How hackathons can catapult us towards a more sustainable future

By Tobias Bolli, Junior Project Manager Academic Relations

Squeezing the most out of only one or two days – hackathons are all about coming up with solutions in a short amount of time. Participants often forego lunch and dinner for a pizza break and a comfy hotel bed for a sleeping bag. Despite them containing the word “marathon”, hackathons are more like a prolonged sprint with participants typing away at their keyboards often throughout the night (the other part of the word doesn’t refer to “hacking” as in trying to breach other computer systems, but rather to a way of exploratory programming).

In our webinar on June 23 we explored the use of hackathons as an innovative education tool to tackle the world’s most pressing problems. The focus was on hackathons organized by the University of Geneva and Tsinghua University, both contributing solutions to the 17 sustainability development goals (SDGS) as outlined by the United Nations. Felix Fellmann, Head of International Cooperation at the Embassy of Switzerland in China, expressed his enthusiasm for the hackathon events and explained why the embassy supports it.

The world, perhaps now more than ever, is faced by a plethora of challenges ranging from the current pandemic to climate change, poverty, food security, and other worldwide challenges. That’s why, in Felix´s words, young brains are needed more than ever: highly engaged people who think outside the box and take risks to secure the future of the planet. He pointed out that Asia, boasting 60% of the world’s GDP and 60% of the young population, will play an important role in finding sustainable solutions, and that China in particular has an immense capacity of coming up with and also implementing good ideas.

A slide from Pearl illustrating the extent to which x-lab helps students developing and nurturing ideas.

Pearl Donghui Mao, Director of Tsinghua x-lab, School of Economics and Management at Tsinghua University, continued by presenting the Tsinghua SDG Open Hack, which was inspired by a hackathon at the University of Geneva. When she started out, Pearl noticed that university resources for innovation were scattered. To concentrate them she initiated Tsinghua x-lab, a cross-discipline innovation platform with the aim of complementing traditional university courses as well as starting and nurturing promising projects. Thus far, x-lab has been a remarkable success, managing to nurture more than 1500 teams, with 200 receiving investments from the industry - an impressive 1.1 billion dollars in total.

Pearl underscored the strong partnership with the University of Geneva which was established in 2017. Xi Jinping himself was present at the signing of the memorandum highlighting the importance of the partnership. Being inspired by the Open Geneva project, Tsinghua University decided to launch a similar hackathon event under the banner of Tsinghua x-lab, the SDG Open Hack which was first held in September 2019. Its aim is to generate ideas which can be developed further all the way to actual value creation in the marketplace. Pearl stressed that science and engineering students, in order to successfully make the jump from idea creation to receiving funding from the industry, also have to be equipped with a business mindset. Success, it turns out, isn’t just about having and implementing ideas, it´s also about advertising and commercializing them.

As with most hackathons, the SDG Open Hack incentivizes coming up with solutions in a short amount of time, a mere 48 hours in this case. Besides wrestling with challenges, the hackathon is designed to foster collaboration, building social ties with a host of diverse team members, and presenting a project in front of a jury. It is also and mainly about a practical “hands-on” approach, a proactive and empowering way of learning. The event has seen participation of 13 different faculties and around 500 individual participants. There are plans to expand SDG Open Hack to other Asian universities and to students around the world.

The panelists from top left to bottom right: Felix Fellmann, Jonas Haertle, Thomas Maillart and Pearl Mao, as well as our moderator Libing Gu.

Thomas Maillart, President of Open Geneva and Senior Lecturer at the University of Geneva, subsequently talked about hackathons at his university. An important goal is to break information silos and bring together organizations which, under normal circumstances, wouldn’t consider collaborating. Diverse teams, such is the credo of Open Geneva, are best at coming up with fresh ideas. Due to the still omnipresent COVID-19 threat a planned festival with more than 50 hackathons and related events had to be cancelled, which naturally came as a big disappointment to Thomas. However the unfortunate imponderability came with a new and exciting opportunity. Shortly afterwards, Thomas was approached by the Canton of Geneva which enquired about ways to tackle the current COVID-19 induced crisis.

As a consequence of that inquiry, the Crisis & Resilience Innovation Found was created which is dedicated to finding practical solutions for the most pressing issues of today (such as the current low in business tourism). It is supposed to be the opposite of typical university education, which often revolves around sitting in a lecture hall and passively absorbing information. Instead the project encourages proactive and collective action towards creating a “new normal”. As Thomas explained, simply going back to the old ways of doing things wouldn’t be a solution. Rather the crisis should be viewed as a chance to bring about a fresh and more sustainable future. In order to find out which challenges are most prominent in people’s minds, various companies have been polled and 12 projects were selected on the basis of their feedback.

A slide by Thomas listing the numerous sustainability-related themes his project is centered around.

Jonas Haertle, Special Assistant to the Executive Director, United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), then explained why UNITAR pledged to continue partnering with Geneva and Tsinghua University to bring SDG Hack to other universities and countries. Tasked with providing training to help achieve the 17 sustainable development goals outlined by the UN, the organization is happy to provide support since the hackathons explicitly center around those development goals. Jonas stressed that a myriad of people need to be working together for there to be a chance of solving the biggest challenges the world is facing.

Questions and answers

During the Q&A period the Head of Entrepreneurship Center at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology asked both hackathon organizers how to balance quality and quantity of such events. Thomas from the University of Geneva stressed how important it is to make the challenges self-contained and broad enough to allow for different solutions. He also said that the outcome isn’t as important as the participant´s engagement during the event. Thus it is more about the journey of innovation, about cultivating a can-do attitude and feeling empowered as a consequence of it. Pearl from Tsinghua University echoed some of these thoughts and added that it is imperative to properly prepare professors taking part in the event. She added that Tsinghua University conducts satisfaction surveys among the students to continually improve the events.

A representative of Hong Kong Baptist University asked how to better implement SDG education to credit-based courses at the university. Jonas from UNITAR suggested to link these courses directly to the 17 sustainable development goals and mentioned that the goals were developed bottom-up with many universities directly involved in the process. Felix form the Embassy of Switzerland in China concluded the webinar by summarizing what entices him most about the hackathon projects. He emphasized the advantage of time pressure which forces participants to get down to the nitty-gritty and avoid the paralysis of perfectionism; a perfect solution, after all, doesn’t exist. Felix also lauded the unconventional character of the hackathons which are far removed from traditional classroom-scenarios and foster proactive and peer-inspired collaborations rather than the passive absorption of teaching materials.

Last but not least, we want to thank our four panelists Felix Fellmann, Pearl Donghui Mao, Thomas Maillart and Jonas Haertle for their inspiring talks and their thoughtful answers during the Q&A session.

Please find a link to the slides and webinar recording below:

• Recording: view and download here.

• Slides: download here.

Measuring Pathogens and SARS-CoV-2 in the air

By Tobias Bolli, Junior Project Manager Academic Relations

Humans are experts at detecting and reacting to visible dangers around them. We have no trouble making out a car racing towards us and speeding up to get out of its way; we are experts at picking up on body language and deducing (for instance) that this guy at the bar has had a few beers too many. We might, in other words, be very aware of all the dangers encountered on a macro-scale. What doesn’t announce itself to our eyes, however, quite often goes unnoticed.

Our very first installment of the Connected series (June 9, 2020) zoomed in on what cannot be seen: airborne pathogens with SARS-CoV-2 (the virus causing COVID-19) featuring as a prominent example. Prof. Dr. Jing Wang, associate professor at the Institute of Environmental Engineering at ETH Zurich, started out by talking about indicators of air quality in general. Many people may be familiar with PM10 and PM2.5 as a way of measuring air quality. PM stands for particle matter and the number following it for the size of the particles (PM10 designating particles between 2.5 and 10 micrometers (one millionth of a meter), and PM2.5 standing for particles measuring 2.5 micrometers or less).

A slide by Prof. Dr. Wang comparing the concentration of pathogens in cities all around the globe.

While these numbers can provide a good indication of air quality, they don’t provide the full picture. Prof. Dr. Wang underscored that it is just as important to know what the particles actually consist of, since some pose a significantly greater risk than others. Generally speaking, we find organic as well as inorganic matter in the air, heavy metals being an example for inorganic compounds, with bacteria, fungi, viruses as well as pollens constituting examples for organic particles. These so called bioaerosols all have biological origins, stemming from plants, animals or humans.

Prof. Dr. Wang presented a global survey which compared the prevalence of antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs) in cities around the world. It showed that high amounts of PM10 and PM2.5 don’t necessarily correlate with high amounts of ARGs, with San Francisco having relatively low amounts of particle matters, but still a pretty high concentration of ARGs. He pointed out that there is a clear correlation between the use of antibiotics and the amount of antibiotic resistant bacteria in the air. Simply put, the more antibiotics one uses, the higher the concentration of ARGs in the urban air.

A slide showing parts of the measuring instruments used by Prof. Dr. Wang.

As Prof. Dr. Wang showed, there are a host of different methods to measure airborne pathogens. Going beyond traditional methods, he presented an innovative approach which relies on electromagnetic fields to detect surface features. Incoming lights interact with nanoparticles on the target material; this leads to characteristic electromagnetic fields which can be enhanced to get a meaningful signal. For his novel approach to detecting SARS-CoV-2, Prof. Dr. Wang made use of temperature effects to be able to distinguish between this virus and related ones such as the original SARS virus (SARS-CoV). Importantly, he was able to use this method as an alternative way of diagnosing the disease - and is on course to making this instrument capable of detecting SARS-CoV-2 in ambient air as well.

The second presentation revolved around antibiotic resistant bacteria related to animal farming. Prof. Dr. Min Gao pointed out that, according to WHO, at least 700´000 people die each year due to drug resistant bacteria. A number that could rise to 10 million by 2050 if no action is taken. To further drive home the scale and severity of the problem, Prof. Dr. Gao quoted the WHO which considered a post-antibiotic world - a world in which minor injuries can have lethal effects because there aren’t any effective antibiotics anymore to treat infections - not an apocalyptic fantasy but a very real scenario. The driver behind increased antibiotic resistance is the use of antibiotics which leads to selection pressure and bacteria adapting to that pressure. Importantly, around 73% of antibiotics are used in animal farming which can thus be considered the main contributor to this trend.

Our two panelists from top left to right: Prof. Dr. Jing Wang, Prof. Dr. Min Gao as well as our moderator Gu Libing in bottom center.

As Prof. Dr. Gao made clear, antibiotic resistant genes and bacteria aren’t staying inside animal farms. Rather, ARGs are abundant in urban air as well and have an astounding ability of traveling huge distances. Thus, ARGs can attach themselves to other particles and be transported from Asia all the way over the Pacific to the West of the United States. Similarly, sandstorms can transport ARGs from African countries all the way to Europe. Even if one lives far away from animal farms, one still might be affected by their output then. As part of her research project, Prof. Dr. Gao collected particle samples inside and outside of Chinese animal farms. She found almost 2000 ARGs which are resistant to 15 major antibiotics inside of animal farms, and 800 such pathogens in the urban air. All of them, it turned out, are resistant to penicillin. Luckily, however, she couldn’t find a pathogen resistant to vancomycin, which can thus still be used as an effective treatment in many cases.

A slide illustrating some of the results of Prof. Dr. Gao’s research.

During the Q&A session Prof. Dr. Wang clarified that the SARS-CoV-2 measuring instrument he developed is still very much a lab-instrument, requiring manual input and a number of steps until a result is generated. He is optimistic, however, that the first units can be deployed in 10 months with further improvements on the horizon. Prof. Dr. Gao said that the source of bioaerosol in animal farms is not so much the coughing of animals (although that is a source too) as the manure which leads to a spread of these pathogens. Asked about whether she is worried about her research results, she said that at this moment in time we still have some back-up antibiotics which work and that a “super bug” is not inevitable. To keep the situation from deteriorating, Prof. Dr. Gao suggested that we decrease the use of antibiotics, which would naturally result in a decrease of antibiotic resistance as well.

Suffice it to say, we like to thank both our speakers for giving us a glimpse into their fascinating research and for their generous interaction with the audience!

Please find a link to the slides and webinar recording below:

• Recording: view and download here.

• Slides: download here.
  

On cross-border IP Laws and related applications

By Tobias Bolli, Junior Project Manager Academic Relations

Intellectual property law is a tricky subject. Creations of the human mind are notoriously hard to define: They cannot be measured, they cannot be counted, and often remain as intangible as a cloud in the sky. And yet intellectual property laws are necessary for rewarding and incentivizing innovation. While a landowner may be able to put up a wall around his property and hire security guards to patrol it, an artist would have a hard time to protect his recording by physical means like that. Shortly after the release of his album, he would find a myriad of free copies online, and would simply have to live with it, if there weren’t IP laws to protect his creation. 

At the same time, intellectual property laws cannot be defined in too strict a manner, since they would otherwise stifle competition and prevent society from benefiting from the new ideas. Our webinar (May 29th, 2020) revolved around IP laws in a decidedly modern context. It focused on Chinese IP law in e-commerce and tackled the fascinating issue of how AI related inventions are handled within different legal frameworks. To start things off, Dr. Ming Xu of Tongji University talked about cross-border e-commerce in China and the numerous challenges associated with it.

Dr. Xu mentioned the prevalence of e-commerce platforms in China. New platforms have been emerging at a rapid pace making it easier for malicious actors to sell products that infringe on IP law. Dr. Xu pointed out that there are three legal subjects involved in e-commerce: the platform providing the service to sell products online, in-platform stores offering products on that platform (sometimes these are one and the same), and of course the IP holders who want to see their products protected. 

Presentation slide of Dr. Xu illustrating the process of filing an IP complaint.

Naturally, in-platform stores are not allowed to sell products which infringe on IP rights; platforms on the other hand, are requested to develop rules for IP protection and offer channels through which IP disputes can be resolved. Once an infringement occurs (or is suspected to have occurred) IP holders can request platforms to take down the respective products by disclosing prima facie evidence to the platform, meaning evidence which would be sufficient to prove the case if it isn’t rebutted by the opposing party. 

The platform is then forced to remove the products from their website; failing to do so would make it jointly liable together with the suspected infringer. Importantly, however, if the IP holder does not follow-up with other legal action within 15 days (normal days, not business days), the platform is legally obligated to put the disputed products online again. This is to minimize abuse of this law, for instance by actors who want to file IP complaints just to thwart competitors.

Dr. Xu pointed out that foreign companies doing cross-border e-commerce are not protected if they only hold an IP in their own countries. He strongly advised them to apply for IP in different countries, especially in the ones where the product is sold. Lastly, Dr. Xu advised platforms to establish a rapid dispute resolution mechanism, including qualified personnel to make sure that disputes can be dealt with in a timely manner. 

Our four panelists from top left to bottom right: Dr. Ming Xu, Sabine Neuhaus, Melvin Mei and Prof. Dr. Georg Peter Picht.

Next, Prof. Dr. Peter Georg Picht talked about the existing legal framework for AI technologies. He pointed out that there is a rapid increase when it comes to the acquisition of AI related patents. The highest growth rate of patents is in the transport sector (134%), followed by telecommunications (84%), life and medical sciences (40%), as well as personal devices and computing (36%). The greatest number of patents are still filed for in the U.S. with China being a close second (looking at combined patents, it has just overtaken the US, however, with 58´990 compared to 57´840 patents).

Prof. Dr. Picht highlighted the fact that many such patents don’t describe AI algorithms directly and tend to only give a vague and general impression of them. This shows that companies are reluctant to disclose their AI patents and pursue what could be called a “smoke-screen strategy”. Picht underscored that patents, when kept as vague as this, go against their own purpose. Patents should allow for follow-up innovations and make it possible to use the technology once the patent term is over. Both is hard, however, if their description is lacking in precision.

Following up on this observation, Prof. Dr. Picht looked at the existing legal framework for AI - and was quick to spot some serious shortcomings. Thus, it is unclear whether computer-generated innovation can be protected at all in many jurisdictions. Old rules still apply. They dictate that intelligent software which imitates the human brain is only patentable when it operates some technical device. Thus, a computer driving a machine that produces a car is patentable, but a computer which calculates and forecasts traffic cannot be protected under current law. Moreover, traditional patent law does not cover innovation originating from AI systems themselves - a growing issue, since AI is more and more capable to come up with innovations “of its own”.

To conclude, Prof. Dr. Picht touched on data rights which, in his opinion, enjoy better and better protection in Europe. At first glance, this seems to be a positive development, however, one has to keep in mind the nature and foundation of AI technology. In order for much of AI to function, huge amounts of data have to be fed to it. Excessive protection could hamper AI development, which is why Prof. Dr. Picht suggested that Europe may have to cut back on the protection of personal data. 

An overview of some legal issues arising from AI related innovation - a strong indication that the legal framework is in need of some thorough revision.

As the last of our three speakers, Melvin Mei talked about IP challenges faced by brand owners in the mobile business landscape. It is a truism that everything is moving online, especially in China which boasts the largest mobile market in the world. This brings with it a host of new opportunities. It allows brand owners to expand into new areas by leveraging mobile apps, digital paying, mobility etc. As Mei observed, it also leads to a blurring of the boundaries between industries with some luxury brands getting their feet wet in the sectors of hospitality and travel business. 

Mei pointed out that China has the world’s most crowded trademark register with its trademark office having received a record-breaking 7.84 million applications in 2019. This collides with the need for rolling out products quickly, however. More often than not, there is simply not enough time to take other IPs into account leading to a growing number of IP disputes. Moreover, in a market where everybody has to compete with everybody (since customers have an easy time to find and compare products online) there is a bigger need to stand out with ones’ products (by employing fancy patented designs, having strong trademark symbols etc.), which adds further fuel to IP disputes. 

Having underscored the importance of IP protection, Mei cautioned companies to not be overly aggressive when it comes to launching into IP disputes. According to his experience, being branded an “IP bully” is much easier accomplished today. Negative comments and reviews can spread incredibly quickly in today’s digital world. Being too assertive in IP matters - even if all actions fall within the law - can come with significant and lasting damage to the brand image of a company.

During the Q&A session Dr. Xu clarified that platforms face significant penalties if they don’t delete infringing products from their website in a timely manner, depending on the extent and nature of the violation, platforms may have to pay up to 500´000 yuan (or about 70´000 dollars) for acting too late. Prof. Dr. Picht was asked whether there is an international body specifically concerned with AI IP rights. He pointed to the European Patent Office (EPO) which has published a pertinent and in-depth report on the matter. Moreover, Prof. Dr. Picht said that the Swiss Patent Office is becoming active and has commissioned a study in which he is involved personally as well. 

Lastly, Mei talked about e-commerce live streaming in which celebrity hosts curate and market products directly to the audience (selling everything from lipsticks to, quite literally, space rockets). E-commerce live streaming is a very recent phenomenon which exploded in popularity in the second half of 2019. Mei mentioned that celebrities and even government officials are joining these streams, which seem to be here to stay. However, new technologies also lead to bad actors having more powerful tools at their disposal, which is why Mei advised to stay alert and prepare accordingly.

To conclude, we want to thank our three speakers Dr. Ming Xu, Prof. Dr. Peter Georg Picht and Melvin Mei for their captivating and easy-to-follow presentations. Last but not least, we thank Sabine Neuhaus for expertly moderating the event.

Please find a link to the slides and webinar recording below:

• Recording: view and download here.

• Slides: download here.
  

How to communicate across borders and why AI won't replace human translators

By Tobias Bolli, Junior Project Manager Academic Relations

Adopted in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) aims to connect nearly 70 countries on three continents. The huge infrastructure and development project is not merely economic in nature but also a quest for cultural exchange and integration. In order to establish fruitful cooperation, mutual understanding is critical. Here translation and interpretation comes in – the effort to bridge cultural and linguistic gaps that hinder communication.

Our webinar featured three speakers who were more than equipped to shed light on this topic. Prof. Dr. Hannelore Lee-Jahnke, Co-Chair of the Center for Interdisciplinary Studies in Translation & Interpretation at SISU, started the webinar by giving a quick overview of the ancient Silk Road, a network of trade routes that lasted from the 2nd century BC until the 18th century. The idea was to look back at the past to extract lessons for the present and apply them to today´s Belt and Road Initiative. Lee-Jahnke reminded the audience that the Silk Road, just like the BRI today, was not just about financial gain but encompassed various forms of knowledge exchange as well. 

Prof. Lee-Jahnke touched on the segmented nature of the Silk Road. Merchants didn´t go all the way from A to B, but instead passed their goods on to others who in turn passed them on to the next person (a bit like the Olympic flame which is handed from one runner to the next). To make sure merchants could deal with the foreign circumstances, a kind of “shopping list” was given to them. Importantly, this list wasn’t merely about goods and their prices, it also contained language instructions and cultural guides advising its reader how to behave towards people along the route. 

A map illustrating the trade routes of the Belt and Road Initiative (“Road” actually stands for the maritime route and “Belt” for the route on land).

Obviously, the BRI will reach far more communities than the ancient Silk Road ever could. High-speed trains will allow small and medium companies to gain access to remote areas. Apart from benefitting them economically, this will also improve language and cultural knowledge in the respective areas. All in all, the BRI aims to enhance mutual understanding and create a win-win-situation for everybody, according to Prof. Lee-Jahnke. She cautioned however, that systemic changes might be necessary to truly realize this inclusive vision. 

Our second speaker Prof. Dr. Irene Zhang, Dean of Graduate Institute of Interpretation and Translation at SISU, echoed some of Prof. Lee-Jahnke’s remarks, stressing that words ascribed to BRI often include openness, inclusiveness, as well as peace and cooperation. Thus, BRI not only centers around trade but aims to establish people-to-people bonds and mutual understanding. To help drive this message home, students and colleagues of hers have created a website for children. Using almost 20 languages, it stresses the idea that the whole world is one big community. 

To conclude her presentation, Prof. Zhang talked about the role Mandarin could play in the context of BRI. Nowadays there are at least 137 Confucius Institutes and 131 Confucius Chinese language classes in 53 Belt and Road countries. More than 460’000 people are studying there. Since student numbers are growing and since more and more Chinese people are working in BRI countries, Prof. Zhang proposed that Mandarin would be a good pivot language to opt for in these areas (a language to translate between two other languages).

Our four charismatic panelists engaging with the audience and with each other.

Our last speaker, Prof. Dr. Zhengren Li, Executive Dean of Graduate Institute of Interpretation and Translation at SISU, said that English may be the lingua franca but that it only gets conversations started. As the saying goes, the devil is in the details and to get those details right it is better to communicate in the respective local language. Thus the word “fastener” (a small device joining objects together) might be interpreted in all sorts of ways and create confusion rather than pointing out what is meant by the word (and what may well be essential in holding together a bridge or building). 

An important part of Prof. Li’s presentation revolved around the relationship between human and machine translation. To illustrate his point, Prof. Li made an interesting analogy. Customers looking for new shoes have the option of buying them online, in a department store or in a boutique. Naturally, there is a huge difference in price between these options. However, all of them manage to somehow coexist, why is that? Prof. Li’s answer: While all vendors offer a similar product – a shoe – there are differences in leather quality, design, stitching etc. that justify the price gap. By analogy, machine translation might offer a similar and less expensive product – translation of a text or a speech – but can´t hold a candle to the work of a good translator. 

Funny translation errors resulting from the AI’s stubborn word-by-word translation (as part of Prof. Dr. Li’s presentation).

In the following Q&A session the speakers identified the most important qualities of a translator. Prof. Jahnke-Lee stressed that having great language skills is by no means enough for the job and that a good translator also has to understand the field she or he is working in. Thus, somebody translating financial documents better know a thing or two about transactions, the stock market, etc. Prof. Li cautioned not to be a jack-of-all-trades, but to instead zoom in on one particular field and become an expert on just finance or agriculture, for instance.

Lastly, the speakers explained that Chinese is a good example of a high-context language. As such, Chinese doesn’t make frequent use of logical links, requiring people to read between the lines instead. Language doesn’t exist in a vacuum, but is embedded in a cultural context. Thus, in order to understand a language one has to understand the culture of its speakers too. The word-for-word translation machines excel in can only capture surface-level meaning. It will miss the meaning behind the words - to say nothing of facial expressions or body language that might provide cues as to the real intention of the speaker.

To conclude, we would like to thank our speakers Prof. Dr. Hannelore Lee-Jahnke, Prof. Dr. Irene Zhang, as well as Prof. Dr. Zhengren Li for their captivating presentations and engagement with the audience. We are happy to report that more than 300 viewers tuned into this webinar - a new record for swissnex China.

Please find a link to the sides and webinar recording below:

• Recording: view and download here.

• Slides: download here.

Café des Sciences: Qubits and Entanglement

By Percy Chen, Junior Project Manager Art-Science

On 16 April 2020, we hosted our webinar titled Café des Sciences: Qubits and Entanglement. Two renowned Swiss quantum field experts Prof. Dr. Richard J. Warburton, Director of NCCR SPIN Project and Professor of Experimental Physics at University of Basel provided us with a technical introduction to quantum computing, while Mr. Franck Franchin, President of Swiss Quantum Hub, illustrated for us the support for Swiss quantum startups. This edition of Café des Sciences was organized in collaboration with the Section of Science, Technology and Education at the Embassy of Switzerland in China.

Prof. Dr. Richard J. Warburton (left) and Moderator Dr. Gaetan Messin, Attaché for Science and Technology, Consulate General of France in Shanghai (right).

Despite some technical issues, we trust that everyone has acquired informative insights on the topic. Due to the time constraint, we could only present a limited number of questions. If you have further questions for our speakers regarding quantum computing, please email us at cafedessciences@swissnexchina.org. We will try our best to forward them to the speakers.

The edited webinar recording is available to view here (until May 15, 2020).

_______________

Here are some key takeaways that we would like to share with you. 

From Prof. Dr. Richard J. Warburton’s speech:

• A bit is a basic unit of information. In information theory, one bit is typically defined as the information entropy of a binary random variable that is 0 or 1 with equal probability. Normally, it is like a classic switch - either on or off. A quantum qubit is different in the sense that it can be on and off simultaneously. And this ability of a quantum system to be in multiple states at the same time is called Superposition.

• Quantum Entanglement comes into play when we attach another pair of switches to qubits. Both switches can be on or off at the same time. The quantum state of each switch of the pair cannot be described independently of the state of the others, even when the particles are separated by a large distance. Vice versa, when one switch is measured, its paired switch is immediately determined.

• So now why is quantum computing so difficult to understand? This is because it is very hard to separate quantum systems from the environment, which is the rest of our world. One significant problem is that things turn to decay. If you put a quantum qubit in the “on” state, it will gradually lose energy and turn to the “off” state. In other words, maintaining a phrase of a quantum state is very difficult.

• The goal of this century is to make quantum physics useful.

• The no-cloning theorem states that it is impossible to create an identical copy of an arbitrary unknown quantum state.

• Quantum Computer: most powerful computer allowed by the laws of physics. It is capable of solving hard problems in chemistry, material science, physics, micro-biology, and more.

• Quantum computer uses qubtis - superpositions of 0 and - and its computational power comes from entanglement between qubits.

• The current status is that few qubit devices exist and although quantum supremacy is close, a completed quantum computer is not. This is because we are never able to fully separate a quantum system from its environment. We would need 100 million physical qubits if we want to simulate the behavior of a complex molecule. This scalability problem is extremely challenging.

• In traditional computer, the scaliability problem has been solved. Silicon transistors now have FinFET technology with less than 10 nano meters of element.

• The NCCR SPIN aims to make a major contribution to research and the development of quantum computers and create the basis for a new information-processing technology. The NCCR’s objective is to develop small, fast, scalable silicon-based qubits. It will also generate important findings on software and algorithm development, error correction and the architecture of future quantum computers.

• Professor Richard J. Warburton and his team are pinning their hopes on silicon, a semiconductor that has been a proven material in the industry for decades. They are convinced that silicon technology is highly promising in enabling the on-chip integration of billions of components, leading to a particularly strong quantum computer.

From Mr. Franck Franchin’s presentation:

• Swiss Quantum Hub is a non-profit think tank with the mission to help quantum startups accelerate and scale up. The community has around 5,000 members in Switzerland, France, Germany and U.S. Right now, there are four services - Swiss Quantum Academy (SQA), Swiss Quantum Garage (SQG), Swiss Quantum Investor Club (SQIC), and Swiss Quantum MarketPlace (SQMP). Its strategic partnerships include Quantonation, Atos, Amazon AWS, and BNP Paribas.

• There are 5 big sectors for the quantum industry: Deep Physics, Quantum Sensing, Quantum Computing, and Quantum Cybersecurity.

• Quantum computers are not faster than conventional computers at all tasks.

• Constructing a quantum computer which is capable of outperforming classical computers is a formidable task. One of the most important issues is error correction: we need thousands of physical qubits to achieve one logical fault.

• Quantum Computers bring new capabilities that existing computers do not have into fields such as in Natural Language Processing and Molecular Simulations.

• Many problems in Finance, for example, can be expressed as optimization and prediction problems, like finding which asset should be included in a portfolio or estimating of the risk and the return of a portfolio problem. These types of problems are particularly hard for classical computers but find a natural formulation using quantum algorithms.

At the end, we would like to express our great appreciation to Prof. Dr. Richard J. Warburton and Mr. Franck Franchin for sharing their valuable expert insights. We would also like to thank our community for your great engagement as always! Please stay tuned for our next event!

Dr. Gaetan Messin, Attaché for Science and Technology, Consulate General of France in Shanghai (left) and Cissy Sun, Head of Art-Science at swissnex China (right).

How Digital Technologies Are Transforming Education

By Tobias Bolli, Junior Project Manager Academic Relations

As COVID-19 continues its spread in what has officially become a global pandemic there is hardly any country remaining unaffected by its exponential growth. In order to flatten the curve and turn a wave of concurrent cases into a somewhat more manageable “rising tide”, countries are resorting to unprecedented measures. Public life is shutting down and many schools in Europe and America are forced to close their doors. On March 13 Switzerland announced that all schools and universities are to be closed until at least April 4. Luckily, not being able to access a physical classroom doesn´t necessarily prevent students from continuing their studies. In China up to 200 million pupils have been taking classes online. Other countries are shifting classes from offline to online too, thus further expanding and normalizing digital education.

In this webinar our two speakers addressed the characteristics of so-called MOOCs – massive open online courses and their heightened importance during the COVID-19 pandemic. As indicated by their name, MOOCs are open to anybody wishing to enroll. They mix traditional teaching methods (such as filmed lectures) with formats that allow for more interaction between participants. Before the two speakers gave their presentation, our moderator Dr. Garif Yalak, Head of Digital Transformation Healthcare and Education, Country Digital Acceleration Switzerland, reminded the audience that digital education is on the rise overall, with or without accounting for the current COVID-19 situation. He pointed out that the digital education industry in China is predicted to double its growth in the next three to five years, with factors such as a growing online population, and an education-hungry middle class with more and more spending power contributing to its growth. Moreover, Dr. Yalak mentioned increased user number for his company Cisco Switzerland, with more and more students leveraging their online platform to obtain European certifications. 

Our three participants in full swing with Libing Gu, Head of Academic Relations at swissnex China guiding through the webinar.

Dr. Jermann, Director of the Center for Digital Education at EPFL, presented an overview of the MOOC activities at EPFL. When they started in 2012, EPFL was one of the first European universities to join the MOOC movement. Dr. Jermann focused on approaches that mix traditional learning with the benefits of digital technologies. In so called flipped classrooms students typically watch filmed lectures online and subsequently solve exercises with their professors on campus. Comparing this approach with traditional lectures, Dr. Jermann was able to demonstrate that blended learning leads to better outcomes especially for students with weaker performances. Flipped classrooms also allowed the extraction of interesting data regarding learning behavior. Students don´t just click the start button when watching online lectures, but often pause and go back and forth between slides. The analysis of these navigation patterns helps to identify key moments in the lecture. For instance, if a high percentage of students rewind after having seen a particular slide then this indicates that the professor might want to give a more in-depth explanation of the topic in question. In addition to exploring the implications of clicking data, Dr. Jermann developed a tool for students to self-asses their learning habits. Individual feedback can then be used to improve an individual´s learning behavior. The distinct advantage of such a databased approach is the ability to pinpoint what actually works. Thus there is no longer any need to rely on anecdotes when it comes to assessing certain teaching methods.

A couple of highlights from the plentiful presentation slides of our speakers.

Prof. Yongkang Su, Operation Director of CNMOOC at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, talked about MOOCs from a Chinese perspective. Just like the Swiss university Shanghai Jiao Tong University launched their MOOC initiative around 2014. Its declared goal is to close the education gap between the east and west of China and to make quality education available to everyone. Subsequently, a myriad of massive open online courses were launched and have changed the education landscape. Prof. Su presented some numbers to illustrate the scope of MOOCs in China. More than 100 universities offer online courses today, over 268 million students have enrolled in one, and 80 million have earned credits through taking such classes. The success of MOOCs even lead to the coining of new words. Prof. Su mentioned the expression十八线女主播 (literally “eighteenth tier female anchor”). It describes teachers who shifted their teaching activites online and feel like third grade vloggers now – having lost some of the prestige traditionally bestowed on Chinese teachers. Prof. Su also highlighted some challenges for online education. For example bandwidth problems might occur as a result of too many students attending courses at the same time. Moreover, internet connections aren´t reliable yet in certain parts of China. Mountain areas in particular suffer from unstable connections, forcing students to move down to catch a signal. Lastly, digital education provides a lot of new tools, but these tools can be confusing at first and even get in the way of teaching. 

During the Q&A session Prof. Su mentioned that online degrees still lack the necessary social acceptance in China, even though some of the technological basis for it is already in place. Asked about the impacts of the current COVID-19 situation, he confirmed that the reaction to the pandemic has given digital education a significant boost and further normalized its widespread use. Dr. Jermann pointed out that teachers don´t have a choice these days but are forced into online teaching. He acknowledged that the abrupt nature of this transition might lead to some quality compromises since good online education is about more than filming a lecture and putting it online. On the other hand, Dr. Jermann continued, we will learn many valuable lessons during these times, some of which can also be implemented in traditional offline settings. It is thus wrong to think of digital education merely as a disruptive force. Digital education will not replace traditional education, but enrich and transform it, he commented. 

We would like to thank Dr. Jermann and Prof. Su for their excellent presentations and Dr. Yalak for moderating the event. Last but not least, we thank our viewers for having participated in the event and for all the interesting questions during the Q&A session!  

The webinar recording and slides are available to download below:

• Recording: view and download here.

• Slides: download here.

swissnex team working behind the scenes to ensure a smooth webinar experience.

Café des Sciences: Scientific View on COVID-19

By Percy Chen, Junior Project Manager Art-Science & Suyao Ao, PR and Communications Coordinator

On 20 February 2020, we hosted our webinar titled Café des Sciences: Scientific View on COVID-19 which saw tremendous participation with 201 participants from across China, Switzerland and beyond. Two renowned Swiss epidemiologists Dr. Christian Althaus, University of Bern, and Prof. Dr. Pietro Vernazza, Cantonal Hospital St.Gallen shared their expertise on infectious diseases as well as data-driven analysis to illustrate for us a comprehensive picture of the disease. Topics such as transmission, severity, and pandemic risks were presented and close to 40 questions (including vulnerable demographics, plasma treatment, time to peak & stabilization, sequela or the role of media) were posed by the audience.

We trust that everyone has acquired informative insights on the topic. Unfortunately, due to the time restraint, we could only present a limited number of questions. If you have further questions for our speakers regarding COVID-19, please email us at cafedessciences@swissnexchina.org. We will try our best to forward them to the speakers.

Moreover, the webinar recording and slides are available to download below:

• Recording: view and download here.

• Slides: download here.

Dr. Felix Moesner (top-left), Prof. Dr. Pietro Vernazza (top-right), and Dr. Christian Althaus (bottom-left)

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Here are some key takeaways that we would like to share with you. 

1. Transmission: R0 around 2 - 3 and similar to pandemic influenza

Dr. Althaus introduced R0, the basic reproduction number of an infection, which can be thought of as the expected number of cases directly generated by one case in a population where all individuals are susceptible to infection. R0 describes the state where no other individuals are infected or immunized. R0 is measured in the beginning of the outbreak where no measure has been taken over the virus yet.

It is estimated that the R0 of COVID-19 is around 2 -3, which nearly can be defined as pandemics. Its uncertainty is comparable to the 1918 influenza.

2. Pandemic risk: High probability of outbreaks outside China   

Based on the transmission characteristics, the pandemic risk of COVID-19 is very high. Currently, most identified cases are found in China. Outside of China, most cases are found in Asian countries. In January, the first case outside of China was confirmed, and currently most cases can be traced back to China. International conveyance is the major travel exposure history for the confirmed cases outside of China.

From the preliminary simulations below, after 50 days, or seven weeks, we would expect about 20 persons infected per day, and a local break in a country can reach the size of 200 individuals.

3. Control: More than 75% of cases need to be isolated for successful control   

In the COVID-19 case, more than 75% of contacts of the infected cases need to be isolated for the successful control of the disease.

4. Severity: Overall case fatality around 1% or higher

There are several challenges in assessing case fatality ratio, for example, overestimation due to under-ascertainment of mild cases, and underestimation due to right-censoring of cases with respect to the time delay from illness onset to death.

It is currently estimated that the fatality rate is 1% or even higher. In contrast, seasonable flu is 0.1% or even lower. Therefore, preparedness is recommended.

5. Better hygiene habits would relieve much burden and gain more time for the healthcare system to react      

In terms of healthcare system, Switzerland has come up with a new Epidemics Act in force since 2016, where the work-sharing of the Confederation and the cantons in crisis situations is clarified, explicit provisions have been set out to confront new menaces and to manage health emergencies.

However, on the other side, the preparedness for such kind of epidemic also relies on that from an individual level. Hygiene measures are very important in daily life, which would greatly relieve the healthcare system burden in face of such epidemic. Better hygiene habits would gain more time for the healthcare systems to react.

6. Scientists and media should work together to make sure timely distribution of correct information 

In general, key media have done a good job in informing the public and drawing attention to the disease during the outbreak of COVID-19. There are also some media or social media that amplify false information and give raw messages away. Therefore, it’s essential that scientists and media collaborate to ensure that the public is timely and correctly informed.

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Finally, before we conclude this blog post, we would like to share some behind the scenes for this event. As many members of the Café des Sciences community knew, the original February Café des Sciences: The Design Mindset was canceled due to the COVID-19 situation. In the meantime, a lot of our audience expressed their concerns regarding COVID-19, as there is a vacuum of quality information on the Internet. We made the decision to swiftly put together an online event in just two days to address this urgent matter. We are confident now that the value we added was well worth the effort.

Again, we would like to express our great appreciation goes to Dr. Althaus and Dr. Vernazza for sharing their high-value expert insights. We would also like to thank our community for your great engagement as always! Most importantly, our heartfelt thanks go to the frontline medical workers combating the virus in China and worldwide.

Stay tuned!

Behind the scenes: In our improvised broadcast room, Dr. Felix Moesner prepares for his moderator role while Percy, Junior Project Manager, tests for the control settings.

Café des Sciences is a new format at swissnex China offering a monthly platform for Swiss Spotlight Scientists and Startups to present their projects and engage with the local community. The lectures are followed by a networking reception and scheduled to take place every third Thursday each month at swissnex China or our partner spaces.

Please stay tuned for our next event on 19 March, 2020.

Towards a Sustainable Space Ecosystem - From Debris Removal to Space Logistics

By Tobias Bolli, Junior Project Manager Academic Relations

Although space is often described as a huge expanse of nothingness – only 0.0000000000000000000042 percent of the universe actually contains matter – things start to look different when we focus in on what’s directly above us. Earth’s orbit is filled with satellites ranging from the size of a parcel to that of a school bus. Together these satellites provide us with such useful things as GPS, telecommunication and weather forecasts. In addition, they are joined by countless objects, which serve no purpose at all. In fact, there are more «retired» satellites than there are operational ones, currently about 3000 of a total 5000. This so-called space junk makes orbits increasingly overcrowded and poses a serious risk to past, present and future missions (for an overview of all known objects in earth’s orbit, click here).  

Prof. Jean-Paul Kneib, Director of EPFL Space Center (eSpace) dedicated his presentation – an event organized in cooperation with EPFL Alumni Shanghai Chapter – to this long-neglected phenomenon. He pointed out that space debris consists of more than a million objects larger than one centimeter and just about 35´000 objects over 10 centimeters. These objects aren’t just staying in space but are dashing around at enormous speeds, often multiple times faster than a rifle bullet. The fastest debris reach up to 7 kilometers per second - keeping in mind that the velocity has to be squared to calculate kinetic energy this makes for impressive numbers.

Due to their enormous speed even small object can have considerable destructive power in space…

Prof. Kneib reminded the audience that the International Space Station has to take this fact into account and dodge space junk almost on a weekly basis. Other satellites in space aren’t so lucky and can’t rely on a propulsion system to get them out of harm’s way. Prof. Kneib mentioned a solar panel, which all of a sudden went missing after a collision. Such collisions lead to even more space junk, which in turn increase the likelihood of more collisions – a downward spiral, which is hard to escape. Things become even more alarming, when one considers the huge uptick in objects flying to space. This is in no small part due to private companies such as Blue Origin (a hobby horse of Jeff Bezos, the richest man on earth) and SpaceX (a passion project by yet another wealthy individual, Elon Musk). What in the past was used once and then thrown away – the rocket launcher – can now deliver multiple payloads to space. This recent revolution in reusability has lead to cheaper access to space, and, in turn, to an exponential increase in launches. This may be an exciting thing on the one hand, however it only accentuates the already looming space debris crisis. Prof. Kneib highlighted the Starlink project by Musk, which in the coming decades wants to populate space with up to 42'000 additional satellites, which is more than 20 times the amount of functional satellites currently in space. 

SpaceX releasing a batch of 60 satellites into low earth orbit as part of its Starlink project. Many experts worry that it will further escalate the space debris crisis.

Having thus laid out the problem (and succeeded in making the audience worried), Prof. Kneib continued to do what few have done so far: offer actual solutions. He presented the CleanSpace One project, a Swiss initiative which aims to start tackling space junk, and actively removing it from space. Even though only a handful of people have been involved in the project, CleanSpace One was recently selected by the European Space Agency (ESA) to launch a proof-of-concept mission. The idea is to send out a washing machine-sized satellite, which is able to grab a satellite (in this case the first Swiss satellite launched into space ten years ago) to subsequently take a deep dive and burn up together with its “cargo” in the earth´s atmosphere. What may seem a rather crude approach is nevertheless a necessary one. Simply put, “nobody has done it before” as Prof. Kneib pointed out, and somebody has to take a first step in the right direction. Moreover, Prof. Kneib talked about future iterations, which would be able to not only remove a single satellite but go back and forth between orbits and deliver multiple pieces of space junk to their fiery death.

The basic idea of ClearSpace One is to go up, grab stuff and then to go down again. What sounds easy, is a very challenging endeavor in practice.

Initiatives like this are not enough, however, there has to be strict regulation as well to prevent the situation from worsening. Prof. Kneib stressed that efforts to contain the crisis have been ineffective thus far. Space agencies merely recommend that a satellite´s lifespan be limited to 25 years, but companies have been turning a blind eye to that recommendation – knowing full well, that they wouldn´t suffer much in terms of consequences for their behavior. Thus, international and actually binding regulations are needed to discourage what economists call negative externalities – basically the outsourcing of negative effects to a third party. Since people tend to be mainly concerned with their own benefit, and not so much with the well-being of others, negative externalities are bound to occur everywhere, even in space. In order to rein them in, Prof. Kneib suggested enforced long-term planning regarding the use of our shrinking space in space. He concluded: “Sustainability is the new way to think, and it is the only way to think.”

The audience of around 30 people was very much captivated by Prof. Kneib´s presentation.

During the lively Q&A session Prof. Kneib revisited the immense destructive power of even small pieces of space junk. Given a head-on collision, an object measuring no more than one centimeter can incapacitate a satellite worth billions of dollars. Moreover, Prof. Kneib reiterated how little regulation exists pertaining to space, pointing out that sometimes companies don´t even wait for an official flight approval but just proceed to launch their rocket anyway.

After the presentation, participants had the opportunity to network and treat themselves to an assortment of delicious finger food. We would like to thank Prof. Kneib for his inspiring lecture, and Mr. Ren Zhanbing, Head of EPFL Alumni Shanghai Chapter for supporting the event.

STEAM Education as Important Economic Driver

By Nicola Hofer, Junior Project Manager - Academic Relations

On Friday, December 13, 2019, the “Shanghai International STEAM Education Promotion Conference” took place at the Renaissance Hotel in Shanghai. The enriching event meant to promote the “didac China International Education Fair”, which will take place on May 18-20, 2020. STEAM Education is a learning approach that uses science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics to engage students in critical thinking.

swissnex China seized the opportunity to give a short presentation on the outstanding Swiss education system. Following various presentations, the 140 invited guests had the chance to look for ways of future cooperation during a gala dinner. swissnex China was delighted to participate in this important event. We would be very pleased to drive forward further collaborations.

EPFL’s Valuable Contribution to the Reduction of Space Debris

By Nicola Hofer, Junior Project Manager - Academic Relations

swissnex China was delighted to attend the visit of the EPFL Space Center (eSpace) at Shanghai Jiao Tong University on November 27, 2019. During the event, Prof. Jean-Paul Kneib gave a fascinating lecture on “Towards a Sustainable Ecosystem: from Debris Removal to Space Logistics”. Prof. Jean-Paul Kneib has been the Director of the EPFL Space Center since July 2017 and the Director of the Laboratory of Astrophysics (LASTRO) since April 2016. He is regarded as one of the world’s leading experts in the fields of astrophysics and observational research.

In his lecture, Prof. Jean-Paul Kneib gave insights into the problems that may occur in the near future due to man-made orbital debris. He pointed out that space debris could limit the use of space infrastructure as a whole. A calculation carried out in 2018 shows that out of the 23,500 satellites currently present, only 1,650 are still active. Moreover, the sustainable use of space without binding rules becomes increasingly difficult, especially taking into account the involvement of the private sector. For this reason, the EPFL Space Center has launched the Clean Space One project, which aims to develop and build the first tranche of a satellite family specifically designed for space debris cleaning. The Clean Space One project began ten years ago with the launch of SwissCube, the first Swiss satellite sent into space. A further highlight of the lecture was the presentation of a new initiative on sustainable space logistics, conducted by the EPFL Space Center with the support of the European Space Agency.

swissnex China is confident that EPFL will continue to achieve exceptional results in the field of astrophysics and observational research. As the official representative of all Swiss public institutions in China, swissnex China is very proud to represent the interests of EPFL. We would like to thank Prof. Jean-Paul Kneib and Dr. Mohammad Madi (Business Development Lead at EPFL Space Center [eSpace]) for a highly rewarding afternoon. The interest among the faculty members and students of Shanghai Jiao Tong University was great. In this respect, the two institutions plan to further strengthen their cooperation.

ETH Alumni Chapter Shanghai Event: The Causes of Air Pollution in China and Ways to Reduce It

By Jun Ma, Board member of ETH Alumni Shanghai Chapter

ETH Alumni Chapter Shanghai organised together with swissnex an alumni event on November 15th, 2019. Our Speaker, Dr. Li Yonghua, formal visiting scholar at ETH, analyzed the causes in aspect of energy consumption and ways to reduce it in China.

ETH Alumni Chapter Shanghai organizes every year several events for the more than 100 alumni living in Shanghai area. This time Dr. Li Yonghua, visiting scholar in 2004-2005 at ETH Zurich, now works as Professor at School of Energy and Power Engineering in North China Electric Power University, spoke on cause of air pollution in China and the ways to reduce it. Dr. Li’s research interests focus on theory and technology of combustion, energy-saving and emission-reduction and new energy utilization technology. The event was hold at swissnex China office and has attracted more than 30 alumni from ETH or other Swiss universities.

Dr. Li Yonghua giving a speech

Dr Li’s speech consists of 3 chapters.

1. China’s resource per capita occupancy level is very low comparing to the world average level: the coal resource is 79% while natural gas and petroleum only 6.5% and 6.1%. As a consequent, the energy structure in 2016 (see the chart as below) shows that 62% energy in China was from coal, which is much more than the 28.1% in the world structure.

World and China Energy Structure

China's coal-based energy structure is determined by resources. China's resource reserves and consumption in 2016:

As we know, except for coal all the other resources (natural gas, petroleum, water, nuclear) are very clean, they don’t emit air pollutants. In contrast with other countries, China has to use coal since coal is the only available energy resource for the rapidly increased energy demand, which means control of coal-fired emission is the key for environmental protection. Therefore, China has applied the strictest environmental protection standard in power industry in the world.  

Environmental Protection Standard

The improvement in the last ten years is obvious, data released by the Ministry of Environmental Protection showed that in 2015, sulfur dioxide emissions from exhaust gases totalled 18.591 million tons, down 5.8% from the previous year. Nitrogen oxide emissions totalled 18.518 million tons, down 10.9% from the previous year. The soot emission was 15.38 million tons. Power pollution emissions accounted for less than 10% of total pollution. The emission per unit of coal power generation has reached the world advanced level and China's coal power efficiency is only slightly lower than Japan's, higher than Germany, the United States and other countries. But due to the huge base of coal consumption the total emissions are still very high, it could not be changed until new energy is applied.

2. Coal-fired generation is not the main source of pollution. In fact, for example, when we check sources of PM2.5 in Beijing, we see the coal-fire only makes 19% of the total pollution while automobile makes 25%, food industry 13% and outside transportation 19%. But Beijing has no coal-fired power plants; the coal is consumed by other industries.

Source of PM2.5 Beijing

Ways to reduce pollutions differ in every city and country, but it is difficult everywhere. Energy is an important pillar for the sustainable development of a country or society, but the use of energy will bring environmental pollution. At present, under the global climate change, the deterioration of ecological environment, as well as problems such as resource shortage, all countries in the world attach great importance to energy conservation and emission reduction. Sharing economy is a hot topic to make the city green, but it also brings safety issues. Moving industry out of the city could reduce industrial waste gas emission in the city, but it still remains. The accidents in Chernobyl nuclear power plant and Fukushinia Nuclear Power Plant urge people in the world to re-think nuclear energy. In Switzerland, all current new nuclear power plants will be closed after service.

3. From 2011 to 2040, the Science and technology research and development in China focuses on the clean and efficient utilization of coal (supercritical technology, IGCC, circulating fluidized bed, pollution control, etc.), improve the efficiency of the whole energy system (including the collection, conversion, utilization efficiency of terminal) (energy saving) and optimize the structure of energy (New energy). Ultra-low emission technologies for coal-fired power plants include: low-nitrogen combustion technology, SCR denitrification technology, high-efficiency wet desulfurization technology, wet dust removal technology, etc. After 2050, nuclear fusion, natural gas hydrate, space solar energy and hydrogenic energy could replace the current energy.

After the interesting speech we enjoyed very delicious Swiss style food sponsored by ETH and took a group photo with our most famous alumni, Albert Einstein.     

Group photo

About the Author: Jun Ma studied at Department ITET from 1997-2003 and he is board member of ETH Alumni Shanghai Chapter since 2019. He owns a start-up company in China.

Sino-Swiss Exchanges and Cooperation

By Claudio R. Boër, Senior advisor, swissnex China

In October and November, there have been several events and agreements signed with the intention of furthering Sino-Swiss collaborations in education, research and innovation.

11.10.2019 2nd  Swiss Aging and Healthcare Symposium

In the second Swiss Aging and Healthcare Symposium, organized by the City of Lugano, there was a large number of participants from greater China. The event, coordinated by CHOLLEY SA, a local cosmetic dermatology company with notable footprints in China, has been opened by the Mayor of Lugano and the Chinese participants were given an introduction to the role of swissnex in China by Prof. Claudio Boër.

14.10.2019 2nd Southern Swiss Innovation Forum

An exchange of ideas between the political, economic and scientific worlds on the topic of innovation, analyzed from three different perspectives: The European, the Swiss and the regional level. The focus of the three sessions is a reflection on innovation and the influence of digitalization and sustainability in our region, provided by the participation of prestigious personalities and by success stories of innovative regional companies.

Claudio Boer, Senior Advisor, swissnex China was in the Panel: Policy and Innovation - How is innovation policy interpreted, do we need new concepts of sustainability? How can we facilitate a sustainable effective interaction between science, economy and society?

• International: Claudio Boër, Senior Advisor, swissnex China and SUPSI’s Board Vice president

• Europe: Giovanni Azzone, President Arexpo s.p.a
  Otto Bruun, European Advisor for Innovation at SwissCore
  Enrico Nardelli, President Informatics Europe, Università di Roma “Tor Vergata”

• Switzerland: Christoph Eymann, National Council member, Canton of Basel-Stadt

• Ticino: Christian Vitta, State President of the Canton Ticino and Director of the Department of finance and economy
  Fabio Regazzi, National Council member and President of AITI
  Marco Borradori, Mayor of Lugano

There was also an interesting meeting between the students, the press and the audience with the Robot Sophia, an anthropomorphic robot with very realistic facial interfaces and voice based on AI. I was the moderator of the meeting.

25.10.2019    4th  Sino-Swiss Symposium of UAS

Concept

• The aim of the symposium is to show the functioning of SUPSI, through concrete examples of initiatives activated in particular in Mendrisio, a region of Ticino, where in September 2020 a new campus will be inaugurated. In particular, the dimension of relations with our stakeholders will be examined in depth, with examples of projects in favour of the local community that have been carried out with the involvement of institutions, companies, students, teachers and researchers.

Objectives

• The objective are to enhance the specificities of applied universities in economic, social and cultural development; to strengthen the relations between the Swiss and Chinese universities of applied sciences and to encourage exchanges and projects between SUPSI and the partners of the Chinese UAS present.

Promoters

• The event is organised and promoted in partnership by the Chinese Embassy in Switzerland, the China Education Association for International Exchange (CEAIE) in Beijing and SUPSI.

• This is the fourth Sino-Swiss UAS Symposium to date organised in Switzerland, following the 2018 Symposium at the HTW in Chur, the 2017 Symposium of the HES-SO in Freiburg and the 2016 Symposium of the FHNW in Olten.

Participants

• About 30 members of the Chinese delegation including embassy officials, rectors, managers of Chinese UAS and representatives of Chinese institutions.

• Representatives of SERI and its International Relations Division.
  The community of executives, professors, lecturers, researchers, managers and referents of international relations, students and institutional and corporate partners SUPSI, most involved with the issues and projects presented.

• UAS International Relations guests. Institutional guests.

Mrs.Beatrice Ferrari (SEFRI) exchanging gifts at the UAS Symposium

 04.11.2019 Signing Ceremony MOU Agreement SUPSI-UAD Zhejiang University

 The two universities will collaborate on projects and training in the field of sustainable architecture. Ten years after the first collaboration between the Department of Construction and Design (DACD) with Zhejiang University, the Institute of Sustainability applied to the built environment (ISAAC) and the degree course in architecture SUPSI signed an agreement with the Architectural Design and Research Institute (UAD) of Hangzhou (China). A collaboration that opens up further development prospects for the SUPSI Department of Construction and Design (DACD) both in the didactic field and in the field of applied research.

After 9 editions of the Sino-Swiss Workshop which saw architecture students from SUPSI and Zhejiang involved in different projects and travels between China and Ticino, the interest was born to deepen this already fruitful collaboration not only in the field of training, but also in the development of research projects and pilot projects involving both Swiss and Chinese industrial and private partners.

The aim is to develop, for the three-year period 2020-2023, a joint innovative pilot project involving the two partners in the development of a low carbon sustainable building demonstrator that integrates innovative technologies and involves Chinese and Ticino companies.

With these excellent premises, on 4 November, together with a delegation from the city of Lugano, a cooperation agreement was signed in Hangzhou between SUPSI and Zhejiang University. The agreement establishes the cooperation between the two institutions for the development of a program that implies an innovative and sustainable approach in applied research linked to the construction sector through innovative projects involving leading ecological technologies.

The delegation of the SUPSi and the City of Lugano in front of the main building of the UAD in Hangzhou.

07.11.2019 Sino-Swiss Forum for Innovation and Technology Transfer

Aude Pacton, Head of International Relations, swissuniversities

Opening Remarks

• Martina Weiss, Secretary General, swissuniversities

• Kai Xu, Programme Officer, International Cooperation Department, China Education Association for International Exchange

Fostering Innovation in Switzerland

• Beatrice Ferrari, Head of Bilateral Relations, State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation

Sino-Swiss Cooperation Examples in Innovation and Education

• Claudio Boer, Vice President, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI) & Senior Advisor, swissnex China

Swiss Day at Tsinghua University Shines Spotlight on Swiss Higher Education

By Danli Zhou, Head of Marketing & Communications

On Friday November 1, 2019, the Swiss Day was held at Tsinghua University for top-tier elite students and the general public to learn more about Swiss Public Universities as well as its world-class research and innovation ecosystem, organized by the Science & Technology section of the Embassy of Switzerland in China in partnership with Tsinghua University and Beijing Innovation Center for Future Chips.

The students had the great honour of attending a lecture from Prof. Giacomo Indiveri, Director of the Institute of Neuroinformatics, University of Zurich - the top comprehensive university in Switzerland. He introduced the field of neuromorphic computing technologies for building real-time behaving cognitive systems. Several media also attended the event.

The afternoon's activities included an exhibition and info desk on Swiss research & education, a fun quiz on Switzerland and Swiss cheese & chocolate tasting. Participants also had the fun opportunity to compete in a paper plane throwing contest to win a return flight to Switzerland with Swiss International Airlines.

We would like to congratulate our colleagues from the STE Section of the Embassy of Switzerland in China: Nektarios Palakas, Jonas Thürig, Chenchen Liu, Yijun William Wu and Sandro Wirth for the great event and stellar organization!

Data Protection from the Perspectives of IP and Antitrust

Published by Suyao AO, PR & Communications Coordinator

On Oct 19, 2019, the Research Center of China-EU Innovation Policy and Law (CEIPL), Tongji University organized the 2019 Tongji Workshop on China-EU Innovation and Competition: Data, IP and Antitrust. Prof. Dr. Peter Georg Picht, Center for Intellectual Property & Competition Law, University of Zurich and Erik Habich, research assistant of Prof. Picht both gave speeches at the workshop.

In today’s Internet era, data has become the fundament of most Internet technologies, which is constantly misused. There seems to be no bypass of this, if you want to go with the digital trend. Or you might have to use an old cellphone without Internet options. Under these circumstances, how could personal data be protected? By the law of right to personality? By the law of delict? By the special law of data? Or by the competition law, if we talk about Facebook case in Germany. In this regard, Prof. Dr. Peter Georg Picht, gave a speech about data protection and Cartel Law in respect of the Facebook Case in Germany.

Prof. Dr. Peter Georg Picht, Center for Intellectual Property & Competition Law, University of Zurich

 On 6 February 2019, the Federal Cartel Office, Germany's national competition regulator, filed an appeal to the Federal Court of Justice to restrict the data collection by Facebook in Germany for abusing its dominant market position to gather information about users without their consent. On 26 Aug 2019, the Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf suspended the February decision.

 The suspension is made based on that neither exploitation with abusive conditions regarding collection of user data, nor exclusion of competitors lacking comparable data collection opportunities has been shown by the Federal Cartel Office. For instance, normative causality or causality of results was not sufficient for exploitative abuse, and conduct causality between Facebook’s dominance and consumers’ acceptance of Facebook conditions were not shown. It was not substantiated which role Facebook-external data (data that Facebook collected from 3rd party websites) play as a barrier to market entry in relation to direct network effects from data generated on Facebook.

Prof. Picht thinks that the complete lack of harm by Facebook’s data-related conduct for consumers in this case is doubtful, but the competition law might be the wrong remedy. It is also important that illicit conduct by dominant undertaking does not automatically constitute a violation of competition law and that genuine competition law balancing of effects and interests is still outstanding.

Erik Habich, Center for Intellectual Property & Competition Law, University of Zurich

Erik Habich, research assistant of Prof. Dr. Peter Georg Picht then further discussed about the FRAND (fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory) commitments in data licensing based on recent case law from Germany. Mr. Habich gave some examples of the prongs and discussed the FRAND offer relevant to the prongs.

Besides University of Zurich, scholars and experts from MaxPlanck Institute for Innovation and Competition, Humboldt University of Berlin, Fudan University, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Tongji University, Federal Patent Court of Germany and IP Court of the Supreme People’s Court etc. gathered at the Shanghai International College of Intellectual Property (SICIP), Tongji University to discuss the better solutions for data protection from the perspectives of IP and antitrust.

Bernadette Alig, Katharina Fierz, ZHAW, on occasion of their China visit

Published by Bernadette Alig & Katharina Fierz, Nursing Institute of Zurich University of Applied Sciences

As the institute of nursing, school of health professions, Zürich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), we offer continuing education courses not only in Switzerland but also in China. More specifically, within the scope of an accredited Diploma of Advanced Studies in Gerontological Care (DAS – GC) and close cooperation with Chinese universities, expert lecturers provide classes in diverse topics related to gerontological care.  Being very curious about getting to know the Chinese culture, health care system, nursing education system and gerontological care and how our program fits the needs of the Chinese population, we decided to apply to swissnex intercultural exchange program. Finally, after several organizational forths-and-backs, last August, Bernadette Alig, MSc, Head of continuing education and Katharina Fierz, PhD, RN, Professor and Director (both Institute of Nursing at ZHAW), had the opportunity to travel to China, which was an awesome experience. We were able to introduce and reflect on our continuing education program in gerontological care with many Chinese healthcare experts and to enlarge our network.

Jonas Thürler and Chenchen Liu of the Swiss Embassy cared for us in an outstanding manner and were our most wonderful hosts, translators and guides who made possible the impossible. The meetings and visits that were organized were tremendously inspiring, impressive, and extremely informative.  

During our time in Beijing, we were able to meet many knowledgeable people introducing us to Chinese health care system, health care education, health care policy and providing insight into examples of excellent care for the elderly.

At the China Association of Social Welfare and Senior Service (CASWSS), we learned from Hua Han, Secretary General, and colleagues about the Association’s engagement in establishing national standards for gerontological care in terms of self-management, assessment, staff training and educational offerings. Furthermore, CASWSS organizes a yearly expo on progress in senior care comprising above topics. ZHAW was cordially invited to participate in 2020.

Swiss Delegation with CASWSS representatives

It was a great honor to meet Dr. Zhang Tuohong, National Professional Officer Health System and Health Security Team of the WHO China Office. Dr Zhang is internationally connected and provided an excellent international perspective on developments in health care for the elderly in China. She also was very open to discuss potentially sensitive topics such as the need to focus on palliative care, communication and psychosocial care within the scope of caring for the aging population in China and the political agenda for healthcare. She provided valuable information on levels and system of nursing education.

Dr. Zhang Tuohong, National Professional Officer Health System and Health Security Team of the WHO China Office and Prof. Katharina Fierz, Director of the Institute for Nursing at ZHAW

The meeting with representatives from the Health Human Resources Development Center (HHRDC), National Health Commission, provided a very interesting and fruitful discussion on the current situation of nurses and the nursing profession in China including the need for curriculum development on a high and future-oriented, academic level. Ms Zhang Yun, Head of Department of International Cooperation, HHRDC, Ms Nancy Fan, Program Supervisor, Department of International Cooperation, HHRDC, Ms Li Ke, Program Supervisor, Beijing Weirenweiye International Medicine Research Center, HHRDC, Ms Liu Huaping, Professor, School of Nursing Beijing Union Medical College; Director of WHOOC for Nursing Policy Making and Leadership and Ms Zhao Hong, Professor, School of Nursing Beijing Union Medical College; Deputy Director of WHOOC for Nursing Policy Making and Leadership were genuinely interested in further and ideally formalized cooperation in view of curriculum development and research.

ZHAW Delegation (third and fourth from left) and representatives of HHRDC

We also had – as intended – the chance to visit examples of excellent care. Ms. Li, Marketing and Operation Manager at the Cuncao Chunhui Home for the Aged (Ya Yun Can) dedicated her time to us. We were cordially invited on a tour around the house and introduced to the facility, various activity offerings (e.g., gardening) and devices to alleviate living at home as an elderly person and being able to participate in social and family life (e.g., a kind of a moveable rest to lean on while cooking). We had the excellent opportunity to ask and clarify questions regarding the institution’s principles, guidelines and nursing / caring processes. Biography work is an integral part of caring for clients suffering from dementia, including a ‘biography room’ furnished with objects from the past (e.g., very old TV / radio, furniture, wallpaper).

‘room of memories’ at Cuncao Chunhui Home for the Aged

Another most impressive place with the clear vision to care for the elderly and their families in a comprehensive way was one of the facilities of DaAi City Aged Care Service Co, which is an independent division of DaAi City Investment Holdings Co., Ltd. Fan Congiun and Wu Danxing, Vice President DaAi City Aged Care Service Co, Ltd, CEO, welcomed the delegation from ZHAW cordially and we immersed ourselves in most stimulating discussions before we enjoyed an astonishing tour around the house.

Wu Danxing, Vice President DaAi City Aged Care Service Co

The DaAi City home for the elderly is situated 1.5 hrs outside Beijing and with its spacious public area, single-bed rooms, an in-house shop and many activation offerings, indeed, an impressive place. Activation and rehabilitation is a credo, which is followed rigorously and can be traced wherever you go: we observed clients singing, playing cards or other games, shopping, rehearsing the last piano lesson, a.s.f. during the entire tour. Existing activation offerings can be expanded if clients wish to do so. A swimming pool, state-of-the-art rehab devices, yoga room, floral arts, calligraphy and painting, music, and so forth are only some of the further opportunities offered to clients.

Furthermore, the organisation’s vision is comprehensive care and social participation, including the family living nearby, the option to move from one center to another within China according to one’s preferences and growing one’s own vegetable and fruit.

After these days filled with new impressions, questions, answers, we enjoyed a day off, reveled in touristic activities and visited the Great Wall and the Forbidden City.

 Thanks to swissnex China we were able to gain valuable and inspiring insights into the Chinese healthcare system – we would like to thank all of you who made this experience possible!

Forbidden City – impression

The Great Wall with visitor from Switzerland

Interdisciplinary Look into the Future

Published by Libing Gu, Head of Academic Relations

swissnex China had the great pleasure to support the 3rd International Conference on Interdisciplinarity in Translation and Interpreting, held in Shanghai from October 25th to 26th at Shanghai International Studies University (SISU).

Welcome speech by Dr. Felix Moesner, CEO & Science Consul of swissnex China

The Conference was organized by Graduate Institute of Interpretation and Translation (GIIT) of SISU and strongly supported by University of Geneva and swissnex China. The topic ‘Telescope or Periscope: An Interdisciplinary Look into the Future’ is very timely to gather academics and professionals in economy, law, medicine, neuroscience or affective sciences to present their research projects and exchange ideas with peers and senior colleagues. In engaging the multitude objects of study with interdisciplinary approaches, the Conference covered a wide range of current trends and challenges in translation and interpreting (T&I) such as how AI is transforming the language profession, interdisciplinarity as a key to T&I quality etc.

Speech by Prof. Stéphane Berthet, Astrophysicist, Vice Rector, University of Geneva “Space to Shape our Future”

Swiss speakers included Vice President Stéphane Berthet, Astrophysicist, Vice Rector, University of Geneva, Prof. Jean-Marie Annoni, Professor of Neurology, Department of Medicine, University of Fribourg, Prof. Alessandra Fioravanti, Law and Legal Translation Professor, Faculty of Translation and Interpretation, University of Geneva, Prof. Gary Massey, Director IUED Institute of Translation and Interpreting, Zurich University of Applied Science and foremost Prof. Hannelore Lee-Jahnke, Chair of Interdisciplinary Research Center, GIIT, SISU, Professor and President CIUTI, University of Geneva.   

Group photo

Prior, it was a great moment to congratulate Vice Rector Prof. Stephane Berthet for the 𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟵 𝗡𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗹 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗣𝗵𝘆𝘀𝗶𝗰𝘀 by close scientist colleagues Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz from the University of Geneva. Congratulations!  

(Left to Right) Rahel Gruber, Head of Operations, Co-Deputy CEO at swissnex China, Prof. Stephane Berthet, Vice Rector at University of Geneva, Dr. Felix Moesner, Science Consul & CEO at swissnex China

Strong Interest in Switzerland’s Education System

Published by Nicola Hofer, Junior Project Manager - Academic Relations

Important events for Switzerland’s higher education system occurred in the 43rd calendar week. On October 25, 2019 the European Education Fair took place at Fudan University, and on October 26 and 27, 2019 the China Education Expo took place at Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center. Both events strengthened Switzerland’s competitiveness by drawing attention to its first-class universities. The two happenings were very successful, attracting top Chinese students to apply for a Bachelor’s, Master’s or PhD program at one of Switzerland’s leading institutions.

 The European Education Fair, which took place on October 25, 2019, aimed to provide students at Fudan University with information about the European institutions. swissnex China – officially representing all Swiss public universities in China – seized the opportunity to draw attention to Switzerland’s outstanding education system. To this end, swissnex China placed a booth in the entrance area of the university to provide Fudan’s top students with information about the various curriculums. Students were thus able to make contact with alumni of Swiss universities. The response was great; many students wish to go to Switzerland to sharpen their academic profile. swissnex China also took the chance to present the advantages of the Swiss education system in a 20-minute presentation. Again, the interest was great; the room was occupied to the last seat.

Niccolò Schlueb, Junior Project Manager at swissnex China

Nicola Hofer, Junior Project Manager at swissnex China

Another highlight took place on the weekend of October 26 and 27, 2019. At the China Education Expo 2019, future students had the opportunity to inform themselves about the advantages of studying abroad. The China Education Expo is an exhibition tour of the China Education Association for International Exchange. It is a leading event for foreign schools to expand their presence in what is potentially the world’s largest recruitment market. More than 20 national pavilions are actively represented at China Education Expo, including Switzerland. The China Education Expo attracts more than 60,000 visitors from all over China every year. swissnex China has grasped the opportunity to demonstrate the advantages of Switzerland’s education system, alongside the University of St. Gallen and the Glion Institute of Higher Education. The rush was huge; hundreds of Chinese students are considering an education in Switzerland. In addition to the information brochures provided, a highlight were the giveaways of our sponsors. In this regard, a special thanks goes to our sponsors Nobleness and swissmooh, who provided us with colorful Caran d’Ache pens, Swiss milk and Swiss cheese. All giveaways aroused great interest among the guests!

We are convinced that the European Education Fair and the China Education Expo have convinced many top Chinese students of the benefits of Switzerland’s education system. Successful future graduates will further strengthen the Swiss institutions and Swiss market. We are looking forward to representing the Swiss universities again next year.

Libing Gu, Head of Academic Relations at swissnex China / Nicola Hofer, Junior Project Manager at swissnex China

Successful Gathering of the Alumni of the University of Zurich

Published by Nicola Hofer, Junior Project Manager - Academic Relations

October 21, 2019 was a great opportunity for the alumni of the University of Zurich to meet and toast past and future times.

We were delighted to welcome an Executive MBA delegation from the University of Zurich to our Shanghai office in the afternoon. The EMBA program of the University of Zurich offers upper level executives a cutting-edge, advanced interdisciplinary management training. The program includes study visits to China, India and the USA.

swissnex China – the Science Consulate of Switzerland in China – has taken the opportunity to illuminate China’s innovative strength. Our esteemed speakers rounded off the overall picture of China by providing interesting and at the same time useful information about China’s business culture. We would like to express our sincere thanks to our keynote speakers:

Erwin Luthi, Deputy Consul General of Switzerland in Shanghai
Marco Duri Cabalzar, Business Development APAC, REMATEC / IWK GROUP
Thomas Ahlers, Senior Manager Sales Products & Programs Greater China, Lufthansa
Robin Trebbe, Managing Director China & Asia Pacific, Intersport International

 We are convinced that the presentations and insider tips will give our guests important and personally enriching insights that can be of great use back in Switzerland.

Another highlight took place in the evening on the roof of the bar "Kartel" in the center of Shanghai. Alumni of the University of Zurich, who were present in Shanghai, had the opportunity to meet old acquaintances and make new friends.

A big thank you goes to Dr. Matthias Schaub, Eric Schinzel, Thorsten Klein and Hui Jun (Shawn) Shi from the EMBA University of Zurich program’s managing team as well as Makiko Aikawa and Sabine Katrin Neuhaus, co-chairs of the UZH Alumni Chapter in Shanghai.

Swiss French-Speaking Alumni Event at the Confucius Institute in the University of Geneva

By Confucius Institute at the University of Geneva

On the evening of October 8, 2019, the Confucius Institute at the University of Geneva hosted the fifth meeting of the Swiss French-speaking alumni in China.

Gérald Béroud, President of the French-speaking section of the Swiss-Chinese Association, Béatrice Ferrari, Head of Bilateral Relations at the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation, and swissnex China representative, Jeyanthy Geymeier, representative of the Alumni Association of Lausanne University, as well as Basile Zimmermann, Director of the Confucius Institute, welcomed the thirty participants to this event.

After Basile Zimmermann welcomed everyone at the Confucius Institute, Ms Ferrari, Ms Geymeier, and Mr Beroud each said a few words of introduction.

Afterwards, the sinologists Estelle Niklès van Osselt of the Fondation Baur in Geneva gave a presentation. She explained how she studied in China from 1993 until 2004, attending courses in Chinese universities and doing research in the fields of history of art and archeology. She shared her memories of fieldwork and first-hand research experience at the famous pottery center Jingdezhen. Ms Niklès also described how much China changed over these years, including how Chinese people think about themselves, but also how their technical environment changed. For instance, WeChat software is now used everywhere in the country, and Ms Niklès relies on it to keep in touch with her former classmates.

Switzerland is one of the first country to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China, and in 2020 we will celebrate its 70 anniversary. Over the last 69 years, exchanges between the two countries with regard to education, technology, exchanges and collaborations, have resulted in many successes. In this process, the contribution of alumni have proved extraordinarily fruitful.

This event received the support of the Education Section at the Chinese Embassy, swissnex China, the French-speaking section of the Swiss-Chinese Association, the Alumni Association at Lausanne University, as well as the Department of East-Asian studies and the Confucius Institute in the University of Geneva. 

日内瓦大学孔子学院举办瑞士法语区留华校友联谊活动

当地时间10月8日晚，瑞士日内瓦大学孔子学院举办第五届瑞士法语区留华校友联谊活动。

        瑞中协会法语区分会会长白鹄（Gérald Béroud）先生、瑞士联邦政府科技文化中心代表彼阿特丽丝.法拉利（Béatrice Ferrari）女士、洛桑大学校友会代表泽燕西.歌梅尔（Jeyanthy Geymeier）女士、孔院外方院长金亦然（Basile Zimmermann）先生以及30多位曾在中国留学的瑞士友人参加了活动。

         活动开始，金亦然院长首先致欢迎词。法拉利女士、歌梅尔女士和白鹄先生分别代表各自的组织发表了讲话。

        随后，瑞士鲍氏东方艺术馆（Fondation Baur Musée des Arts d'Extrême-Orient）策展人、汉学家李秋星（Estelle Niklès van Osselt）向各位留华校友分享了自己从1993至2004年间在中国进行的艺术和考古方面的访问、交流和研究工作及其心得体会。其中，她所展示的景德镇历代瓷器装烧图以及自己所做的相关的笔记引起了在场听众极大的兴趣。李秋星还跟大家谈到了中国这些年的发展和变化，包括人们的思想观念和技术文化的变迁。她觉得，微信群是一个非常方便而且有用的交流平台，在微信群里，她可以跟中国的同行分享各自的工作成果和共同感兴趣的东西，这让她感到非常高兴。

       作为和中国最早建交的国家之一，中瑞在2020年将迎来两国建交70周年。在过去的69年间，中瑞两国在教育、科技和文化领域积极互联沟通、精诚合作，取得了丰硕的成果，这其中，曾经在中国留学的瑞士各界友人发挥了重大的作用，做出了不可磨灭的贡献。

         此次活动获得了中国驻瑞士大使馆文教科处、瑞士联邦政府科技文化中心、瑞中协会法语区分会、日内瓦大学东亚学系、日内瓦大学校友会以及洛桑大学校友会的大力支持。

China’s Green Revolution – an ESG round trip: Guest Blog by Dr. Jan-Alexander Posth

By Dr. Jan-Alexander Posth, Senior Lecturer at the ZHAW School of Management and Law

“Environmental, Social and Governance” (ESG) compliant investment has a long-standing history, dating back to the 1960-ties in the US.

With developments like climate change now being a certainty and global pollution not only endangering health but also negatively affecting productivity, ESG has experienced an even greater renaissance: It is now increasingly recognized that ESG-compliant investing and policy design has the potential to creatively reshape whole industries and to positively influence the development of economies as well as societies.

China, too, has realized this and embarked on an epic undertaking to transform its economy. After rushing through its industrial revolution and now in the final stage of its 12th Five-Year-Plan, China today faces an economic slowdown as well as natural resources scarcity, industrial pollution and corruption, all hampering further economic growth and social development. In order to countermand this trend, the Chinese government has initiated a set of reforms, aiming to, again, rapidly transform its economy – this time along ESG criteria.

ZHAW SML is consistently exploring the opportunities associated with ESG, impact investing, and green finance. With the ongoing shift of focus towards this new research field, it is essential to understand the implications on a broader, international and global scale – climate change and pollution being a global problem. China being a major and still emerging driver, plays an important role in global economic development as well as in green finance and it is thus of immense importance to understand the implications of China’s development and its action taken with regard to ESG policy, green finance, and the overall transformation of its economy.

Therefore, for me it was a great opportunity and an honour to be invited to China by swissnex China and ZHAW Resort Internationales this summer. My ESG investigation round trip to China started in Shanghai with a tight agenda consisting of valuable on-site visits and two talks given, one at the office of swissnex China and one at ShanghaiTech University. I then transferred to Beijing by high-speed train where the program continued with high-ranking visits and highly interesting meetings and discussions, covering a wide variety of ESG related topics. Again, swissnex China did an incredible job at linking me up with important ESG stakeholders and at facilitating meetings. Being able to talk to researchers and practitioners alike, I gained an in-depth insight where China focuses when thinking ESG and how this needs to be integrated in China’s overall objectives.

I am thus positive, that this broader understanding, alongside a wider scope of research and the established contacts during my visit, will help to enable a deeper bilateral understanding of ESG and related matters from a Chinese and Swiss point of view, resulting in long-lasting cooperation, bilateral research activity and new insights on both sides.

Finally, I would like to express my profound thanks to swissnex China, and especially to Ms. Libing Gu, for their excellent coordination of my visit and their continuing help during my stay as well as to ZHAW Resort Internationales for supporting the trip.

ESG – starting at the airport

Visit at De Tao Group

Visit at swissnex China & team

High-speed train from Shanghai to Beijing

Sustainability on a smaller scale

Dr. Jan-Alexander Posth is a senior lecturer at the Institute for Wealth and Asset Management at the ZHAW School of Management and Law. He has more than 12 years of professional track record in the financial industry, where he gained extensive expertise as a risk manager, quant and portfolio manager. Starting at Deutsche Postbank as a credit risk manager, Jan-Alexander moved on to Landesbank Baden-Württemberg where he built up the quant infrastructure for the structured credit trading division and led the fund derivatives trading desk. Joining STOXX Ltd. in 2012, he was responsible for the development of smart-beta equity indices and multi-factor models before becoming Head of Research and Portfolio Management at Tom Capital AG in 2015. Jan-Alexander holds a PhD in theoretical physics.