Future looks bright for Swiss regions
Switzerland has one of the best future outlooks in Europe, according to a study of sustainability.
Six of seven regions in Switzerland ranked among the top ten in Europe in the study of 285 locations, published on Thursday by the Berlin Institute for Population and Development.
The top ten have relatively stable demographics, good levels of education and impressive employment levels. Switzerland features alongside parts of the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Britain. Iceland came out top as a country.
Some central and southern parts of Switzerland did not fare as well as the rest in fertility rates.
The study showed an East-West divide, with parts of Ireland, Britain, the Benelux countries, France, Germany, Austria, Italy and Spain doing well, while eastern European states scored the lowest.
The study assessed the sustainability of regions on the basis of 24 demographic, economic, social and environmental factors. It included all European Union countries, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.
In compliance with the JTI standards
More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.