Before Module 1, I had a few preconceptions of sustainability that were mainly shaped by my architecture background. These included concepts that were mainly related to sustainability in its relevance to design. Features such as solar power, expansive green space, and self-reliant buildings were some of the first things I thought of when it came to sustainable practice. Because of learning strictly in an atmosphere that was the architecture school, meaning also that I am constantly surrounded by like-minded colleagues, I retained this narrow scope until I came to study abroad in Switzerland.
This is where studying abroad in this format is significant to my learning experience for a number of reasons. I’ll first touch on the previous mention of the fact that I am accustomed to learning in a virtually monolithic environment in terms of interest diversity, where everyone is trying to implement sustainability into an architectural context. So it is important and highly significant to my learning that I was able to interact with students from different backgrounds, in including but not limited to architecture, urban planning, economics, and foreign policy.
I often find myself having a hard time grasping some of the overarching concepts of sustainability, especially in its relation to economics, which in itself contains many theoretically explained concepts. So it was great having some of my colleagues around to jump in and explain topics from their perspective of interests and experiences.
Then there is the other aspect that is contained within the inherent nature of studying abroad. I can’t really think of a better place than Switzerland to be studying these types of subjects. Even on my initial train ride from the Zurich airport to the villa at Riva San Vitale, I was amazed at how apparent sustainability is just through viewing the lifestyles of Swiss individuals from afar, whether it was exhibited through the cleanliness and convenience of the public transportation, or simply experiencing the great pride with which the Swiss view and treat their natural surroundings as made apparent from the many towns we passed through. As Ralph mentioned to me in a meeting, Switzerland is obviously a leader in sustainable thought, implementation, and practice, meaning that the brains behind it must be some of the best in the world. This is one of the reasons that I think having the opportunity to meet with these officials was so valuable to my learning and overall understanding of sustainability on the European forefront.
When we arrived at Bern, I was automatically intrigued by the “German” sense that was definitely much less apparent in the Italian Ticino region, where we reside at the villa. There is definitely a more serious air in the city, with the German Baroque architecture against the backdrop of the overcast sky. We first met the United States Ambassador to Switzerland and a number of his representatives for a meeting concerning sustainability and his role regarding the United States’ involvement concerning the Swiss’ efforts.
One common aspect to all of our meetings that I noticed was the friendliness of the officials and their willingness to entertain any of our questions, regardless of the content or level of specificity (or lack thereof at times). The ambassador was happy to answer all of our questions. Some of them were involving overarching sustainability subjects in relation to how the ambassador has observed its role and treatment within the Swiss government. The ambassador was very frank but eloquent, and was easily able to relate to us (and definitely vice versa) since he himself is a Virginian. The theme that he and his colleagues emphasized is that obviously, Switzerland, and most European countries as a whole, are far ahead of us in the race of sustainability and its implementation. But it is so very important to realize and visualize that we are dealing with two completely diverse economic structures (especially when it comes to tax/income proportions) along with literally the size and population differences between European nations and all of the United States. However, I think another interesting point that was brought up in this meeting was concerning David’s question, of whether sustainability in Switzerland operates more from the top down, where initiatives are made by the government, or the bottom up, where initiatives are made by the individuals themselves. His answer was worded, “I think both,” and this really made me begin to see how Switzerland does a pretty fine job of finding harmony between the micro scale of the individual interest and wants with the macro scale of legislation and implementation for the entire government to follow. This goes back to my earlier statement about how sustainability is so apparent in the Swiss’ everyday lives.
Train station in Bern’s center, juxtaposed with the
Baroque architecture of centuries past
Vintage style trains transport people around the city, while underground supports transportation out of the city
Soon after lunch in a local food court (which was an interesting way of observing Bern citizens’ day-to-day routine, we arrived at the Swiss government building, known as the Bernerhof, to meet with Daniel Wachter, Daniel Dubas, Stefan Ruchti, and Lorenz Kurtz. Stefan was an official for the Federal Office of the Environment, while Lorenz was an official for the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. I have to say that I was quite intimidated by their titles and obvious knowledge on a topic which I had barely studied for a week. Like earlier mentioned, these are basically some of the top dogs in the world of sustainability, considering Switzerland’s status and reputation on the world front in efforts toward sustainability. It was interesting that this meeting took on a little different format than the previous meeting with the ambassador. Instead of giving us the opportunity to ask questions from the beginning, the meeting was composed in a lecture format, where each speaker was called to present some relatively in-depth information about the Swiss stance and plans of action on sustainability. Switzerland practices a “weak sustainability plus” model, which, by its name implements some qualities of “strong” sustainability while still practicing weak. While the previous blog post explains in detail the definitions for strong and weak sustainability, I still find the effectiveness of “weak sustainability plus” a bit confusing, and I still wonder if this is a term that the Swiss coined on their own to accommodate their situation. So, this is a concept that I still wish they had clarified during the meeting. However, other students questions tended to be relatively more specific than this, so I didn’t know whether the question would have been appropriate. I am inclined to believe that the answer to the question is that the Swiss formulated their definition of “weak sustainability plus” to accommodate the structure and needs of their own small nation. In any case, the model appears to be effective for them, at least in the race with other nations such as the United States, who has trouble even inspiring public morale for sustainability, largely because of our population, and sprawl, which leads people to act in their own best interests, forcing the use of automobiles and “conspicuous consumption,” a concept which was brought to the surface by the ambassador, and which stuck in my mind throughout the day, and as Fabian showed us the University of Bern, where we were able to see a glimpse of the lives of Swiss people that share our age in common.
The Bernerhof
Aside from the complicated and confusing process of obtaining lunch, (mainly because we were unfamiliar with the system by which the food prices are calculated), the tour of the University was very interesting and enlightening, especially as we observed the overall relaxed atmosphere that is cast over the student body of the University, along with their use of public space. There were many similarities that we could draw with our own respective universities, but also many differences. Finally, we were left with a couple remaining hours in Bern. So I decided to visit a shop where one can choose from a vast selection of regional alcohols, and select a custom bottle for them. I bought a dear friend of mine a Swiss Plum Schnapps to bring back to the United States. We had to run back to the train with great efficiency, as Swiss trains are ALWAYS on time, yet another reminder of the ever-apparent sustainability in Switzerland.
Nicholas L Ratcliff 