Cluster: Science

International Day of the Forest stresses benefits of woodlands

This content was published on Mar 22, 2001 “Forests are very important for health,” says Dr. Felix Küchler of the Lausanne-based Swiss Foundation for Health Promotion. “Forests are places where it is quiet, where you can breathe clean air, where you have different plays of light, different relaxing sounds and where you can really recover from daily stress.” But while people may come…

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Bern to keep its bears for another 100 years

This content was published on Mar 2, 2001 On Friday, a working group called for the capital’s famous bear pits to be extended, providing a safe haven for the city’s bear colony for at least the next 100 years. The animal is Bern’s mascot, and bears have been resident in the city since 1513 when the pits were founded. The pits are a…

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Switzerland helps Indian reconstruction efforts

This content was published on Feb 16, 2001 The Swiss government’s international development aid agency (Deza) said on Friday the aim was to improve living conditions for local people. The promised aid is in addition to SFr500,000 donated by Deza in January to help with the immediate aftermath of the disaster, which left a confirmed death toll of 18,000. The latest funds are…

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Small victory for nature conservation

This content was published on Jan 19, 2001 The attempt to set up a second national park is a bold move by Pro Natura. It comes after communities living close to the existing Swiss National Park in eastern Switzerland voted against further expansion plans. Even though the Swiss National Park was the first of its kind in Europe when it was set up…

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Swiss glaciers melting at an alarming rate

This content was published on Dec 30, 2000 Researchers from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology found that of 76 glaciers studied, 68 showed clear signs of melting. Only three glaciers gained in size while five remained the same as in 1999. Martin Hoelzle, a hydrology and glaciology expert who participated in the study, says that melting ice causes lakes to form on…

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Swiss forests recover a year after hurricane

This content was published on Dec 26, 2000 Lothar, carrying winds of up to 160 kilometres an hour, left a trail of destruction mainly in central Switzerland, snapping trees like matchsticks, cutting swathes through forests and disrupting communications. More than 10 million trees succumbed to the terrifying winds. The forest above the central town of Stans was one of the worst-hit in the…

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Swiss green activist feared dead in Borneo

This content was published on Dec 21, 2000 Malaysian police say there is no evidence that Manser, who was deported last year and barred from re-entering, was in the country. But the Bruno Manser Fund (BMF) insist he crossed into Sarawak state from Kalimantan, the Indonesian part of Borneo, before disappearing. “We are resigned,” said BMF Secretary John Kuenzli. “If Bruno Manser were…

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Small victory for nature conservation

This content was published on Dec 15, 2000 The attempt to set up a second national park is a bold move by Pro Natura. It comes after communities living close to the existing Swiss National Park in eastern Switzerland voted against further expansion plans. Even though the Swiss National Park was the first of its kind in Europe when it was set up…

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Rescuers give up hope of finding flood victims alive

This content was published on Dec 14, 2000 The victims disappeared after an avalanche of mud and rock swept 1,000 metres down into a valley, wiping out two chalets and a number of farm buildings. “We are still hoping to find their remains,” said the leader of the rescue mission, Paul-Andre Gillioz. The three – a man and two women – were aged…

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Communities vie to become home of new national park

This content was published on Dec 12, 2000 Switzerland’s main nature protection body, Pro Natura, says the three regions appear to meet the strict criteria required to become a national park, and that all have the backing of the local populations. Ninety communities had signalled that they were interested in becoming the location of the new park. The three regions selected are Val…

Cluster: Science

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