Highlights 2022
Sustainable food systems, artificial intelligence, and supporting students, researchers and entrepreneurs: your support helped us to make advances in numerous areas at ETH in 2022.
Milestone for new centre for innovation and creativity
Plans for a new centre on ETH’s Hönggerberg campus took a major step forward thanks to a generous donation from UBS, which forms part of ETH’s strategic partnership with the bank. The building will be a hub for interaction and collaboration for creative students, ETH’s entrepreneurial community, industry and wider society. Thanks to the commitment of primary partner UBS, as well as several other organisations and numerous private donors, ETH is getting ever closer to making this vision a reality.
Read moreTracking down the origins of life
ETH has opened the “Centre for Origin and Prevalence of Life” (COPL), a new research and teaching centre that focuses on these areas both here on Earth and beyond. Led by Nobel Prize winner Didier Queloz, its more than 40 research groups across five departments are exploring some of humanity’s most fundamental questions. The NOMIS Foundation is supporting the initiative over the coming six years by launching the new NOMIS-ETH Fellowship Programme.
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Unlocking the past and the future
Mathematician and biostatistician Tanja Stadler answers biological questions by reconstructing the lines of origin from genetic sequences and then using them to identify biological processes, whether this be for cells that multiply or viruses that mutate. In recognition of her outstanding scientific achievement, she has been awarded the Rössler Prize, which, at CHF 200,000, represents ETH’s largest research prize. It is funded by a donation from ETH alumnus Dr Max Rössler and was awarded for the 14th time in 2022.
Working together to foster inclusion and diversity
The CYBATHLON competition, the next iteration of which will be held in 2024, breaks down barriers between the public, people with disabilities, researchers and technology developers. The initiative, which also includes the CYBATHLON @school and @work subprojects, promotes inclusion and participation with the aim of improving assistance systems for use in real-life situations. The CYBATHLON is made possible through the support of our
long-term partners Maxon, Eidgenössisches Büro für die Gleichstellung von Menschen mit Behinderungen (EBGB), the Swiss Paraplegic Foundation and a number of other donors.
Ashesi-ETH programme launched in Ghana
The Master’s degree programme in Mechatronics Engineering, which has been developed jointly by ETH Zurich and Ashesi University and specifically designed to train highly qualified future leaders for Subsaharan Africa, got off to a good start in 2022 with 24 students from seven African countries. The programme is facilitated by donors and partners including the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), the Arthur Waser Foundation, the Louis Dreyfus Foundation and the Bärbel und Paul Geissbühler Stiftung.
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Inspiration from the centre of the Earth
Members of the ETH Escher Circle got some very deep insights when they visited the Bedretto Lab. The underground laboratory, 1.5 kilometres below the Earth’s surface in the Swiss Alps, is enabling research into geothermal energy and the physics of earthquakes and is accelerating the development of new technologies and sensors in these fields. The Escher Circle brings together people who help facilitate bold, cutting edge projects at ETH.
Technology for sustainable and nutritious food
ETH is bolstering its research and teaching in the field of food technology and nutrition with support from the companies Givaudan, Bühler and Nestlé. Nutritious and tasty foods that can be stored and transported safely are critical to ensuring that our ever-increasing global population has the nutrition it needs. Initial funding for six years will, amongst other projects, enable ETH to establish a professorship for researching new technologies for manufacturing safe, sustainable foods with a high nutritional value.
Read moreMaking agricultural and food systems more sustainable
Ever-decreasing natural resources, poor soil health and a growing global population are giving rise to huge challenges for our agricultural and food systems. For the next four years, Bayer will be funding interdisciplinary projects at ETH’s World Food System Center that aim to drive forward sustainable solutions for agricultural systems and farming practices, make them more resistant to climatic influences, and increase biodiversity.
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Support for Ukrainian students
Thanks to the great commitment of private donors, foundations and companies, more and more young people can be supported at ETH each year. In 2022, 53 outstanding Master’s students received an Excellence Scholarship, around 349 students from financially disadvantaged backgrounds were able to pursue their studies through needsbased scholarships, and eight ambitious young entrepreneurs were able to progress their research towards market-readiness with a Pioneer Fellowship.
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Energi Simulation supports geothermal research
The not-for-profit organisation Energi Simulation is supporting a new group in the Department of Earth Sciences at ETH. Its objective is to identify and utilise the potential of geothermal energy around the world and to play a role in making our future energy sources more sustainable. The group is led by Dr Maren Brehme, Senior Researcher in the group overseen by Martin Saar, Professor of Geothermal Energy and Geofluids.
Read moreTalent support that makes an impact
Thanks to the great commitment of private donors, foundations and companies, more and more young people can be supported at ETH each year. In 2022, 53 outstanding Master’s students received an Excellence Scholarship, around 349 students from financially disadvantaged backgrounds were able to pursue their studies through needs based scholarships, and eight ambitious young entrepreneurs were able to progress their research towards market- readiness with a Pioneer Fellowship.
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Science in the service of humanitarian aid
Launched in 2020, the “Engineering for Humanitarian Action” joint initiative by the ICRC, ETH Zurich and EPFL aims to use innovative technology and scientific expertise to help people in need. Six projects have already produced tangible improvements, such as the reliable identification of refugees and logistics for medical products. Thanks to donations from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF), the Foundation for the ICRC, Rolex and Fondation Lombard Odier, the collaboration has continued and new projects are coming to fruition.
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Boost for research into artificial intelligence and digitalisation
Thanks to the generous support of the Dieter Schwarz Foundation, ETH has been able to establish two new professorships in Educational Technology and Computer Visualisation and significantly bolster the fellowship programme at the ETH AI Center. The funding provided by the foundation, which was set up by German entrepreneur Dieter Schwarz, enables ETH to continue to be a leading force in shaping the future at the point where education, digital transformation and artificial intelligence converge.
Read moreMake an impact, shape the future
It is thanks to your commitment, our valued donors and funding partners, that teaching and research at ETH Zurich have been significantly strengthened over the past 20 years. Your support is creating an impact for our society! This 20-year anniversary is an opportune time to reflect on the young talents and research projects that have been funded over the past years – projects that only became possible thanks to you.
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