The ENHANCE Alliance is a network of ten leading European technical universities (Chalmers, TU Delft, Gdańsk Tech, NTNU, Polimi, RWTH Aachen, TU Berlin, UPV, WUT, and ETH Zurich), founded as part of the European Universities Initiative. ETH Zurich joined the Alliance in November 2022 (see ETH news).

My first assignment as the ENHANCE Core Officer at ETH Zurich took place in May 2022 at the Leadership Meeting in Warsaw, following the decision by ETH Zurich’s Executive Board to join the ENHANCE Alliance. The focus there was the proposal for the four-year ENHANCE+ project. Following intensive brainstorming and negotiations, my colleagues and I visited the botanical garden. Inspired by the exotic plants and the colourful flowers, we reflected: ETH’s engagement in ENHANCE will flourish if the institution, its students and staff all benefit from it. ENHANCE should become a garden of innovative education, where ideas can grow.

As the Core Officer, I had the privilege of being one of the gardeners. Among other things, my task was to prepare Rector Günther Dissertori, and Vice-Rector Jan Vermant, for the governance meetings and to accompany them. When ten universities sit down to negotiate, there will be twenty different opinions. Nevertheless, we always managed to reach compromises because we are all working towards the same goal: to prepare our students for their future challenges in business and society. I experienced that ETH’s commitment in the European Higher Education Area is highly valued. ETH is often looked upon as a role model. Of course, we can also learn from our partners, who are pursuing many initiatives, such as digitalisation, with just as much drive and innovation.

The seed of ENHANCE has been sown. It is growing and the first buds are beginning to bloom. Thanks to Julia Wussler and her colleagues, there are now more opportunities for short-term mobility, which enables students to learn and collaborate in an international context. Thanks to project funding from Movetia, the National Agency for Exchange and Mobility, students have access to scholarships. ETH faculty also contributes to attractive learning opportunities, such as the Summer School in Transdisciplinary or in Urban Planning.

The entire Swiss higher education sector benefits from the European Universities Initiative. We exploit synergies in the digitalisation of administrative processes. Florian Hilfinger from RWTH Aachen and David Sichau from ETH Zurich jointly lead the IT Infrastructure & Services work package. They have carried out a feasibility study on the use of verifiable credentials for digital data transfer between universities. We have shared these findings with swissuniversities and launched a national project for issuing digital credentials.

The benefits for ETH go beyond academic collaboration. It is the many personal connections between people that bring significant individual and institutional value – they are the “fertiliser” for trust, ongoing collaboration and development. I now hand over the “rake and hoe” to my successor, Anna-Katharina Lautenschütz. I would like to express my gratitude for all the wonderful encounters with the people who contribute to the garden of ENHANCE, ensuring that it continues to flourish and bear fruit.

To mark the upcoming International Women’s Day on 8 March 2026, and inspired by this year’s theme Give to Gain, we are shining a light on some of the remarkable women whose perspectives and experiences enrich the ETH Ambassadors blog. By giving our attention to their stories, we gain a deeper appreciation of the curiosity, creativity and commitment that shape our community.

Below, we invite you to revisit a selection of their posts. Each one offers a unique window into the people and ideas that make ETH Zurich a vibrant, diverse and forward‑looking place.

1. NASA JPL: Building a Researcher in Turbulent Times

“I can confidently say that during my time at JPL, I grew both as a researcher and as a person.” In this article, Tenzin Tsultrim shares how a four-month internship at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory shaped her. 

As part of the inaugural Space Systems Master’s programme at ETH Zurich, launched by former NASA Head of Science Thomas Zurbuchen, Tenzin stepped straight into the heart of planetary research. From numerically simulating Venusquakes to field-testing infrasound sensors, she contributed to work that could one day help detect seismic activity on Venus.

At the same time, she witnessed the realities of turbulent times in the U.S., including visa delays, budget cuts, and uncertainty at JPL. What stayed with her most was the resilience, humility, and optimism of the people around her.

Read more: NASA JPL: Building a Researcher in Turbulent Times

2. Trust, Transparency, and the EU AI Act

In the piece as captured by Viktoria Österdahl, Liisa-Ly Pakosta, Estonia’s Minister of Justice and Digital Affairs, and ETH Professor Effy Vayena, a leading voice in digital ethics, explore how trust, transparency, and practical regulation are shaping AI governance in Europe.

Drawing on Estonia’s digital-first model and Switzerland’s sectoral approach, they discuss the implementation challenges of the EU AI Act, the importance of citizen data ownership, accountability, and clear limits for AI systems, and the need to balance innovation with protection. The conversation highlights that building trustworthy AI requires courage, cross-border learning, and regulatory frameworks that earn public confidence while keeping pace with rapid technological change.

Read more: Trust, Transparency, and the EU AI Act

3. From Pilot to Practice: Building Plant-Based Value Chains at ETH Zurich

In the blog piece, Daniela Hoffmann shares how she is leading the transdisciplinary Plant4Value project at ETH Zurich to accelerate the shift toward sustainable, plant-based food systems in Switzerland. 

By bringing together 24 partners across the entire value chain, from farmers to policymakers, the project pilots practical solutions such as farmer support schemes, technological innovation, and demand-generation strategies, all rigorously evaluated for their social, economic, and environmental impact. Hosted at the Albert Einstein School of Public Policy, Plant4Value demonstrates how collaboration between science, policy, and practice can unlock scalable pathways to a more resilient food future.

Read more: From Pilot to Practice: Building Plant-Based Value Chains at ETH Zurich

4. From Olympian to Cookbook Author

What does it mean to balance excellence in sport, academia, and beyond? Few people embody that question more fully than Emma Pooley, ETH alumna, Olympic silver medalist, world-class endurance athlete, and now engineer and author.

In this piece based on a recent We Are ETH podcast, Emma Pooley shares her extraordinary path from Cambridge mathematics student to elite endurance athlete, a PhD in engineering at ETH Zurich, and authoring and publishing a cookbook – Oat and Joy. 

Read more: From Olympian to Cookbook Author

Want to listen to more content instead? We have curated a list of all the women guests of the We Are ETH Podcast.

We are four students with backgrounds in Chemical, Computer & Electrical Engineering as well as Computer Science, and we’d love to share our unforgettable internship experience in Japan. Through a collaboration between Marui Group in Nakano, Tokyo and ETH Studios, we were given the opportunity to explore the intersection of culture, sustainability, and design innovation.

Our journey began on June 27th, 2025, when we arrived at the Marui headquarters, jet-lagged but excited for what was ahead.

27.06–28.06 (Carla):

Our first day at Marui HQ kicked off with warm welcomes and a wave of introductions. Ms. Ibun, our project leader fluent in Japanese and English, guided us through a tour of the building. We had the honor of meeting Mr. Aoi, CEO of Marui Group, who shared his inspiring vision: a platform to connect international visitors with “Hidden Japan,” beyond the well-known paths of Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka.

On Day 2, we met Sybilla Patrizia, an Austrian filmmaker and the design director of the project. Her passion for local craftsmanship and storytelling brought our mission into focus. We explored how the SUKI platform could support sustainable tourism and empower regional artisans. The day concluded with a serene Zen ritual, tea ceremony, and a reflective conversation with a local priest about the tourist experience.

29.06–30.06 (Marlon):

We took the Shinkansen to Okayama and visited Kurashiki, a beautiful Edo-era town. Our goal: to interview tourists about why and how they discovered the town. Surprisingly, few foreign tourists were present, but the interviews gave us deep insights. We closed the day with dinner alongside our Marui friends.

The next day, we toured Marugo, a historic tabi shoe factory, guided by CEO Fujiki Shige-san. Watching artisans at work, and trying it ourselves, was unforgettable. We lunched with the staff and ended the day at Nishigawa Terrace, Fujiki-san’s sustainable restaurant complex. The food and heartfelt conversations reminded us how unmatched Japanese hospitality is.

01.07–02.07 (Gilles):

Day 5 was our free day. Marlon hit Nintendo World at 6 a.m., Gilles explored Kamakura, Carla wandered Kyoto, and Pierre returned to Tokyo. Day 6 was our first full-on workday: Carla and Pierre worked from HQ, Marlon and Gilles from a café. We aligned on our vision, outlined our pitches, and dove into development. The day ended with karaoke in Shinjuku that went from “just one hour” to “singing ‘til late”, the perfect team bonding moment.

 03.07–04.07 (Pierre):

Day 7 began with a creative brainstorm at Marui HQ. We shared key insights, refined our ideas, and practiced our final pitches. It was intense but energizing.

On the final day, we said goodbye to Gilles, who prerecorded his part. Presentation time came fast: the board, the SUKI team, and the CEO were in the room. No pressure! Carla and Pierre kicked it off, followed by Marlon’s pitch with virtual-Gilles via Facetime. The Q&A was rich, the feedback rewarding. We wrapped it all up with an apero and one last onsen + shabu-shabu night before heading back to Zurich.

As the year comes to a close and the holiday lights begin to glow across Zurich and other cities, we take a moment to look back at the stories that shaped 2025 and inspired many on the ETH Ambassadors Blog. It has been a year defined by innovative scientific research, bold ideas, invaluable internships, global partnerships, and inspiring voices.

From quantum connection between Switzerland and India, to improving public policy through science, to trees revealing the secrets of mountains, to talk on sleep research, to student adventures across Southeast Asia… Our top-performing posts show what makes ETH Zurich truly special and unique: a spirit of exploration grounded in science, enriched by people, and connected to the world.

Whether you are curling up with a warm cup of tea, sipping a festive glühwein at a Christmas market, relaxing on a flight home or simply enjoying a quiet moment between the holidays, re-visit a few of our 2025 Holiday Reading List. A curated selection of the year’s most-read ETH Ambassadors Blog posts, they will help you re-live the moments that made us pause, wonder, reflect, giggle and smile, and spark your curiosity for the year ahead. Happy reading, and happy holidays!

1. Strengthening Global Quantum Connections: India and ETH Zurich Join Forces

“The collaboration between ETH Zurich and Karnataka reflects a shared vision. Quantum technology has immense potential to shape the future of computing, communication, and sensing. By connecting leading research ecosystems, we accelerate both scientific discovery and real-world impact.” — Andreas Wallraff

This post celebrates a milestone year for ETH Zurich’s global partnerships as we deepened cooperation with leading Indian institutions to advance quantum research. From shared projects to a jointly built vision for future technologies, this collaboration embodies the best of science diplomacy.

Read more: Strengthening Global Quantum Connections

2. Trees as Sensors: A New Tool for Slope Movement Detection

“Curiosity can take you far beyond the classroom — sometimes straight into the forest.” — Lorenz Hübel

This beautifully written piece by ETH Zurich mathematics student Lorenz Hübel captivated readers with its blend of science, storytelling and scenery. During his internship at SLF Davos, he uncovered how tree rings hold centuries of geological insight — and how nature itself can become a scientific partner.

Read more: Trees as Sensors

3. How Can Science Truly Inform and Improve Public Policy?

“Would we be better off if we had seven Nobel laureates in the Federal Council?” — Walter Thurnherr

This lively discussion at the ETH Global Lecture struck a chord in a year when public trust and scientific evidence were more important than ever. Professors Tobias Schmidt and Walter Thurnherr emphasized that the key ingredients of good policy are not just data — but humility, dialogue, and collaboration.

Read more: Improving Public Policy Through Science

4. Sleep Well – Knowing How!

“Sleep is a human right. Deprivation is torture.” — Caroline Lustenberger

In this beautifully written reflection by Charles Bara, readers dove into a talk that reframed sleep not as a luxury, but as an essential foundation of health. Drawing from more than 15 years of neuroscience research, Professor Caroline Lustenberger explained how our routines, stress levels, environment, and modern habits shape the quality of our rest and why understanding the brain’s rhythms matters more than quick fixes.

Read more: Sleep Well – Knowing How!

5. CERAWeek 2025: Navigating the Energy Landscape in an Era of Change

“Net-zero requires navigating uncertainty with clarity, courage, and cooperation.”

Written by Ayca Duran, Fiona Kriwan and Giacomo Matteo Mastroddi, this report from one of the world’s most influential energy conferences made waves. The authors unpacked global debates on energy security, clean technologies, and the evolving role of ETH Zurich in shaping the international energy conversation.

Read more: CERAWeek 2025

6. How to Avoid MESTakes in South-East Asia: A Student Advice

“Cultural awareness isn’t a detail — it’s a superpower.” — Giuseppe Nappi

Giuseppe’s practical, witty and insightful guide quickly became one of our most-read student stories of the year. Packed with advice on navigating cultural differences, embracing openness, and avoiding common missteps, it resonated with anyone preparing to travel, study or work in Southeast Asia.

Read more: Avoiding MESTakes in SE Asia

Looking Forward to 2026

As we wrap up this vibrant year, we are reminded that the ETH community thrives when we share our experiences — from labs and lecture halls to conferences, mountain trails, and cultures around the world.

Thank you to all the contributors who brought their stories to life, and to our global readers who engaged, reflected, and carried these insights forward.

We look forward to an exciting 2026 filled with new discoveries, new voices, and new connections.

Until then, enjoy the break, stay curious, and happy holidays from the ETH Ambassadors team!

In an era of turbulence, policymakers and scientists must collaborate to strengthen multilateralism and rebuild trust in science. At the UN-ETH Forum, UN policymakers and ETH researchers came together to drive this agenda forwards.

On 20-21 October 2025, ETH Zurich hosted the inaugural UN-ETH Forum, a two-day conference held under the theme “Science and Policy in Turbulent Times.” The event assembled policymakers, practitioners, and researchers from both institutions and beyond. Panels and workshops across three thematic tracks – Strengthening Global Peace and Security, Ensuring Responsible Digitalization, Reaching the Sustainable Development Goals – explored how science and policy can work together to address the world’s most pressing challenges.

The Forum is part of the UN-ETH Partnership, which was launched in October 2023. At the opening plenary of the Forum, Professor Joël Mesot, President of ETH Zurich, and Guy Ryder, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Policy, reaffirmed their shared commitment to strengthening collaboration between their organisations and underscored the urgency of this task.

Over the past two years, the Partnership has moved from intention to action, with several new programmes having been created and launched. The UN-ETH Incubator, a programme that sources use cases from UN teams and pairs them with relevant ETH research groups, was launched earlier this year. Five new project-based collaborations were presented at the Forum, along with six additional proposals from the Incubator showcased at a dedicated poster session. 

Another important programme is the UN-ETH Student Team, an extra-curricular initiative that connects ETH students with UN practitioners to collaborate on real-world projects. Launched in summer 2025, it has already initiated one project – a data-analysis platform developed in collaboration with the UN Digital Library – and is preparing to launch two more. 

The Forum attracted considerable interest. Policymakers and practitioners from UN agencies headquartered in New York, Rome, Quito, and Addis Ababa joined counterparts from the Swiss government and from Swiss-based institutions. From the scientific community, early-career researchers from ETH Zurich, Cambridge, King’s College London, and several Swiss universities participated in the debates and presented their latest findings—spanning topics such as food security, artificial intelligence in mental health, and sustainable urban development.

A highlight of the event was the level of interest and engagement of students and young researchers. Members of the UN-ETH Student Team hosted a session with UN and ETH representatives to showcase how students can get involved and what to expect from working at the science-policy interface. Workshops such as the one led by the Swiss Delegation to the FAO World Food Forum Youth Assembly further underlined the importance of youth engagement in shaping sustainable futures. Overall, the UN-ETH Forum helped build momentum for new and ongoing collaborations, forged fresh ties between science and policy communities, and created a strong sense of common purpose. Moving from intention to action to impact, we are all curious to see what the newly initiated collaborations will deliver.  

To find out more about the UN-ETH Partnership and get involved, visit the “Engage” tab at https://un-eth.ethz.ch

Get to know the Center for Security Studies at https://css.ethz.ch/en/

In order to understand how I, a Master student in mathematics, ended up working with real trees (not just the mathematical objects, we have to go back in time to my very first lecture at ETH Zurich. The subject was “Mathematics of Data Science”, and I attended it by coincidence, just because I was told it should be amazing – and it was! But not only was the lecture great, but I also discovered that this topic had exactly the flavour of mathematics I loved.

However, much to the dismay of the computer science students, the lecture stuck strictly to its title, meaning we only learned about the MATHEMATICS behind Data Science and never applied the techniques to real data. When I saw an ad for a short data science internship at the SLF (Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research), I got immediately excited. I wanted to use my newly acquired knowledge on real-world data, and, to my even greater excitement, the data would be in the field of environmental science, a field that I’ve always been interested in. So, just a few mails, a short video call and six months later I was sitting in a train that climbed its way up to the mountain town of Davos for the start of my internship.

The project I would spend the next five weeks working on, was about detecting slow movements of mountain slopes by using tree ring data. You might wonder why we are not using a more straightforward approach, like remote sensing techniques, and instead work with trees? These are wonderful questions!

 The first thing one has to know about slope movements is that they are processes that happen over hundreds to thousands of years, whereas remote sensing data is often only available for the last decade.

Therefore, the available data covers a too short period of time to understand these very long-term processes of slope movements well. And that is exactly where trees come in! Trees are widely available on slopes in Europe and can be centuries old. So, if we could use trees as sensors for slope movements, this would extend our data from just a decade to potentially centuries.

And how can we use trees as sensors for slope movements?

The idea behind this approach is that naturally trees always try to grow straight upwards. However, if the slope beneath the trees moves, this tilts the trees and to stand straight again, the trees grow asymmetrically in the following years. This asymmetry can be measured by comparing the differences in tree ring width from two different directions of the trees (don’t worry, there were no trees cut down to collect the data, only two small cores were collected per tree. Sounds like a crazy idea. It is! But it was successfully used by other research groups to detect rapid slope movements. Which leads us to the question: Can we do the same for slow slope movements?

During my five-week journey to answer this question, I tried to apply many of the techniques learned during my course of Data Science. I learned more than I ever thought I would about bark beetles and polar expeditions from chats during lunch. Unfortunately, regardless of what I tried, I could not find a clear relationship between the tree ring data and slow slope movements. However, unexpectedly, I discovered a more rapid event in the data that turned out to coincide perfectly with a documented mudflow in the corresponding area. So, even though I could not answer the initial research question, we could prove again that the method works in the setting of more rapid events.

In addition to my project itself, I had a wonderful summer time in Davos with many after-work hikes and bike tours, I got to know so many nice people from different fields and talking with them really broadened my horizon of what research apart from mathematics can be like. Great thanks go to my supervisors Dr. Alessandra Bottero and Dr. Andrea Manconi who gave me the opportunity to be part of their team and ETH Studio for enabling me this enriching experience! 

And if you got curious, then give it a try and apply as well😊!

ETH Studios

ETH Studios are global innovation outposts where ETH students tackle real-world challenges alongside companies, researchers, and startups. Whether in New York, Heilbronn, Davos, or at the experimental StudioX, students gain entrepreneurial and interdisciplinary experience while contributing to sustainable and tech-driven solutions.

Contact Francesca Caggiula at eth-studios@ethz.ch if you are interested in more information on and about the ETH Studios.

It all started with a tiny chip making its way into the biology laboratory and into my curiosity as a bioengineer: a microfluidic chip. This small device manipulates fluids through microscopic channels. Within this chip, I cultured human cells under flow and pressure, giving life to an organ-on-a-chip. This technology mimics the functions of an organ in the body. From 2018 to 2023, I developed these in vitro (cell-based) models, which, alongside in silico (computer-simulated) models, have the potential to address certain research questions without requiring the use of animals. In Switzerland, animal studies are permitted only when no suitable alternative exists. For me, advancing such alternative methods felt like pursuing sustainability in the life sciences by seeking innovative, ethical, and responsible solutions for both research and animals.

Working at the 3Rs interface today, I design training concepts so that Replace, Reduce, Refine becomes a routine principle for the use of animals in research. The role brings me into conversation with researchers, regulators, and the public sphere, and has confirmed a truth I already sensed as a non-animal method developer: evidence matters, but rules, incentives, and societal values often determine whether good ideas and promising technologies truly take root. Navigating this multi-actor landscape sparked my curiosity about how evidence informs decisions, and how technology and policy can jointly shape more sustainable futures. This curiosity inspired a personal initiative to enrol in the continuing education programme CAS ETH in Technology and Public Policy: Policy Process in Spring 2025.

When the programme began, I immediately delved into a rich module in political science. I started to understand how decisions take shape across different levels, mapping Swiss, European, and global governance, and revealing how policies are made. I could connect the dots in the context of drug testing on animal models, reflecting on how Swissmedic (Swiss Agency for Therapeutic Products), the EMA (European Medicines Agency), and the WHO (World Health Organization) function and intersect. This perspective now helps me identify where to monitor international developments and regulatory changes.

As the programme unfolded, I found myself exploring sectors far beyond health, such as mobility and energy. I could recognise familiar patterns in how technology, society, markets, and the state interact. Why do some innovations flourish while others stall? I realised that context, incentives, and beliefs, especially in ethically charged topics like animal use in research, often set the pace. A class on long-term socio-technical transitions gave me a new lens to recognise the signs of change: how technological, social, and institutional shifts gradually align before a transformation truly unfolds. This was an eye-opener, helping me analyse the ongoing adoption of alternative technologies to animal models and reminding me that change often builds quietly, long before it becomes visible.

These lessons resonate in my daily work, where I see firsthand how change is cumulative and built through many small steps by dedicated minds and hands driven by a commitment to more humane science. Thanks to the programme’s focus on stakeholder engagement and communication, I’ve refined how to listen, analyse, and translate between communities: technology developers, end-users, policymakers, and the wider public – each with its own hopes, language, and pace.

One of my favourite parts of the programme was designing a public participation process on animal use in research. It challenged me to think not just as a scientist or educator, but as a facilitator of dialogue. Together with my peers, we imagined a deliberative space where citizens and experts could learn from one another, carefully considering transparency, expectations, and power dynamics. The key takeaway stayed with me: participation should be a two-way learning journey, not a technocratic exercise.

Reflecting on this step into the policy world, I highly value the CAS as an enabler for understanding how technology and policy interact in a world where both technological breakthroughs and sustainability challenges grow increasingly complex. Just as in biomedical and health research, many areas of public policy today are deeply shaped by scientific and technical knowledge, calling for more “bilinguals” who can navigate both worlds with fluency and empathy. I see such interdisciplinary learning as essential to help close the loop between discovery and society, fostering evidence-informed dialogue and strengthening our collective ability to understand options and make thoughtful choices.

This year, we are incredibly excited to co-organise the 9th annual Food Day at ETH Zurich. Since its launch in 2016, the event has become a dear tradition, bringing together our diverse community to tackle one of the greatest challenges of our time: building sustainable food systems.

As part of the World Food System Center (WFSC), we witness daily the breadth and depth of food-system-related research at ETH Zurich and its partner institutions – ranging from agricultural sciences and policy design to food engineering, nutrition, and beyond. Part of our mission at the WFSC is to create connection points that allow this pioneering research to generate real-world impact. Food Day, our flagship event, is one of these important bridges: a day where academic insights move from paper to dialogue.

A Crossroads for Our Planet

We stand at a critical moment. Either we change the way we produce and consume food, or we risk missing the UN’s 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. That urgency inspired this year’s theme, “Planting Healthier Nutrition,” underscoring the necessity of interdisciplinary collaboration to tackle this complex challenge.

For Olivia, whose background lies in sustainability consulting and communications, connecting scientific knowledge to a broader understanding feels essential. For Billie, trained in food science and with a professional journey focused on healthy, sustainable diets and plant-based innovation, it’s about making the sustainable choice the easy and delicious one.

Together, we wanted to design an event that goes beyond presentations – a space for interaction and co-creation. We envisioned an atmosphere where an industry representative, a policymaker, a researcher, and a student could all roll up their sleeves and exchange ideas on equal ground.

From Research to Recipe: Highlights of the Day

By leveraging diverse formats – from interactive workshops to insightful plenaries – we aim to ensure the event, centred around food systems research, is both accessible and relevant to the audience’s daily lives. This year’s workshops – exploring planetary health and plant-based diets, nutrition and longevity, sustainable plant protection, and the complexities of the cocoa value chain – filled in no time, a clear sign of the growing appetite for change.

At the heart of the day lies dialogue. Our Networking Lunch, curated and prepared by Daizy, will turn food itself into a catalyst for exchange. Each dish embodies the principles of sustainable gastronomy – proving that what nourishes us can also be good for the planet.

The Plenary Session showcases pioneering research from across our 50 WFSC member professors at ETH Zurich, on the topics of smart farming, future foods, and nutrition. Their work reflects the depth of ETH’s engagement in shaping more sustainable food systems. We’re especially looking forward to the keynote by Prof. Frank Ewert, who will explore how Living Labs can drive collaboration and real-world solutions for resilient future food.

The Poster Networking Session invites participants to meet the scientists behind the research. Over coffee and cake, guests can connect directly with researchers and vote for the best poster. And one of our favourite new additions: the Cook the Science – Food Day Special Edition. We’re joining forces with Professor Thomas Michaels’s lecture series, featuring our member Professor Patrick Rühs and chef Michaela Frank. They will uncover the fascinating science behind the structuring and cooking of plant proteins. This is the kind of story that resonates with a broad audience because it translates complex ETH research into an accessible, universal language: cooking.

Planting the Seeds of Change

From living labs to lab kitchens, this 9^th edition of Food Day celebrates collaboration and exchange, curiosity, and the courage to rethink how we feed the world. For us, organizing Food Day is more than planning an event – it’s about connecting people who care deeply about change.

We can’t wait to see the ideas, partnerships, and inspirations that take root on Wednesday 29 October, at ETH Zurich – and to continue cooking up a sustainable future, together.

Registrations are now open!

Workshops: Find links in the program below.

Plenary Session & Networking Poster Session: Register here.

Cook the Science Food Day Special Edition: Register here.

“I agree to disagree” is a common phrase among policy experts, though at the ETH Global Lecture on Improving Public Policy Through Science on 7^th October, there was remarkable alignment on one key point: bridging the worlds of science and politics is both essential and challenging.

Attending the Lecture was both enlightening and thought-provoking. The event brought together Walter Thurnherr, former Federal Chancellor of Switzerland, and Professor Tobias Schmidt, Director of the Institute of Science, Technology and Policy at ETH Zurich, in a conversation moderated by Julie Cantalou, former Co-Secretary General of the Swiss Green Liberal Party, whose background made the discussion especially relevant and insightful. Together, they explored one of the most crucial and complex questions of our time:

How can science truly inform and improve public policy?

From the very start, it was clear that bridging the worlds of science and politics requires more than just good intentions, it demands mutual understanding, patience, and trust. Thurnherr reminded us that while “science goes for truth,” policymakers often aim for what aligns with the majority’s will. This inherent tension, he argued, doesn’t make collaboration impossible, in fact it simply makes it essential. Without scientific evidence, policies risk losing direction; without political pragmatism, science risks losing relevance.

Professor Schmidt provided a complementary perspective, emphasizing that public policy is not a sprint but a marathon. Building trust between scientists and policymakers takes time, consistency, and empathy. He encouraged researchers to communicate without jargon, to make their findings understandable to those outside their fields, and to create long-term “policy cycles” that ensure science is continuously integrated into decision-making. His message was clear: it is not just about producing knowledge, but it is about making knowledge usable.

The discussion also introduced the exciting vision behind the new ETH School of Public Policy to be launched soon, led by Schmidt, which aims to become a leading hub for dialogue between research and governance. Its mission is threefold: to educate the next generation of scientists about policymaking, to conduct cutting-edge research that supports evidence-based decisions, and to foster ongoing dialogues between academia and government. Thurnherr described it as an ambitious but vital initiative – one that will require not just more science, but structures, incentives, and strong institutional support for those willing to operate at the science-policy interface. He noted that many of the world’s challenges, from managing AI and digital transformation to addressing complex national and international challenges, are deeply rooted in technology, making ETH’s role more relevant than ever.

One of the most striking reflections came when Thurnherr posed a question to the audience:

“Would we be better off if we had seven Nobel prize laureates in the Federal Council (Switzerland) to solve the problems of public policy?”

His point was profound – while science provides facts and evidence, policymaking also involves ethics, values, and societal priorities. Both worlds must work hand in hand, respecting their different but complementary roles.

As I listened, I found myself reflecting on the importance of communication and humility in this process. It’s not enough to have the right data; what truly matters is how we convey it, how we listen, and how we collaborate. The future of good governance lies not only in innovation and technology but also in building trust between experts and citizens.

My key takeaway from this inspiring evening is that evidence-informed policymaking is, at its core, about people — scientists who step beyond their laboratories, policymakers who are open to listening, and institutions like ETH Zurich that foster spaces for genuine dialogue. Thurnherr also reminded us that ETH’s original mission in the 19th century — to educate engineers who directly served the needs of the country — remains just as relevant today. Back then, science and policy were closely intertwined, and perhaps it’s time to reclaim that spirit. As he aptly noted, it is often the challenges themselves that bring science and politics together — and through that exchange, meaningful solutions can emerge.

Leaving the event, I felt hopeful. ETH Zurich is not only advancing scientific excellence but also nurturing a culture of responsibility, one where knowledge serves the common good, and where collaboration between science and society is seen as a shared journey toward a better future. I found myself reflecting on the role ETH Zurich can play in this transformation. With its long-standing reputation as a trusted source of knowledge and a culture rooted in integrity and innovation, ETH is uniquely positioned to lead the way in connecting science with the societal good.

Check out the pictures from the event here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/meeteth/albums/72177720329550116/

And in case you missed, watch the talk here:

How can science make policy more effective? What is science diplomacy? How can policymakers engage with academia?

These are the questions explored by the ETH Policy Fellowship, which also reflect the mission of the future School of Public Policy, which ETH will launch next week. Science strengthens policy by grounding decisions in evidence and reducing uncertainty. Science diplomacy uses research and collaboration as tools to build trust and address global challenges across borders. In the spirit of knowledge transfer in the service of society, ETH Zurich aims to bridge the gap between researchers and policymakers through programmes such as the ETH Policy Fellowship, thereby helping them to address societal challenges through sustainable, effective, and evidence-​informed solutions. As Marco puts it:

“Now more than ever, we need strong bridges between science and policy – this programme helps to build them.”

More information about our Policy Fellowship programme can be found here: https://policy.ethz.ch/en/policymakers/policy-fellowship.html