Technical Visits

Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research (University of Berne)

Meeting point: 07:45 at railway station “Interlaken West”, platform 1. Google maps link

Time: 08:00 Departure from railway station “Interlaken West”

Duration of visit: 09:00-12:30 (incl. Lunch)

Logistical note:
For participants planning to travel home that evening, Bern is in the direction of Zürich airport. If you want to bring your luggage, you can deposit your bag at the OCCR. The outward journey to Bern is organised for the participants. If someone wants to travel back to Interlaken after the Technical Visit, then this person must arrange his/her own ticket.

The OCCR is a strategic research centre of the University of Bern and a renowned leading institution for climate and climate impact research. The OCCR brings together ca. 250 researchers from fourteen Departments of five Faculties. The OCCR carries out interdisciplinary research that is at the forefront of climate science. The focus lies on fundamental and applied climate change research and related impacts on ecosystems, ecosystem services, economies and societies. Besides world-leading research, the OCCR also contributes to the science-policy dialogue, policy advice, education at all levels and outreach, and engages in Public Private Partnerships (e. g. with the insurance sector). Researchers of the OCCR assume sustained leadership in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) and in Global Research Networks under Future Earth.

The program foresees a 3-hour visit at the OCCR with an introduction by the Director at the beginning, followed by a visit to different laboratories and a small lunch at the end:

Group A:
Polar ice core facility at Climate and Environmental Physics - Projects in Greenland and Antarctica

Group B:
Mobiliar Lab for Natural Risks - An example of a Public Private Partnership (University and Insurance)

Group C:
Climate research for climate litigation - The role of interdisciplinary climate science in climate litigation: the case of “Senior Women for Climate Protection in Switzerland (European Court of Human Rights)”

Living Lab of the Wyss Academy for Nature (Bernese Highlands)

Meeting point: 08:15 at parking in front of entrance Nord of Kursaal (on the river side). Google maps link

Time: 08:15 - max. 14:00 back in Interlaken (lunch included)

Duration of visit: ca. 6h (incl. lunch)

Description of visit:
The Wyss Academy for Nature at the University of Bern works on developing, testing, and scaling up innovative solutions that advance nature conservation and human wellbeing at the same time and thus enable systemic change. To this end, the Wyss Academy engages with a network of stakeholders from research, civil society and both the public and private sector. In four regional hubs in South America, East Africa, Southeast Asia, and Switzerland, a living lab approach brings global solutions to local landscapes and creates opportunities to move from insight to action.

The Wyss Academy's Hub Bern is implementing 15 projects in close collaboration with the Canton of Bern to promote sustainable solutions, including the "Climate neutral Region Oberland-Ost" project. This project is supporting 28 communes in the Bernese Oberland on their way to net zero through a living lab approach. The project has established a shared vision and development priorities with local stakeholders, and is now working with partners to implement concrete, innovative projects. Another focus is placed on stakeholder networking and awareness raising.

The program will begin with an introduction to the project, covering its background, approach, the role of science, and the results of the first project phase. This will be followed by a visit to a concrete implementation project in the Bernese Oberland, where the participants will learn how the project is creating impact on the ground. They will also have the opportunity to exchange with regional stakeholders and the different project partners. After lunch at a local restaurant, the program will conclude with the return to Interlaken by coach.

Research Station on the Jungfraujoch (elevation of 3,463 metres above sea level)

Meeting point: 07:15 at at the fountain in the Casino Kursaal’s park

Time: 08:04 Departure from railway station “Interlaken Ost”

Duration of visit: 9h (incl. travel and lunch)

Description of visit:
The Sphinx Observatory is an astronomical observatory located above the Jungfraujoch. It is named after the Sphinx, a rocky summit on which it is located. At 3,571 m (11,716 ft) above mean sea level, it is one of the highest observatories in the world. Accessible to the public, it is also the second highest observation deck in Switzerland. The mountain top has been tunneled to fit an elevator which ascends to the observatory from the Jungfraujoch railway station, the highest such train station in Europe.

The observatory plays an important role in a range of long-term experiments; it serves as a solar spectrometer for the Institute of Astrophysics and Geophysics at the University of Liège, Belgium, and plays a key role in a LIDAR experiment conducted by the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland. In 1949, nuclear emulsion plates exposed to cosmic rays in the observatory provided first precise evidence for the existence of the charged K-meson

The program foresees a max. 3-hour visit to the Research Station and to the Sphinx-Observatory. The visit is followed by a light lunch at the Jungfraujoch Restaurant and free time for individual touristic tours.

Note: For participation in this visit appropriate gear (winter jacket and shoes with a good profile) are necessary. Due to the high altitude, this visit can be strenuous for the cardiovascular system (especially in combination with a flight shortly after). The SNSF decline all responsibility in the event of discomfort during the excursion.