Switzerland Today

Dear Swiss Abroad,

What makes a nation ‘happy’? The World Happiness ReportExternal link, published today, gives some pointers. Its annual ranking is based on indicators like social support, income, health, freedom, generosity and absence of corruption.

For the Finnish, who were once again first in the annual ranking, it’s all about proximity to nature and a good work-life balance. Trust in institutions, low corruption and free access to healthcare and education are also essential. Switzerland fell one spot to ninth.

Read on for more news and stories from Switzerland.

Paléo music festival in July 2023. KEYSTONE/© KEYSTONE / MARTIAL TREZZINI

In the news: ‘gas solidarity’ deal, neutrality referendum, FINMA stress tests and IOC-Russia tussle.

• The Swiss National Bank (SNB) has drawn criticism from environmental groups after the central bank’s latest sustainability report showed its investments were linked to 12 million metric tonnes of carbon emissions last year.
• Energy ministers from Switzerland (Albert Rösti), Italy and Germany have signed a “gas solidarity” agreement to offer mutual assistance in the event of a gas supply emergency.
• Swiss financial regulator FINMA says it plans to carry out 40 reviews of UBS and two stress tests this year on the bank after its 2023 takeover of rival Credit Suisse heightened concerns about “too big to fail” lenders.
• Russians and Belarusians will not take part in the parade of athletes at the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics in July, the International Olympic Committee said on Tuesday.
• The Swiss look set to vote on an initiative to enshrine the concept of Swiss neutrality in the Swiss Constitution, after 100,000 signatures were handed inExternal link to the Federal Chancellery. Swiss neutrality has been in the spotlight following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, sanctions against Russia and Swiss ties to NATO.
• The 200,000 tickets for the 47th Paléo music festival, held from July 23-28 near Nyon, in western Switzerland, have sold out in External linkrecord timeExternal link: 21 minutes.
• Researchers at ETH Zurich have succeeded in detecting severe storm events directly using GPS data. The findingsExternal link could be used to help improve weather forecasts and support the early detection of extreme weather events.

KEYSTONE/Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved

Who are the happiest people in the world?

Finland remains the happiest country in the world, taking the title for the seventh year in a row, according to a UN-commissioned World Happiness ReportExternal link released today. Switzerland dropped one place to ninth.

Nordic countries took the top slots, with Denmark, Iceland and Sweden following Finland. Switzerland’s happiness index score dropped from 7,240 to 7,060, pushing it down to ninth place.

Afghanistan, which has been hit by a humanitarian disaster following the Taliban’s return to power in 2020, came last in the ranking of 143 countries.

For the first time in over ten years, the United States and Germany did not appear in the top 20. The UK came 20th and France was ranked 27th.

Declining wellbeing among under-30s has driven the US out of the top 20 list of happiest nations, the 2024 World HappinessExternal link Report suggested.

The World Happiness Report is an annual barometer of wellbeing in 140 nations coordinated by Oxford University’s Wellbeing Research Centre, Gallup and the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.

This year’s results showed “disconcerting drops [in youth happiness] especially in North America and western Europe”, said Prof Jan-Emmanuel De Neve, director of the Wellbeing Research Centre and editor of the study.

“To think that in some parts of the world children are already experiencing the equivalent of a midlife crisis demands immediate policy action,” he said.

A separate Swiss survey by market research company YouGov Switzerland, published yesterday ahead of World Happiness Day, found that most Swiss people are very satisfied with their lives. But there are marked differences between age groups: a fifth of 18- to 29-year-olds suffer from a diagnosed psychological illness or disorder.

The Swiss locomotive was controlled by a remote control console. SBB

Switzerland tests remote-controlled train.

Swiss Federal Railways and Alstrom have carried out tests that allowed engineers to remotely control a train near Zurich. The testsExternal link carried out in February and March were a European first. 

Swiss Federal Railways points out that a number of technical and legal adjustments are still required before the use of such a system could become widespread. Autonomous passenger trains are not a priority for now, the company said.

During the test runs, 24 locomotive engineers remotely manoeuvred a locomotive in Zurich Mülligen from a remote console in Oerlikon, seven kilometres away. The train travelled at up to 30km/h.

Cameras installed on the engine sent images to the screens of the remote-control console, which looks like a driving simulator, so that the engineers could see the track, signals and any obstacles.

Two people were on board the remote-controlled locomotive to intervene if necessary, Federal Railways said in a statement.

Such a system could be used to move a faulty train to a safe area. During maintenance work in tunnels or on building sites, where short journeys are sometimes necessary at night, remote control would also offer greater flexibility, it added. Other applications could include moving trains between their parking place and the arrival or departure track.