2024

This year, D-BAUG students awarded Matteo Riva the "Golden Owl" in recognition of his dedication to teaching. Riva is a doctoral candidate at the Institute for Spatial Planning and Landscape Development, where he evaluates landscape changes and the condition of ecosystems. For him, teaching is not just about the transfer of knowledge, but an inspiring exchange in which students and teachers can grow together.

Rector Günther Dissertori explained on the 169th anniversary of ETH Zurich the fundamental objective he was pursuing with a reform package in teaching. President of ETH Zurich Joël Mesot and Federal Councillor Albert Rösti also spoke to the many guests from politics, business and science. The Head of the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications and former ETH graduate gave this year’s ceremonial address.

Glaciers around the world are shrinking at an alarming rate, threatening sea-level rise, water availability, biodiversity, and ecosystem stability. A new study led by researchers from ETH Zurich and Vrije Universiteit Brussel provides the most comprehensive projections to date, projecting the future of over 200,000 glaciers – excluding those in Greenland and Antarctica – under the newest climate scenarios.

Four students from the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering have been awarded a scholarship from the Excellence Scholarship & Opportunity Programme (ESOP). The full scholarship enables them to concentrate fully on their studies. Congratulations!

From rockfall to ice avalanches: Climate change is intensifying natural hazards in the mountains in many places, posing particular challenges for the Alpine region. This is the result of a study jointly coordinated by glaciologist Mylène Jacquemart and permafrost expert Samuel Weber from ETH Zurich and the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL. The international team has evaluated more than three hundred scientific papers from the past three decades.

With a varied programme and a public exhibition in the ETH main hall, this year's Energy Week from 4 to 8 November will not only highlight the challenges of the energy transition, but also present possible solutions. Three D-BAUG researchers are contributing to this year's programme: Professors Robert Boes, Eleni Chatzi and Adrienne Grêt-Regamey.

After 15 successful years, it is time to say goodbye to the MAS in Sustainable Water Resources (SWR) at ETH Zurich. The programme, dedicated to finding sustainable solutions to global water problems, has produced 86 graduates from 26 countries during this time – many of whom are now decision-makers shaping the future of water resources worldwide.

In the keynote speech kicking off this semester's Respect programme, guest speaker Heidi Möller explains how important psychological safety is for teams to achieve top performance. Nadia Dörflinger-Khashman, Head of the Diversity and Cooperation Department, explains why we all benefit from this lecture.

After the extreme circumstances encountered in 2022 and 2023, no relief is in sight for Swiss glaciers. Despite exceptionally large volumes of snow during the winter, a combination of temperatures in July and August that at times reached record levels and dust from the Sahara resulted in a loss of 2.5 percent of the glacier volume. This was reported by the Swiss Commission for Cryosphere Observation of the Swiss Academy of Sciences led by Dr Matthias Huss.  

Eva Heinen has been Professor of Transportation and Mobility Planning in the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering at ETH Zurich since July 2024. Her interdisciplinary research looks at mobility and transportation at the intersection of sustainable development, spatial planning and health. We asked her what currently drives her in research and teaching.