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Switzerland, Environment
Passports to defend the rights of the building materials
Passports to defend the rights of the building materials
What if the house of the future could be built, dissasembled and rebuilt, as if it were made of LEGO? This is one of the solutions that experts in the building sector have imagined in order to fight climate change.
Brexit and the UK’s decarbonisation efforts: a hit or a miss?
Brexit and the UK’s decarbonisation efforts: a hit or a miss?
In the summer 2019 Britain was the first G7 member to incorporate a new commitment to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 into law. Since then the country has maintained ambitious green targets for the coming years.
Robotic spies among bees
Robotic spies among bees
The 20th of May has been declared World Bee Day by the United Nations. Bees and wild pollinators are crucial to ecosystem biodiversity and food security, and they have been used as bioindicators of environmental pollution for decades.
The cost of blackouts in Europe
The cost of blackouts in Europe
In January 2005, a severe storm swept across Northern Europe, from Ireland to Russia. More than 500,000 homes were left without power, with Denmark and Southern Sweden being particularly hard-hit.
Polar zone ozone and UV exposure, under closer scrutiny than ever
Polar zone ozone and UV exposure, under closer scrutiny than ever
Global changes, such as climate warming and stratospheric ozone depletion, are increasingly noticeable. Therefore, there is a need for scientists to have reliable information about atmospheric and stratospheric processes .
Forecasting pollen in the atmosphere
Forecasting pollen in the atmosphere
Runny nose, watery eyes and cough; these are the symptoms associated with respiratory allergies. About 20% to 30% of Europeans suffer from some type of respiratory allergy , according to the European Federation of Allergy and Airway Diseases Patients Associations .
Saving the blue waters pouring into the Black Sea
Saving the blue waters pouring into the Black Sea
The Black Sea is known for its severe environmental degradation. Some signs of recovery have been observed in the last years, albeit on a small scale . Scientists believe that it is still possible to limit the negative environmental impact.
Solving the climate change vulnerabilities jigsaw
Solving the climate change vulnerabilities jigsaw
Climate change and socio-economic factors are interdependent . If agriculture intensifies in a particular region, that would have an impact on water sector, resulting from the irrigation use.
Greener milk: how to make cow’s nitrogen intake efficient
Greener milk: how to make cow’s nitrogen intake efficient
The amount of nitrogen that is excreted by livestock is directly proportional to the amount it is fed . This is according to Chris Reynolds a researcher in nutritional physiology of ruminants  at  the University of Reading , UK.
Purifying sludge through oxygen-based digestion
Purifying sludge through oxygen-based digestion
Dealing with sludge is one of the biggest issues of waste water treatment.
Nanosilver in textiles – friend or foe?
Nanosilver in textiles – friend or foe?
Silver has been used as biocide for medical purposes since the 1930s. Today nanometric size silver particles are used to prevent unpleasant odour caused by bacteria in sport shirts or socks .
Europe fends off alien species
Europe fends off alien species
It may look incredibly innocent, but the harlequin ladybird, a stowaway onboard fruit and flower consignments from Asia, is on a ‘most unwanted’ list.
Bacteria to spot pollution
Bacteria to spot pollution
Natural sensory system such as bacteria engineered to detect pollution and placed in a self-contained portable box could be the most effective way to track pollutants .
Rescuing Swiss Heritage
Rescuing Swiss Heritage
Scientists, monument preservationists and craftsmen aim at ensuring conservation of the region’s architectural heritage also by optimising energy efficiency.
Niklaus Ledergerber: "Reviving Strickbau wood log houses"
Niklaus Ledergerber: "Reviving Strickbau wood log houses"
Niklaus Ledergerber, president of the cultural heritage preservation commission of the Swiss canton of Appenzell, is an expert in local building history. He tells youris.
Whipping Swiss cottages into green shipshape
Whipping Swiss cottages into green shipshape
Scientists aim to create a sustainable future for the Strickbau building technique , typical of the Swiss Appenzell region. The challenge is to use modern features respecting historic architecture to bring them back from the verge of extinction.
Plastic waste set in concrete
Plastic waste set in concrete
In Europe more than 12 million tonnes of mixed plastic waste are dumped on landfills every year, according to a report from NUMIX scientists. The recycling of plastic into usable products has proven difficult .
Martin Beniston: “We need to improve the management of water resources to avoid potential conflicts in the future”
Martin Beniston: “We need to improve the management of water resources to avoid potential conflicts in the future”
ACQWA (Assessing Climate Impacts on the Quantity and quality of WAter) is an ongoing large-scale integrating project with 35 partners, funded under the EU seventh Framework Programme, which began in 2008 and is expected to be concluded by 2013.