Zurich's new Alps supercomputer goes live at the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre (CSCS) of ETH Zurich in Lugano. Boasting the next generation of 10,000 graphics processing units (GPUs), Alps is one of the world's most powerful computers and has been especially developed to meet the needs of applications in the area of artificial intelligence. This new computer gives Swiss scientists access to the sort of computing power only available to the world's biggest tech companies.In February 2024 ETH Zurich's new Alps supercomputer goes live at the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre (CSCS) of ETH Zurich in Lugano. Boasting the next generation of 10,000 graphics processing units (GPUs), Alps is one of the world's most powerful computers and has been especially developed to meet the needs of applications in the area of artificial intelligence. This new computer gives Swiss scientists access to the sort of computing power only available to the world's biggest tech companies.
The aim of the initiative is to develop and train new large language models (LLM). These must be transparent, deliver comprehensible results and ensure legal, ethical and scientific criteria are met. "Unlike the large language models that are usually available in the public domain today, the Swiss AI Initiative strongly emphasized transparency and Open Source. Everyone must be able to understand how the models were trained, the sort of data used, and how results are recovered," stresses Jan Hesthaven, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at EPFL.
To develop such models, the Swiss AI Initiative will use ten million GPU hours on the new Alps computer over the next 12 months, equivalent to the computing power of a single GPU running at full load for over 1,100 years. Switzerland is therefore the first country in the world to operate a research infrastructure on the next-generation NVIDIA Grace Hopper Superchip.
Philanthropist and former journalist Léonard Gianadda dies from bone cancer at 88 — 20min (French) — 3 December 2023 (LINK)
— He was hospitalized in October for double fractures after his friend the president of FC Sion drove into him by mistake after an evening together.
Vail Resorts to acquire Crans-Montana mountain ski and cable cars, the company's second ski resort in Europe: not buying resort itself despite announcement — vailresorts — 30 November 2023 (LINK)
— Vail Resorts is acquiring an 84-percent ownership stake in Remontées Mécaniques Crans Montana Aminona (CMA) SA, which controls and operates all the resort's lifts and supporting mountain operations, including 4 retail and rental locations. The company is acquiring an 80-percent ownership stake in SportLife AG, which operates one of the ski schools located at the resort. Vail Resorts is also acquiring 100 percent ownership of 11 restaurants located on and around the mountain.
Swiss bid to host Winter Olympics falls at first hurdle — swissinfo — 29 November 2023 (LINK)
— Only France in contention. However, the IOC does not want to completely bury Switzerland's Olympic aspirations. It allows Switzerland to have a so-called "privileged dialogue" for the 2038 edition of the Olympics, a kind of preferential right, if it applies again.
Switzerland: Abuse in the Church: more than 10 complaints filed in less than one week in Valais — lenouvelliste (French) — 29 November 2023 (LINK)
Geneva Graduate Institute to establish the first chair in peace mediation in Switzerland with the support of private philanthropy — graduateinstitute.ch — 28 November 2023 (LINK)
La Clémence Pinot Noir, AOC Genève, 2022, was the only Pinot Noir to get a "Grand d'Or" gold medal among 900 wines presented at the VINEA salon this year and the wine also won the award for the best Pinot Noir of 2023. The La Cave de Genève in Satigny won a total of 30 medals from the salon. The Pinot Noirs are grown in Dardagny, Soral and Bardonnex — pressclub (French only) — 27 November 2023 (LINK)
Swiss Central Bank slashed AMC stake, sells Apple, Nvidia, and Tesla stock — Barrons ● — 26 November 2023 (LINK)
Surprise visit by Swiss President Alain Berset to Ukraine — tdg.ch (French) ● — 24 November 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland is ending its collaboration with three Palestinian non-governmental organisations (NGOs). It accuses them of "breaching the code of conduct and the anti-discrimination clause" — SDA — 24 November 2023 (LINK)
The Grand Théâtre de Genève has named the homegrown Alain Perroux as its next director, replacing Aviel Cahn who is going to the Deutsche Oper in Berlin — slippedisc.com — 23 November 2023 (LINK)
— Perroux, 52, started out as a music critic in Geneva. He is presently managing director of the French Opéra national du Rhin in Strasbourg, Colmar and Mulhouse (no more on site).
Switzerland approves export of Leopard 2 tanks to Germany under condition they are not sent to Ukraine — Kyiv Independent — 22 November 2023 (LINK)
For the 13th consecutive year, Switzerland was named the world's most innovative country: map — WIPO: visualcapitalist — 14 November 2023 (LINK)
For 5th time in 6 years, Verbier elected best Swiss ski destination by World Ski Awards (in French) — lenouvelliste.ch — 13 November 2023 (LINK)
— W Hotel Verbier voted World's Best Ski Hotel and Switzerland's Best Ski Hotel. Chalet d'Adrien in Verbier wins title of Switzerland's Best Ski Boutique Hotel and Verbier's agence Leo Trippi again wins title of the World's Best Ski Travel Agency.
The most scenic villages in the world, according to the UN Tourism Office: includes Morcote — cntraveler — 13 November 2023 (LINK)
Unprecedented AI-generated fake news targets International Olympic Committee (IOC) implicating corruption and using Tom Cruise's voice — see_link — 11 November 2023 (LINK)
— The release of the fake documentary coincides with the IOC's suspension of the National Olympic Committee of Russia, a decision linked to their recognition of regional sports organizations in disputed Ukrainian territories.
Basle: this beautiful and historic town is a great spot for European Couples Getaway — www.explore.com — 11 November 2023 (LINK)
A Swiss startup is building computers using human neurons to cut emissions — qz.com — 10 November 2023 (LINK)
The world's best countries for remote working: Denmark, the Netherlands and Germany, plus Spain; Sweden; Portugal; Estonia; Lithuania; Ireland and Slovakia. Switzerland tops the 2023 Index for social safety, which considers the physical security and protection of remote workers — NordLayer — 8 November 2023 (LINK)
27 best things to do in Switzerland in 2024 — theplanetd.com — 7 November 2023 (LINK)
Nestlé invests $100 million into food delivery startup Wonder Group — thedailyupside.com — 7 November 2023 (LINK)
Parkinson's disease: a neuroprosthetic to correct walking disorders — epfl — 7 November 2023 (LINK)
30 best restaurants in Zurich — gamintraveler — 6 November 2023 (LINK)
Comics in the new age of artificial intelligence: Cut/Paste, a new exhibition at EPFL Pavilions — epfl — 3 November 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland becomes newest customer of most advanced Patriot missile — defensenews.com — 2 November 2023 (LINK)
Radical right triumphs in Switzerland — euractiv — 23 October 2023 (LINK)
Bitcoin mining gets a sustainable twist: excess energy from food production repurposed in Swiss initiative — cryptoglobe — 22 October 2023 (LINK)
GESDA joins forces with the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs, CERN and UBS to get the Open Quantum Institute off the ground — GESDA — 13 October 2023 (LINK PDF)
— SDGs' Implementation Accelerating the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals is crucial. Here two examples of what the Open Quantum Institute will help developing.
- Thanks to quantum computing simulations, experts expect to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere by improving the catalytic process responsible for fixing carbon to the surface of materials. This will contribute to SDG 13, which calls for action to combat climate change.
- Antibiotic resistance is considered by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of the ten most serious threats to public health. Experts believe that quantum computing solutions will enable resistance patterns to be predicted more quickly and accurately, and new low-resistance chemical compounds to be identified on more targeted bacteria. This is tantamount to improving people's health and wellbeing, which is what SDG 3 — good health and wellbeing — is all about.
Building Bridges Action Days 2023 — see_link — 4 October 2023 (LINK)
UBS strikes a deal in Mozambique–Credit Suisse saga — see_link — 2 October 2023 (LINK)
— The recent agreement, aiming to clear up the fiasco, just narrowly escaped the gavel of a looming London trial. In 2013, loans were arranged under the pretense of bolstering projects like state tuna fisheries. These loans spiraled into a default with accusations swirling about an alleged misappropriation of vast amounts of cash. Adding to the mire, this borrowing seemed to be playing a dangerous game of hide and seek, kept hidden from the prying eyes of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other donors. Backers like the IMF promptly severed their financial lifelines to Mozambique.
Mozambique was all set to launch a three-month-long trial against Credit Suisse, alleging their ignorance towards an apparent loot — think of hundreds of millions —hrough bribes and kickbacks from the "tuna bond" loans. The stakes? A whopping $1.5bn in damages to cover economic losses after its financial supporters backed out. Credit Suiss ehas already forked over $475 million in fines and decided to write off $200 million of Mozambique's debts last year following settlements across three different nations.
Tens of thousands demand climate action in Swiss capital — Reuters ● — 30 September 2023 (LINK)
Credit Suisse sheds nearly 13% of workforce — Reuters ● — 29 September 2023 (LINK)
Credit Suisse warns of $2.2bn loss as UBS plans to end Apollo deal — Financial Times ● — 29 September 2023 (LINK)
The economies of the UK, Switzerland, and Sweden are set to gain big benefits from AI, while the EU will fall way behind the US — thenextweb — 29 September 2023 (LINK)
Godard's Final S.O.S. at New York Film Festival — nationalreview — 29 September 2023 (LINK)
Swiss scientists help discover that Africa's Namib desert has a human population after believing it disappeared 50 years ago — Blavity — 29 September 2023 (LINK)
— Scientists from the University of Bern in Switzerland joined with others from the University of Porto in Portugal and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany.
— The people who spoke Kwadi started speaking Bantu languages more recently, scientists said. "A lot of our efforts were placed in understanding how much of this local variation and global eccentricity was caused by genetic drift — a random process that disproportionately affects small populations — and by admixtures from vanished populations," said researcher Dr. Sandra Oliveira from the University of Bern.
New project: avenir suisse essentials 1: Switzerland's electricity deal with the EU — →avenir-suisse.ch→ — 29 September 2023 (LINK)
Swiss glaciers lose 10% of their volume in two years: Volume lost during hot summers of 2022 and 2023 equal to total depletion between 1960 and 1990 — The Guardian UK ● — 28 September 2023 (LINK)
Swiss accuse daughter of ex-Uzbek president of running a criminal organisation — Reuters ● — 28 September 2023 (LINK)
AFP: Swiss indict daughter of late Uzbek leader in corruption case (LINK)
SSF/ECOFACT TCFD-Disclosure Webinar: Guidance and Best Practice in the Swiss Context: 10 October — sustainablefinance.ch — 28 September 2023 (LINK)
Researchers at EPFL have uncovered a fundamental flaw in the training of machine learning systems and elaborated a new formulation for strengthening them against adversarial attacks — epfl — 28 September 2023 (LINK)
— By completely rethinking the way that most Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems protect against attacks, researchers at EPFL's School of Engineering have developed a new training approach to ensure that machine learning models, particularly deep neural networks, consistently perform as intended, significantly enhancing their reliability.
CERN scientists find antimatter is subject to gravity — ground.news: 23 media reports — 27 September 2023 (LINK)
Logitech joins private sector push to accelerate SDG goals — 3blmedia — 27 September 2023 (LINK)
7 best watches presented at Geneva Watch Days 2023 — sportskeeda — 25 September 2023 (LINK)
Swiss parliament approves ban on full-face coverings like burqas, and sets fine for violators — ground.news main source: AP, 12 media reports — 20 September 2023 (LINK)
Leading the way: 7 lessons for banks from crypto nation Switzerland — www.linkedin.com — 19 September 2023 (LINK)
Swiss NGO IAM says 18 staff members detained in Afghanistan — ground.news: 35 media reports — 16 September 2023 (LINK)
UBS hires award-winning portfolio manager from a US-based global investment firm — www.finews.com — 14 September 2023 (LINK)
Five women's tennis players who got banned for doping, including a Swiss — khelnow.com — 14 September 2023 (LINK)
Credit Suisse Chief Operating Officer to leave bank for new role — www.bloomberg.com ● — 12 September 2023 (LINK)
Sustainability Portal in Lausanne reveals the breadth of the local network — actu.epfl.ch — 12 September 2023 (LINK)
Valais region of Switzerland rejects plan to fast-track big solar parks on Alpine mountainsides — ground.news main source: AP, 17 media reports — 10 September 2023 (LINK)
— The canton wrote on its official website that 53.94% voted against the proposal. Turnout was 35.72%. They can still be developed by the private sector but cannot receive federal subsidies (60%). The federal energy department estimates that about 40 to 50 proposals for large solar parks have been made across the country.
Swiss financial regulator FINMA CEO quits in wake of Credit Suisse collapse — www.reuters.com — 6 September 2023 (LINK)
— The body drew heavy criticism for failing to prevent the collapse of Credit Suisse. FINMA also communicated poorly and assigned too few people to oversee the big banks, local media reported.
Credit Suisse gave FINMA false and overly positive statements about its business relationship with financier Lex Greensill, the regulator said earlier this year. Urban Angehrn, who has led the regulator since November 2021, said he was quitting for health reasons. "The high and permanent stress level had health consequences. I have considered my decision carefully and have now decided to step down."
Saype, French-Swiss artist of "ephemeral" installations, joins Handicap International to create grass fresco in Place des Nations, Geneva, after Handicap's 18 August 1997 Broken Chair to remind world of need to protect civiians from war-related weapons and destruction: 4-15 September 2023 — see_link — 4 September 2023 (LINK)
— In 2022, every day around the world around 57 civilians were killed or injured by explosive weapons, + 83% compared to 2021.
Half of Switzerland's large companies have been the victim of a cyber attack — www.euronews.com — 4 September 2023 (LINK)
Apple Watch maker, Sweden's Golden Concept reveals its first automatic Swiss-made watch Line — hypebeast.com — 2 September 2023 (LINK)
UBS posts $29 billion second-quarter profit in first results since Credit Suisse takeover — ground.news: 10 media reports — 31 August 2023 (LINK)
US law on crypto needs to be a 'hole' lot more Swiss: Turn away from Gary Gensler and the US SEC’s soap opera, and look to Switzerland for guidance instead — blockworks.co — 29 August 2023 (LINK)
The 5-star Waldhaus Flims hotel and luxury restaurant Epoca have been closed since 1 August: lays off all employees — blick / www.msn.com — 28 August 2023 (LINK)
— An insider tells Blick that in the past few days, all 120 employees have been dismissed. The "Kur- und Seebadanstalt Waldhaus Flims" was founded in 1869. At that time, two Chur residents received a concession from the municipality to build a health resort. In 2015 it went bankrupt. Then came U.S. investors from the investment group Z Capital Partners. They bought the historic property for 40 million Swiss francs. They invested another 40 million euros in a comprehensive renovation. Guests could choose between six restaurants and bars. The double room with mountain view was available from 600 francs. Prices were up to 5000 francs per night for the new presidential suite.
Climate crisis means quarter of European ski resorts face scarce snow — www.theguardian.com ● — 28 August 2023 (LINK)
— Comprehensive analysis calls into question whether such resorts have a future as global heating intensifies.
Archaeologists uncover ancient Roman complex in Switzerland — greekreporter.com — 27 August 2023 (LINK)
Scientists In Zurich develop titanium mesh that cleans toxic fog — www.onegreenplanet.org — 26 August 2023 (LINK)
Nearly 100 Leopard 1 tanks stored in the open as Switzerland rejects transfer to Ukraine — news.yahoo.com — 26 August 2023 (LINK)
High-altitude heist shocks Switzerland: Thieves climbed to an altitude of 2,350m and traversed gorges — all to rob a collection box — www.bbc.com — 26 August 2023 (LINK)
The 87-year-old billionaire behind Bucherer is selling his dynasty to Rolex — and the deal will reset the luxury watch business — fortune.com — 26 August 2023 (LINK)
UN Geneva complex shuts briefly after 'intruder' breaks into security perimeter in 'minor' incident: the last incident occurring in 2017 without major consequences — ground.news: 16 media reports — 25 August 2023 (LINK)
Plastic levels in Lake Geneva as high as world's oceans — Reuters ● — 25 August 2023 (LINK)
Zurich Openair cancelled due to impending storm (German) — watson.ch / msn — 24 August 2023 (LINK)
Geneva Barometer: international organizations summary end-April to mid-July 2023 from Konrad Adenauer Stiftung — see_link — 25 August 2023 (LINK)
— "For about one and a half years, many Geneva organisations (WHO, Human Rights Council, ILO, etc.), African and Arab countries — although not exclusively — have increasingly rejected formulations that contain passages on sexual orientation or gender identity. The crisis over the ILO budget is just another chapter here. These reservations are not new, but they are now being expressed more consistently and with greater virulence. How the adopted resolution on co-incarceration will affect future discussions in the Human Rights Council is not yet foreseeable. However, the question of the balance between freedom of expression and freedom of religion could be on the agenda more often in the future.
Swiss Sustainable Finance guide on reporting climate information from 2024 — sustainablefinance.ch — 25 August 2023 (LINK)
Zero-degree line at record 5,298m height above Switzerland as heat and fire hit Europe — Guardian ● — 21 August 2023 (LINK)
— The figure, which was registered by a weather balloon flown from Payerne in western Switzerland, constituted "a record since monitoring began in 1954", the service said, and surpassed the previous high of 5,184 metres that was "only set in July last year".
Swiss national and 13 citizens arrested on 8 August in Myanmar for allegedly insulting Buddhism in film — ground.news 1 main source: ANI, 41 media reports — 19 August 2023 (LINK)
— The film "Don't Expect Anything" was released on July 24 on YouTube and TikTok, Myawady Daily said.
Gotthard rail tunnel, world's longest at 57km, inaugurated in 2016, closes to passengers for months after Swiss derailment — The Guardian — 17 August 2023 (LINK)
— The tube that was unaffected in the derailment — should be operable "in principle" starting next Wednesday for cargo trains, SBB said, but passenger train traffic would have to wait for months.
"It appears that the extent of damage is considerably greater than that shown by the first estimates. In total, about eight kilometres (five miles) of track and 20,000 concrete railroad ties will have to be replaced," SBB said. "Restoration work should continue until the end of 2023. "Passenger trains will run on the panoramic route until further notice," it said. The alternate route adds an hour for domestic travellers and two hours for international travelers.
Switzerland topped the list of countries with the largest per capita wealth last year, a new study has found: average worth in the Alpine country was $685,000 (CHF600,000) — swissinfo — 15 August 2023 (LINK)
Posts exaggerate significance of Swiss study on heart risk and COVID-19 vaccination: less than 3% of people briefly had a slightly elevated blood level of a protein that can be a marker of heart injury. No one in the study had any serious heart damage, and other experts say the findings are unlikely to be clinically significant — factcheck.org — 11 August 2023 (LINK)
UBS ends taxpayer backstop granted for Credit Suisse rescue — reuters ● — 11 August 2023 (LINK)
4 Syrians arrested in Vaud and Neuchatel on suspicion of belonging to terrorist group (in French) — lenouvelliste — 10 August 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland freaks out after Veselnitskaya: "Switzerland is fighting for its reputation," wrote Swiss newspaper of record Neue Zürcher Zeitung. — https://news.yahoo.com/switzerland-freaks-veselnitskaya-plot-exposed-141836219.html — 10 August 2023 (LINK)
Fresh snow at Glacier 3000, Switzerland, just in time for re-opening of Glacier 3000 cable car — snowbrains — 9 August 2023 (LINK)
UBS to cut two-thirds of Credit Suisse dealmakers in Asia — bloomberg ● — 7 August 2023 (LINK)
What's behind the strength of the Swiss franc? — finews — 7 August 2023 (LINK)
Swiss hotels see demand jump as tourists brush off soaring franc: Foreign overnight stays in Switzerland rise 33% in first half: Number of visits by Asian guests doubles to 864,000 nights — bloomberg ● — 4 August 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland rejected nearly 14,000 visa applications filed by Indians in 2022 — schengenvisainfo — 3 August 2023 (LINK)
NZZ: our most popular articles of 2023, so far — nzz — 3 August 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland stops accepting Schengen visa applications from Indian tour groups until October — schengenvisainfo — 1 August 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland does not have a clause in its laws punishing torture as a specific criminal offence, an omission that has long vexed rights groups and United Nations experts, who have renewed their calls for the nation to update its laws. — genevasolutions — 31 July 2023 (LINK)
How to make an on-demand bus network viable — epfl — 31 July 2023 (LINK)
— For her EPFL Master's project in civil engineering, Gaelle Abi Younes examined why on-demand buses have met with only limited success. She used technical and financial models to show how they could become a genuine alternative to cars in outlying areas.
One in four Swiss has second job, survey finds — www.swissinfo.ch — 23 July 2023 (LINK)
Zurich among 9 most beautiful airports in the world: "Surrounded by the picturesque Swiss Alps, Zurich Airport offers travellers a seamless experience with its modern design, efficient layout, and breathtaking views — www.zoomtventertainment.com — 24 July 2023 (LINK)
Why is Switzerland — of all places — importing so much cheese? — nytimes / www.seattletimes.com — 22 July 2023 (LINK)
— The Swiss have developed a taste for foreign cheeses, with local varieties accounting for 64% of consumption last year, down from 77% in 2007. The number of dairy farmers in Switzerland has fallen more than half in the past 25 years. Farming operations in Switzerland are small: The average size of a herd is about 27 cows, Koller said, and dairy farms with more than 100 cows are rare.
The cheeses Swiss export tend to be the higher-value varieties, such as Gruyère. Imports are cheaper — and softer — and largely come from France. Not all the cheese Switzerland imports is consumed here. Much of the cheese and curd brought into the country gets refined in Switzerland and then exported.
Switzerland continues to run a healthy trade surplus in cheese by financial value: On average, Swiss cheese exports fetch roughly about $11.60, compared with about $7 per kilo paid for imports.
Wealthiest People in Switzerland 2023 — ceoworld.biz — 21 July 2023 (LINK)
Tourists evacuated from Swiss Alps Glacier 3000 ski resort after cable car breaks down — afp / www.theguardian.com — 20 July 2023 (LINK)
Profit over planet? Employees urge reform at world's major climate player Swiss Pole — source — 20 July 2023 (LINK)
First Swiss condemnation for crime against humanity under law introduced in 2011: Liberian exiled leader Alieu Kosiah convicted on 1 June 2023 of complicity in axe murder as war crime and crime against humanity 30 years ago — www.heidi.news (French) — 17 July 2023 (LINK)
— Court in Bellinzona convicted Kosiah of several war crimes in June 2021, including the eating a piece of the man's heart. The man in the town of Foya had told a humanitarian group that Ulimo rebels had pillaged the hospital financed by the group. His thorax was publicly removed and his heart ceremonially devoured.
Swatch files lawsuit against Malaysian government over seizure of watches from Pride collection — ground.news: 28 media reports — 16 July 2023 (LINK)
In Switzerland, an artist uses mountain slopes as his canvas — in_link — 14 July 2023 (LINK)
— The artist has used chalk and charcoal to paint two giant frescos of children sketching how they see the vast world around them in Vilars-sur-Ollon. The frescos, which are painted directly on the grass and can last days depending on weather conditions, show a young boy and girl tracing squiggly lines on sketchpads to depict mountains, trees, stars and the moon.
Switzerland bans photographers taking 'suggestive' photos of gymnasts — petapixel.com — 10 July 2023 (LINK)
Geneva's banking district is losing its appeal for the banking crowd: BNP Paribas Switzerland is moving out — www.finews.com — 10 July 2023 (LINK)
— The Swiss subsidiary of the French bank will relocate to the "Alto Pont-Rouge" building in the heart of the new Praille–Acacias–Vernets (PAV) district, the announcement said. In its new location, BNP Paribas will find itself in the company of KPMG, EY, Swisscom and Crédit Agricole Next Bank. Soon Pictet will also be joining the crowd, entering into its newly built office tower in 2025. The building the bank currently occupies was bought in in 2021 by J. Safra Sarasin for 270 million francs. The 15,000 square meter building will be modernized to include coworking spaces, offices and gastronomy.
Adopt green hydrogen strategy now, Swiss cantons tell Bern — swissinfo.ch — 9 July 2023 (LINK)
— If Switzerland is to meet its net-zero carbon emissions targets, it must sort out how to obtain sufficient green hydrogen, a gas that can be produced from renewable energies, the NZZ am Sonntag reports. Hydrogen is expected to replace the use of fossil fuels by industry and for the supply of electricity. They suggest in a letter, seen by news agency Keystone-SDA, that the country convert its existing transit pipeline to accommodate hydrogen.
Switzerland to become a net importer of cheese this year for the first time — AP.com — 8 July 2023 (LINK)
A man in the Swiss village of Lenk is hoping to attract digital nomads with mountain views and community — www.euronews.com — 8 July 2023 (LINK)
— Running from 16 October to 22 December, the hub will have private apartments suitable for everyone from solo nomads to families. Each one has its own desk for more individual business but there's also a co-working space to get to know your fellow residents.
This village in the Swiss Alps has around 2,500 permanent residents with about 15 per cent of them having moved from other countries. Some 20 different hiking trails start there with a selection of the highest peaks in Europe easily accessible by car or public transport. There's also horseback riding, cycling and other outdoor activities in the summer months. In winter, there are 200km of ski slopes to take advantage of in the region.
The worldÃÆ'¢â‚¬â„¢s best universities in 2024 have been unveiled. 5 of the top 10 are in Europe, including ETH Zurich — www.euronews.com — 5 July 2023 (LINK)
I Just Visited Geneva, and Can Confidently Say It's Europe's Most Underrated Food City — /www.foodandwine.com — 5 July 2023 (LINK)
Mirjana Spoljaric Egger, ICRC President: 'An external audit of the ICRC is necessary' — genevasolutions.news — 4 July 2023 (LINK)
— "In the future, we will not receive all the funds that we would like to obtain to support everyone. The needs on the ground will have to be met as best as possible with fewer resources. This involves optimizing systems and processes, promoting digitalisation. In a nutshell, doing more with less."
Swiss diplomatic secrets published briefly on Dark Web — www.heidi.news(French) — 4 July 2023 (LINK)
— The Swiss National Centre for Cybersecurity (NCSC) said details of protection for embassies and addresses of Cabinet Ministers werer published by the Play cybercriminal group. It followed pirating of information from the Bernese company Xplain, with which NCSC works, in Interlaken on 28 June 2023.
Bringing Leonardo da Vinci's designs to life: altering the design in some cases — in order to better understand how they worked. — actu.epfl.ch — 3 July 2023 (LINK)
Staff at Geneva airport end first-ever strike after deal agreed with management: staff were angry over a proposal to freeze wages — www.euronews.com — 30 June 2023 (LINK)
Smoke on the water, and music in the air: the magic of Montreux, Switzerland (and Cully) — www.theguardian.com — 30 June 2023 (LINK)
Swiss chalets become target of amid East Europe's office developers — www.bloomberg.com ● — 30 June 2023 (LINK)
An early predictor of cognitive decline in Parkinson's disease: hallucinations — actu.epfl.ch — 30 June 2023 (LINK)
Swiss Digital Days 4 September–6 December launches website — digitaltage.swiss — 29 June 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland adopts sanctions against people involved in undermining Moldova's sovereignty — www.reuters.com — 29 June 2023 (LINK)
Swiss Sustainable Finance: Total sustainability-related investment volume now at CHF 1.610 billion (-19% compared to 2021) — marketstudy2023 — 27 June 2023 (LINK)
— "The reduction can be attributed to the negative market performance in 2022 (18%), tighter definitions by respondents managing sustainability-related investments in Switzerland, and lower reported volumes for asset owner stewardship approaches as a result of methodology changes. Sustainability-related fund volumes correspond to about 52% of the entire Swiss funds market, similar to last year's level."
Swiss authorities seize $26m in crypto tied to Terraform Labs — cryptodaily.co.uk — 27 June 2023 (LINK)
Swiss say dozens of Russian spies disguised as diplomats are active in the Alpine nation — source — 26 June 2023 (LINK)
— "Of the roughly 220 people that are accredited as diplomatical or technical-administrative personnel at the diplomatic and consular representations in Geneva and Bern, at least a third are likely still active for Russian intelligence agencies," said the report by Switzerland's main intelligence agency. Europe-wide, Switzerland is one of the states in which the most Russian intelligence personnel are deployed under diplomatic cover, including due to its role as a host country for international organizations."
While China is also believed to have dozens of spies at its diplomatic missions in Switzerland, their number is significantly less than Russia's, the agency said. It said China is more likely to have spies masquerading as scientists, journalists and businesspeople.
US Financial Regulator Slaps Credit Suisse subsidiary with Hefty Fine — www.finews.com — 26 June 2023 (LINK)
— The US Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (Finra) fined Credit Suisse Securities (USA) $900,000 for reporting late financial statements and inaccurate TRACE reports designed to promote transparency in the US market for over-the-counter traded securities.
From November 2015 until at least March 2023, the documents say Credit Suisse reported about 9,000 late trades to the Trade Reporting and Compliance Engine (TRACE), primarily in securitized products, along with hundreds of thousands of inaccurate TRACE reports. From July 2016 through June 2021 it also failed to report to the regulator on a timely basis some 190 new issues of TRACE-reportable securities.
Finra also fined UBS earlier his year. In February, New York-based UBS Securities had to pay $475,000 for publishing ÃÆ'�'‚ÃÆ'‚«inaccurateÃÆ'�'‚ÃÆ'‚» monthly statistics on the execution of its covered orders between September 2015 and January 2019.
Goldman Sachs was hit even harder in April, when it was ordered to pay a $3 million fine when it mislabeled about 60 million short orders as long orders between October 2015 and April 2018.
Swiss central bank announces plans for wholesale CBDC pilot with 'real money': Report — cointelegraph.com — 26 June 2023 (LINK)
Climate change blamed for 11 June collapse of Fluchthorn mountain in the Mischabel range of Austria-Switzerland's Silvretta Alps, shortening peak by 100m and new official height by 60m with another peak — www.livescience.com — 26 June 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland's Economy Relies on Mothers Working Part-Time, at Their Cost — www.bloomberg.com ● — 24 June 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland's enormous Covid cost revealed — lenews.ch — 23 June 2023 (LINK)
— The federal government spent CHF 4.9 billion, the cantons up to CHF 2.9 billion and health insurers as much as CHF 1.4 billion. The CHF 9.2 billion total comes out at more than CHF 1,000 per resident.
President of IFRC to resign amid controversy in Italy — www.swissinfo.ch — 22 June 2023 (LINK)
— As the right-wing president of Italy's Lazio region, Francesco Rocca withdrew his support for the Pride march in Rome. In a press release, he expressed that the region's name should not be used to endorse actions that promote illegal behavior, specifically referring to the practice of surrogacy.
Three former Credit Suisse CEOs accused of excessive risk-taking -court filing — source — 22 June 2023 (LINK)
Swiss Watch Exports to the U.S. Rose by Nearly 10 Percent in May — www.yahoo.com — 20 June 2023 (LINK)
Credit Suisse sticks UBS with the bill for Archegos fiasco — www.finews.com — 20 June 2023 (LINK)
— UBS is facing fines in the hundreds of millions of dollars stemming from Credit Suisse's Archegos debacle. US, UK, and Swiss regulators have completed their investigations.
Swiss consumer mag Bon à Savoir's June issue features Swiss TV's Guerre du chocolat (The Chocolate War): featuring Californian lawyer's 15-year campaign against Nestlé and Cargill over Ivory Coast use of children in chocolate plantations: available online till 23 July 2023 — source — 20 June 2023 (LINK)
'People & Planet Won!': Swiss Vote to Tax Corporations, Reach Net-Zero by 2050 — www.commondreams.org ← — 18 June 2023 (LINK)
Gino Mäder dies at age 26 after Tour de Suisse crash — www.cbsnews.com — 16 June 2023 (LINK)
Art Basel 15-18 June: tickets — www.artbasel.com — 14 June 2023 (LINK)
Swiss women stage 'feminist strike,' a scream for equality — www.reuters.com ● — 14 June 2023 (LINK)
— Swiss women earn roughly a fifth less than men, better than 30 years ago when it was about a third less, but worse than in 2000, according to government data. Many Swiss women hold an annual strike and protests on June 14, a day that marks the anniversary of a 1981 vote that enshrined the principle of equality in the constitution.
Britain and Switzerland to sign professional qualifications agreement — www.reuters.com ● — 14 June 2023 (LINK)
— The deal on recognising professional qualifications will replace an interim UK-Swiss agreement which replicated the arrangements Britain had when it was a member of the European Union for a time-limited period.
Logitech CEO Bracken Darrell resigns with immediate effect after nearly a decade at helm — bhaskarlive.in — 14 June 2023 (LINK)
— Board member Guy Gecht will take over as interim CEO while a global search of internal and external candidates is conducted.
Paris says "non" to buildings of more than 12 storeys — or some 37 metres — but what's behind the ban? — www.euronews.com — 14 June 2023 (LINK)
— Certain parts of the city imposed a height limit for new buildings of 37 metres in 1977 after the construction of the controversial 209m-tall Montparnasse Tower, which was completed in 1973. That monolithic building has long been criticised by some Parisians for looking out of place — a blot on the iconic landscape.
Paris has now effectively, returned to 1977 — the ban reintroduced as part of mayor Anne Hidalgo's aim to reduce Paris' carbon emissions, otherwise known as the Local Bioclimatic Urban Plan. Another reason behind the decision lies in the controversial construction of the Tour Triangle tower designed by Swiss studio Herzog & de Meuron. Starting building works in 2021, the pyramid-shaped tower is scheduled for completion in 2026 but has been dogged by backlash and delayed by a staggering 12 years due to various legal and planning battles. At its completion, the Tour Triangle will be the city's third tallest building, playing host to a hotel and office as well as shops and restaurants. The building is in a trapezoidal form, meaning it will resemble a thin tower from central Paris, but from the east and west of the city, its full width will be visible.
Zug destined to become a blockchain research center — swisstrade.com — 14 June 2023 (LINK)
— The cantonal government of Zug is to contribute a total of 39.35 million Swiss francs to the Blockchain Zug — Joint Research Initiative of the University of Lucerne and Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts.
UBS CEO says about 10% of Credit Suisse staff have left — www.reuters.com — 12 June 2023 (LINK)
— The two banks jointly employ around 120,000 people worldwide. UBS has, however, already said it will be cutting jobs to reduce costs and take advantage of synergies.
Chocolate expected to get more expensive as cocoa prices soar to 7-year highs — www.nbcnews.com — 12 June 2023 (LINK)
— Among the different varieties of chocolate, prices of dark will reportedly be the hardest hit.
China-Swiss chip deal poke in the eye for US — www.scmp.com — 11 June 2023 (LINK)
Why have Korean tourists fallen for a Swiss village? The popularity of 'Crash Landing on You' has brought a huge number of Asian tourists to this picturesque lakeside village — www.euronews.com — 10 June 2023 (LINK)
UBS and the Swiss government sign loss protection agreement over Credit Suisse takeover — www.cnbc.com — 9 June 2023 (LINK)
— The provisions will see the Swiss government cover losses of up to 9 billion Swiss francs ($10 billion) following UBS' acquisition.
Tourists Flock to Swiss Alps and Cities — Defying Strong Franc — www.bloomberg.com ● — 7 June 2023 (LINK)
— Swiss hotels record more overnight stays than ever before. Number of US visitors increased 88% over the winter season.
Researchers unveil first Chat-GPT-designed robot — actu.epfl.ch — 7 June 2023 (LINK)
HEAD Genève students create glassware in tribute to pioneering women designers — www.dezeen.com — 6 June 2023 (LINK)
UBS expects to seal Credit Suisse takeover on 12 June — ground.news: 37 media reports — 5 June 2023 (LINK)
Credit Suisse Loses Three More US-Based Investment Bankers to rivals — source — 5 June 2023 (LINK)
Deutsche Bank is Hiring Latam Bankers in Switzerland — www.finews.com — 3 June 2023 (LINK)
Lake Maggiore deaths: why were Italian and Israeli secret service agents on a boat in northern Italy? — www.theguardian.com — 2 June 2023 (LINK)
Swiss drone takes the perilous plunge so divers don't have to — newatlas.com — 2 June 2023 (LINK)
Ajay Banga faces great expectations as he takes helm of World Bank — www.devex.com — 2 June 2023 (LINK)
— The Indian-born former Mastercard executive, who started his career with Nestlé has a fanbase across the financial world who are convinced he can deftly reform the World Bank for the modern era.
Credit Suisse has paid back government-backed liquidity — Swiss finance minister — finance.yahoo.com — 1 June 2023 (LINK)
Scientists: Swiss energy system could be independent and carbon-neutral by 2050 using the currently untapped local renewable energy resources — actu.epfl.ch — 1 June 2023 (LINK)
— This system would even be cheaper than the country's 2020 energy system modeled with the same assumptions, with up to 30-32% cost reductions.
Former Liberian rebel leader Alieu Kosiah lost his appeal on Thursday before Switzerland's highest criminal court against a guilty verdict over war crimes and crimes against humanity. — genevasolutions.news — 1 June 2023 (LINK)
Gucci Alum Simone Bellotti Is Bally's New Design Director — graziamagazine.com — 31 May 2023 (LINK)
'Electricity sinkhole' or 'important step forward'? Swiss citizens to vote on new climate law — euronews.com — 30 May 2023 (LINK)
30 Best Restaurants In Geneva — gamintraveler.com — 29 May 2023 (LINK)
Russian oligarch Melnichenko 'may be forced to leave Switzerland' — swissinfo.ch — 28 May 2023 (LINK)
Swiss researchers use a wireless BCI to help a spinal injury patient walk more naturally — engadget.com — 26 May 2023 (LINK)
Credit Suisse ordered to pay $926 million in Georgia prime minister case — ground.news: 28 media reports — 26 May 2023 (LINK)
Tina Turner Dies at home near Zurich: Legendary Rock & Soul Singer Was 83 — deadline.com — 24 May 2023 (LINK)
Top Female Alpinist Line van den Berg Dies in Switzerland — gripped.com — 24 May 2023 (LINK)
ICRC to cut 1,800 jobs worldwide, 300 more than previously announced — swissinfo.ch — 24 May 2023 (LINK)
Swiss court acquits Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan on charges of rape, sexual coercion in 2008 — ground.news: 24 media reports — 24 May 2023 (LINK)
— The court also decided to compensate the former Oxford University professor for his legal costs, awarding him up to 151,000 Swiss francs ($167,000), but rejecting his claim for moral damages. Woman's lawyers said they would appeal against the ruling. Brigitte was in her forties at the time of the alleged assault. She filed a complaint 10 years later, telling the court she felt emboldened to come forward following similar complaints filed against Ramadan in France. In France, he is suspected of committing rape against four women, between 2009 and 2016. He was a professor of contemporary Islamic studies at Oxford and held visiting roles at universities in Qatar and Morocco. He was forced to take a leave of absence in 2017 when rape allegations surfaced in France at the height of the "Me Too" movement.
Four Filipinas sue diplomat employers in Switzerland for slavery — aljazeera.com — 24 May 2023 (LINK)
Geneva airport briefly closed as climate activists protest private jet fair — ground.news: 38 media reports — 23 May 2023 (LINK)
Close to 20% of Swiss wildlife on the verge of local extinction — swissinfo.ch — 22 May 2023 (LINK)
— A further 16% are classified as vulnerable, according to two reports released by the Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN) on Monday to mark the International Day for Biological Diversity. In total, populations have declined by 30% over the past 10 years.
Iran Summons Swiss Envoy Over Call to Halt Executions — ground.news: 6 media reports — 21 May 2023 (LINK)
Deep freeze sets between Germany and Switzerland — swissinfo — 20 May 2023 (LINK)
Wall removed between Swiss and Venezuelan pavilions at Venice Architecture Biennale to "dissolve borders" — source — 18 May 2023 (LINK)
UBS says it was rushed into unwanted Credit Suisse rescue merger — reuters — 17 May 2023 (LINK)
Geneva's human rights film festival nominates two new directors, following a wave of departures that recently rocked the annual film fest — letemps.ch (French, subscription) — 15 May 2023 (LINK)
The World Economic Forum and the Government of Malaysia have established the first Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (C4IR Malaysia) in the Asia-Pacific region — weforum.org — 15 May 2023 (LINK)
Nestlé blasted on social media over alleged blatant 'greenwashing': 'The complete opposite of supporting nature' — thecooldown — 12 May 2023 (LINK)
Ancient Roman bricks and coins lead to bigger discovery in Switzerland's Thurgau — source — 11 May 2023 (LINK)
Swiss discover microbes that can digest plastics at low temperatures — ground.news: 12 media reports — 10 May 2023 (LINK)
Rockfall danger: Swiss village evacuated Residents of Brienz/Brinzauls in eastern Switzerland have been told to leave their homes by 6pm on Friday 12 May — swissinfo.ch — 9 May 2023 (LINK)
Storm of criticism against Switzerland as it heads the Security Council — .swissinfo.ch (French) — 8 May 2023 (LINK)
Protesters call for stop to deep geothermal project in Switzerland — swissinfo.ch — 8 May 2023 (LINK)
Growth Summit 2023, Geneva: Here's a recap of what just happened — weforum — 4 May 2023 (LINK)
As Switzerland leaves Haiti, Swiss NGOs stay on — swissinfo.ch — 24 April 2023 (LINK)
A game changer for CERN: new visitor and education centre, Science Gateway, due to open this autumn, will welcome up to half a million people each year. — cerncourier — 21 April 2023 (LINK)
UN's weather agency: For the first time in history no snow survived the summer melt season on Switzerland's glaciers. — ground.news: 56 sources — 22 April 2023 (LINK)
Cern entices authorities over gigantic collider with green arguments — genevasolutions.news — 20 April 2023 (LINK)
National Geographic: the world's 42 best hotels in 2022: 2 Swiss runners up — The Woodward, Geneva (Wellness), Hotel Eringer, Thyon-Les Collons (Snow Queens) — source — 19 April 2023 (LINK)
Swiss charge Gambia ex-minister with crimes against humanity — APs — 18 April 2023 (LINK)
France bans Basel football fans from Nice to prevent clashes — ground.news: 4 sources — 18 April 2023 (LINK)
Swiss bank held nearly 100 Nazi-linked accounts, senators say — axios — 18 April 2023 (LINK)
— Credit Suisse downplayed the findings, saying that the AlixPartners probe showed that the SWC's claim that "many" names on the Argentinian list held accounts at the bank didn't hold up.
Will the Swiss countryside soon be dotted with wind turbines? — swissinfo — 18 April 2023 (LINK)
The 7 best lakes in Switzerland: seen them all? — lingoda — 17 April 2023 (LINK)
Watch Trevor Noah and Roger Federer Go on an Accidental Train Adventure Through Switzerland — and Win the Same Trip — travelandleisure — 13 April 2023 (LINK)
Swiss banks warn Russian taxpayers of looming account closures — /novayagazeta.eu — 13 April 2023 (LINK)
Theodor Diener, Swiss-born scientist who discovered the tiny viroid, dies at 102 — washingtonpost ● — 13 April 2023 (LINK)
Yasmine Motarjemi on the Nestlé affair — www.humanrights.ch — 11 April 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland not recommending spring-summer COVID-19 vaccine, including for high-risk individuals boosted under six months ago — ground.news: 11 sources — 11 April 2023 (LINK)
Swiss researchers use typing, mouse clicks to detect office stress — ground.news: 4 sources — 11 April 2023 (LINK)
In Switzerland 16 skiers rescued from avalanche at Saas-Fee — ground.news: 16 sources — 8 April 2023 (LINK)
Swiss Bank PostFinance to Roll Out Bitcoin, Ethereum Services for Clients — decrypt — 5 April 2023 (LINK)
Credit Suisse chairman: 'truly sorry' as fury grows — ground.news: 73 sources — 4 April 2023 (LINK)
Group steers Swiss billionaire's money to U.S. liberal causes — AP — 4 April 2023 (LINK)
Four bankers at Gazprombank who helped Putin's friend concert cellist Sergey Roldugin set up Swiss bank account convicted and given suspended sentences plus fines totalling $809,000. — ground.news: 63 sources — 30 March 2023 (LINK)
— Judge Sebastian Aeppli said it was not possible to establish the real owner of the funds, but the bankers had failed in their duty to conduct due diligence and check. "It has been proven without doubt that Roldugin cannot be the beneficial owner," Aeppli said.The bank eventually closed the accounts in September 2016.
Who is Sergio Ermotti? Switzerland's most successful banker returns to steer the merged UBS-Credit Suisse behemoth in its time of need — fortune.com ● — 29 March 2023 (LINK)
Geneva overtakes Amsterdam to become cannabis consumption capital of Europe — iamexpat.ch — 27 March 2023 (LINK)
Chairman of Saudi National Bank, who sparked turmoil for Credit Suisse, resigns — marketwatch — 27 March 2023 (LINK)
The 'too big to fail' regime for banks just doesn't work, Swiss minister says. 'The economic damage would be considerable' — fortune — 25 March 2023 (LINK)
Credit Suisse Takeover Hands Swiss Business a Big Headache: limits financing options for small outfits — bloomberg ● — 26 March 2023 (LINK)
Researchers From ETH Zurich and Microsoft Propose X–Avatar: An Animatable Implicit Human Avatar Model Capable of Capturing Human Body Pose and Facial Expressions — marktechpost.com — 25 March 2023 (LINK)
Switzerland Set To Roll Out Carpet-Like Solar Panels Between Railroad Tracks — zenger.news — 24 March 2023 (LINK)
— The initiative could be a potential remedy for the energy problem and the rising cost of electricity. Swiss company Sun–Ways says the removable solar power plants could produce up to 1TWh of solar electricity, or 30% of all current solar production in Switzerland.
The firm said: "The exploitation of the 7,000,000 m2 of surface available between the railway tracks in Switzerland offers an exceptional opportunity to accelerate the energy transition in our country; it is the equivalent of 350,000 house roofs equipped with solar panels.
"The patented technology of the Vaud-based start-up Sun–Ways contributes in a simple and quick way to the energy transition towards a massive production of clean and local electricity. Sun–Ways say they are currently awaiting the green light from the Swiss public transport regulation agency, but hope to begin a pilot project this Summer.
Global warming kills forests by restricting tree transpiration — epfl — 22 March 2023 (LINK)
Rumor Roundup: 5 Watches We Could See from Rolex in 2023 — gearpatrol — 22 March 2023 (LINK)
Credit Suisse received a clean bill of health from regulators — then took less than a week to completely collapse — fortune ● — 20 March 2023 (LINK)
Ranked: The 20 Happiest Countries In The World In 2023: Finland 1, Switzerland 8, U.S. 15. Unhappiest: Afghanistan — forbes — 20 March 2023 (LINK)
The 11 Scariest Ski Lifts in the World, including Titlis Rotair, Engelberg, Switzerland — outdoors.com — 20 March 2023 (LINK)
UBS swallows Credit Suisse, casting shadow over Switzerland — reuters — 19 March 2023 (LINK)
— UBS will pay $3.2 billion for 167-year-old Credit Suisse and assume at least $5.4 billion in losses from unwinding its portfolio of derivatives and other risky assets. Credit Suisse had a market value of about $8 billion at the close on Friday. Holders of Credit Suisse's Additional Tier 1 bonds will get wiped out and in a controversial move will come secondary to equity holders who will receive at least some UBS shares.During the great financial crash of 2008-9, it was UBS and not Credit Suisse that needed state support.
Credit Suisse Chairman Waives $1.6 Million Award, Takes Pay Cut — bloomberg — 14 March 2023 (LINK)
Credit Suisse shares sink 5% as 'material weaknesses' found in financial reporting — cnbc — 14 March 2023 (LINK)
Credit Suisse publishes delayed annual report in which it admits to financial control weaknesses — ground.news: 23 sources — 14 March 2023 (LINK)
Rolex Is Boosting Production: Is the End of Waitlists in Sight? — gearpatrol — 13 March 2023 (LINK)
City of Lucerne votes to restrict Airbnb rentals — swissinfo — 14 March 2023 (LINK)
Lugano After One Year on its Bitcoin and Tether Standard — cryptopotato — 12 March 2023 (LINK)
— Over 150 merchants around Lugano are now accepting Bitcoin, Tether, and LVGA — Lugano's Swiss–franc pegged stablecoin — for payments. The Plan B Foundation plans to expand acceptance to 2500 more merchants by the end of 2023.
3000 right–wing protestors take to the street to demand strict Swiss neutrality — swissinfo — 11 March 2023 (LINK)
— A week ago, a rally planned by a cross-party committee, trade unions and civil society groups from the opposite political spectrum was attended by more then 2,000 people in Bern. They called for more support for the people of Ukraine, effective implementation of sanctions and an active peace policy by Switzerland.
In a separate demonstration on Saturday, an estimated 2,000 people took part in a street protest, organised by far-left groups in the city of Zurich to mark International Women's Day on March 8. The participants called for an end of the "patriarchal system and capitalism". The unauthorised demonstration passed off mainly peacefully amid increased police presence. A previous, illegal demonstration in Zurich three weeks ago had ended in clashes between security forces and protesters.