Swiss Stories

The Niesen

The Niesen – Switzerland's highest pyramid

Environment
You don't have to go to Egypt to contemplate the pyramids: to see one you need go no further than the Niesen in the Bernese Alps – an almost perfectly geometric peak which has inspired many painters.
The Swiss consortium for water and sanitation strives to provide dignified sanitation infrastructures adapted to the mobility of everyone in Mali © Terre des hommes

Water access: a fundamental human right

Environment
The COVID-19 pandemic has provided a reminder that better access to water and hygiene for everyone is essential – especially for improving global public health. Nearly 2.5 billion people around the world have no access to sanitary facilities. The 9th World Water Forum in Dakar aims to draw attention to such inequalities. Switzerland, which has worked for six decades to support equal and sustainable access to water and hygiene, will send a delegation to the forum.
The EnviCoPal team presenting its water filters to trainers during a visit to Palestine. © Cewas

Entrepreneurial innovation in the water sector

Environment
Social entrepreneurship offers an innovative approach to tackling the lack of universal access to drinking water and high-quality sanitation services. Social enterprises are economic entities that mainly pursue social and environmental goals. Their innovation potential has been recognised around the world for several years now.
Integrated water resource management of the Gambia River for the sustainable development of the region is a cross-border issue © SDC

Switzerland and Blue Peace

Environment
There’s nothing more essential to life on earth than water. Yet in ever more places on the planet, water is in a state of acute crisis. Due to rapid population growth, changing consumption patterns and rising pollution, clean water is increasingly scarce with direct consequences on peace and stability worldwide. As climate change intensifies pressure on our water resources, increased and innovative collaboration is needed between riparian states.
Chaque jour, Müller Recycling trie 90 tonnes de bouteilles de boisson en PET en fonction de leur couleur. Le directeur de l’entreprise, Thomas Müller, est fier de la pureté et de la qualité élevée de ce matériau. © Müller Recycling AG

Switzerland leads the way in PET recycling

Environment
Switzerland is frequently commended for its exemplary waste collection, sorting and recycling system. Plastic bottle recycling is just one example of Switzerland's sustainable waste management. Let's take a tour around Müller Recycling, where innovative technologies extend the lifecycle of plastic bottles.
Electric trucks

Electric trucks herald breakthrough in electromobility

Environment
Environment-friendly electromobility solutions with increased battery capacity from Switzerland are sending a clear signal to the logistics industry.

by John Durham

Contra Dam

Swiss dams – second to none

Environment
Switzerland has more dams than any other country: the federal government is responsible for 220 major dams and the cantons for roughly 1,000 small-scale ones. This is not particularly surprising. Switzerland, with its abundance of rivers and mountains, is ideally suited to generating hydroelectricity.