Swiss Stories

The World Economic Forum: A Swiss success story

The World Economic Forum: A Swiss success story

Society
Established in 1971 as a not-for-profit foundation headquartered in Geneva, the World Economic Forum has evolved into a global platform where leaders from diverse sectors address pressing challenges. In all its activities, the Forum seeks to demonstrate entrepreneurship in the public interest while upholding the highest standards of governance. From facilitating historic agreements helping to end conflicts, the Forum has had a considerable impact on global and local concerns over the years.
NASA

Switzerland’s role in the first moon landing

History
Even today, not many people are aware of Switzerland's participation in this historic achievement. And yet, Swiss technological know-how played an important role in the success of the Apollo 11 mission.

by Mehdi Atmani

Ida Hofmann

Monte Verità: the Swiss early hippie colony

History
As a young woman, Ida Hofmann was a successful piano teacher and glamorous socialite in Russia, Austria and Montenegro. She then made a radical new beginning in Ticino and founded the soon-to-be legendary Monte Verità.
Barbara Piatti

by Barbara Piatti

Les informations générées s’affichent en temps réel sur un écran au bord du terrain, qui remplit aussi la fonction d’arbitre.

The tennis court of the future

Economics
The company, Technis, has designed a fully tactile court surface capable of recording where the ball bounces and the position of the players on the court. The information is displayed on a screen in real time.
absinthe

Absinthe: Swiss local product leaves behind its shady past

Society
Switzerland's Val-de-Travers is the birthplace of absinthe and has strong links to this local product that was banned for many years. An interactive exhibition in Môtiers in the canton of Neuchâtel tells its extraordinary story, while some distillers have set about seeking a PGI. We take a closer look at a spirit with a colourful past.

by Tatiana Tissot

Schweizer Mythen und Legenden

Swiss myths and legends

History
The legend of William Tell – the man who skilfully splits an apple on his son's head with his crossbow rather than bowing down to a local dignitary's hat – has come to represent the Swiss people's spirit of independence. It is a story that is known and loved well beyond the Swiss border. But this folk hero from the canton of Uri is only one of the many characters in Swiss legends: alongside William Tell, there is a panoply of fairies, mountain trolls and dwarves, not to mention giant fish and angry witches 'beating' the streams. There is no shortage of Swiss myths and legends – and a new generation of books is generating fresh interest in their revamped stories.
1

Swiss industrial designer Guberan

Society
Christophe Guberan, a Swiss industrial designer based in Lausanne, is currently teaching product design at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, one of the most prestigious universities in the world.

by Cécile Vulliemin