ISTP News

A new article explores public support for public transport expansion in Switzerland.

A new report based on data from the Swiss Mobility Panel explores Swiss public opinion on a new tax on electric cars

A new report based on data from the Swiss Mobility Panel and the Swiss Environmental Panel shows: Opinions on #SpeedLimit30 in Swiss cities vary widely. Political and environmental attitudes play a decisive role in shaping opinions.

The seventh and last video of our "ISTP4Public" series has been released and sheds light on sustainability issues in forest-focused supply chain policies. ETH Zurich Prof. Rachael Garrett discusses the global developments that provoked her scientific interest in this topic, and she talks about supply chain policies' effectiveness. She also highlights the need for local governments' involvement and the key role of importing regions to drive greater uptake of sustainability policies. 

(Re-​post from ETH Zukunftsblog) The guiding principle for global climate policy is shifting from mistrust to collaboration, says Anthony Patt. Interestingly, nations' answer to the coronavirus can help to clarify how.

Nourishing a growing world population in ecologically sustainable ways is one of the main goals of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The new video of our "ISTP4Public" series is out and it provides fresh insights into the impacts of improved on-farm storage as a means for reducing seasonal food insecurity. Michael Brander, researcher at the ISTP, gives an insight into his and Matthias Huss’ research project focused on Sub-​Saharan Africa.

In 2015 the global community agreed on a set of Sustainable Development Goals to put our planet on an environmentally, socially and economically sustainable trajectory. While the SDGs are an impressive testament to international cooperation, they were not accompanied by a clear plan of how to finance them. A recent study by ETH researchers focuses on multilateral development banks (MDBs), a leading group of finance institutions to channel resources to development goals.

The Wyss Academy for Nature at the University of Bern is dedicated to shaping sustainable futures for nature and people by strengthening and harmonizing nature conservation, human well-being, and natural resource use in different landscapes around the world. To this goal the Wyss Academy invites applications for six new open-rank professorships.

The RESPONSE Doctoral Programme (DP) «RESPONSE - to society and policy needs through plant, food and energy sciences» builds on the academic expertise of three world-leading institutions - ETH Zurich, University of Zurich and University of Basel - and the three internationally renowned competence centers Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center (PSC), the World Food System Center and Energy Science Center. It will start in February 2020.

Working from home, distance learning, online shopping – many African countries cannot easily adopt rich nations’ measures against the coronavirus. ISTP member Prof. Isabel Günther calls for international solidarity in the pandemic. (Re-post from ETH Zukunftsblog)

An insightful study on the impact of on-farm storage by Dr. Michael Brander, ETH Prof. Thomas Bernauer and Dr. Matthias Huss highlights the need for greater consideration of improved on-farm storage as a means for reducing severe food insecurity. The results of their study, which is based on a randomized control trial in Tanzania, and data collected through SMS-based mobile phone surveys, were published in Food Policy.

ETH researchers analysed various possibilities for reducing the net CO₂ emissions of the chemical industry to zero. Their conclusion? The chemical industry can in fact have a carbon-​neutral future. (Re-​post from ETH News)

The world is not on track with regard to its CO₂ emissions. In order to achieve the Paris climate targets, we all need to show courage and commitment, says Nicolas Gruber - Professor of Environmental Physics at the Department of Environmental Systems Science and Associate Member of ISTP. (Re-​post from ETH Zukunftsblog)

(Repost from ETH News) Climate policy is most effective when it helps people use alternative energy sources, rather than when it makes fossil energy more expensive, argue Anthony Patt and Johan Lilliestam.

(Repost from ETH News) Will climate change, as often claimed, indeed result in large-scale human migration, notably from poor to rich countries? Vally Koubi and Thomas Bernauer answer.