The centreExternal link, being launched on Friday in Sion, canton Valais, brings together researchers in natural, human and social sciences. It will look into issues as diverse as tourism and health, risks of natural disasters, local produce, weather and sustainability.
Climate change is one of the biggest challenges for alpine regions, according to experts. “In general, mountain areas are facing climate-linked processes in an intense way – whether it be in terms of hydrology, avalanches, or natural dangers,” the centre’s director Emmanuel Reynard told Swiss public broadcaster RTS on Friday morning. “These regions are very sensitive to climate change.”
One of the reasons behind the Interdisciplinary Mountain Research Centre (CIRM) is to bring together longstanding expertise from different departments at the University of LausanneExternal link. “We have nearly 50 people – professors, teachers, researchers – who have all shown interest in this centre,” said Reynard.
A call for cross-disciplinary project proposals has been launched within the university. Projects will be selected by the board of the new centre, and research will then begin.
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Swiss glaciers shrink further after extreme 2018 weather
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Weather extremes over the past year, including one of the hottest summers on record, was devastating to the nation’s glaciers, a study has shown.
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The amount of unproductive land in Switzerland has hardly changed in recent decades. Nationwide, it shrank by around 2% between 1985 and 2018.
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The bridge financing concluded to stabilise the Swiss company has been extended and increased. The company has also launched a takeover process.
Centre Party president rules out run for Swiss government post
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Outgoing Centre Party president Gerhard Pfister will not join the race to replace defence minister Viola Amherd in the Swiss government, the politician announced on Saturday.
Several hundred people join anti-WEF protests in Switzerland
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Several hundred opponents of the World Economic Forum gathered in Graubünden and in the capital Bern on Saturday to take aim in particular at the WEF's high-profile guests.
Swiss skiers nab top spots in iconic Lauberhorn race
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Swiss skier Marco Odermatt has won the Lauberhorn downhill ski race in Wengen, Switzerland, for the third time, just ahead of compatriot Franjo von Allmen.
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Swiss finance minister Karin Keller-Sutter defended the country's compliance with the debt brake at a meeting of her party, the Radical-Liberals, on Saturday.
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An Alpine village on the frontline of climate change
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Guttannen is a small and rustic village up in the Swiss Alps that exudes serenity. But this tranquil idyll is threatened by an unstable mountain.
Scientist predicts 30% of Swiss glacier ice could be saved
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If the Paris climate accord is implemented, up to one-third of all ice stored in larger Swiss glaciers could be saved, a top glaciologist predicts.
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Global warming is affecting the range of alpine flora – creating winners and losers, says a joint study from Swiss and Austrian scientists.
Most glaciers in central Switzerland to disappear by 2090
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The vast majority of glaciers in central Switzerland will have totally disappeared by the end of the 21st century, a study has revealed.
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