The proposed reforms to the Swiss secret service are urgently needed in order to give the agency effective tools to counter threats like terrorism, argues security specialist Alexandre Vautravers. By Alexandre Vautravers Changes to the intelligence service legislation will give the authorities new w...

The campaign for a more sustainable economic system had a successful start but support is waning (Keystone) A proposal to reduce Switzerland’s carbon footprint by promoting a sustainable economy has seen a substantial drop in support ahead of a nationwide vote. Pollsters expect the initiative to fai...

Sep 12, 2016 - 11:47Every September, Zurich teenagers prove their marksmanship skills in a target shooting competition dating back to the 16thxa0century.Called Knabenschiessen (boys’ shooting), the event used to be the sole domain of boys who were wrapping up a marksmanship course for defence purpos...

Experts at helicopter air rescue, the Swiss are hoping to gain greater recognition in order to capitalize inte ationally. (SRF/swissinfo.ch) The former military airport of Mollis in canton Glarus is becoming a hub for the helicopter industry. It’s a joint venture between the local authorities, the c...

Bags of PET bottles on a street in Trogen in canton Appenzell Ausserholden await collection for recycling. (Keystone) Finding inte ational studies on recycling may be easy, but crowning a champion is not. The trouble lies with how countries calculate recycling rates. A catchy sound bite, “Switzerlan...

Why did 30,000 people show up for Switzerland's biggest airshow of the year? Pilots and spectators share their knowledge and experiences with swissinfo's Jeannie Wurz. Let's block ads! (Why?)

These are the top stories we're following in the week starting September 12.xa0 (Keystone) Monday With Swiss voters poised to decide on a people’s initiative promoting a greener economy, swissinfo.ch tests the oft-quoted maxim that Switzerland is world champion of recycling. We check the facts and p...

Sep 10, 2016 - 11:00When Swiss men come together to do their military service, mountains of washing pile up. Here's a look inside the Swiss army's hi-tech laundry in the town of Thun.Military personnel skulk through forests, crawl through mud, climb mountains and march for kilometres. As a result, t...

A Swiss initiative aims to produce gold in a more sustainable way in Peru (swissinfo.ch) What does it take to produce gold sustainably? It’s not easy, as a visit to a Peruvian mine joining the Swiss-backed Better Gold Initiative (BGI) shows. The street-side calls to enter business locales in the Per...

A new museum near Lake Geneva dedicated to the life and work of filmmaker Charlie Chaplin is proving a hit with visitors from Switzerland and abroad. (rts/swisisnfo.ch/jh) Since its opening in April, the museum above the town of Vevey has attracted 25,000 visitors per month. Tourism bosses are hopin...

Fillet of Sole à la General Sherman - just one of the delicacies from the book (Paul Morigi Photography) William Tell soup, anyone? Or General Ulysses S. Grant pudding? What led Switzerland’s man in Washington to add some spice to his role as ambassador and write a cookbook? “Before going to the Uni...

A look back at Switzerland’s old-age pension scheme, as well as survivors' and invalidity insurance, which are an integral part of the social security system. (SRF, swissinfo.ch) Switzerland’s social security system to ensure the livelihood of Swiss citizens as they retire and get older consists of ...

Sep 7, 2016 - 11:00An exhibition by the Beyeler Foundation in Baselxa0is bringing Switzerland's first major re-examination of The Blue Rider art movement in 30 years. Landscapes, animals, abstract compositions in colourful, wild colorsxa0– this is The Blue Rider, an avant-garde art movement that aro...

The factory floor at Switzerland-based Ruag Space, where apprentices lea their trades (Reuters) Should teenagers be allowed to operate high-tech machinery and be put to work at a young age? Countries from the United States to Bulgaria must come to terms with such questions when seeking Swiss advice ...

The Niagara Falls are at the border between the US and Canada. John Zimmer, who grew up north of them, shares his opinion of what's going on south of them, in the run-up to the US presidential election. (AFP) Like most Canadians, John Zimmer knows what it’s like to not be an American. In this essay,...

Sep 6, 2016 - 12:34It’s been a shock: the wooden chalet - so long a perfect symbol of Swissness - has been found to be an import designed by foreign architects, and encouraged by alpine tourism.Swiss researcher Daniel Stockhammer has concluded that foreign architects, mainly Germans, first developed...

Just over the Egyptian border in Sudan, Swiss filmmaker Sandra Gysi shows a boy how to use a camera. (Courtesy of Sandra Gysi) The chaos of life in a big city like Cairo offers unexpected rewards. For Swiss filmmaker Sandra Gysi, it’s the gift of time.xa0 Gysi is working on a documentary about the p...

The writer J.R.R. Tolkien was so impressed by the beauty of nature during a visit to Switzerland, that he incorporated some of the things he experienced in his classic novels, The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings. (rts/swissinfo.ch/jh)xa0 In 1911, when John Ronald Reuelxa0Tolkien was 19, he travelled fr...

Do consumers still love Swiss luxury watches, like this one from Omega? (Keystone) The past year has been nightmarish for the Swiss watch industry, and this trend continued over the summer. Swiss watch export data – a closely watched barometer of trends across the sector – showed a 14.2% fall year-o...

Where will highly skilled workers come from in the future?xa0 (Keystone) In February 2014, Swiss voters passed the anti-immigration initiative, which states among other things that local workers should have priority for job openings. But is this feasible? How can Swiss businesses best deal with the ...