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Through this blog we share a bit of history, ongoing activities from our units and their teaching, reflections from our alumni and GIUZ's vision for the future. Come with us on this journey and get to know the GIUZ!
Our anniversary year is drawing to a close, not much went as planned and a lot had to be cancelled due to Covid-19. Nevertheless, 124 blog posts were published over the course of 2020 - and this 125th concludes the year.
Die Gletscher und ihre Veränderungen aufgrund des Klimawandels sind in der öffentlichen Wahrnehmung sehr präsent. Auch bei uns am Geographischen Institut sind sie ein zentrales Thema. Doch das ist nicht neu.
So zugespitzt hat das ein deutscher Kabarettist formuliert. Denn: Unser Gehirn ist wie ein Muskel. Wir müssen es benutzen, damit es leistungsfähig bleibt. Je mehr wir Navigationssysteme nutzen, desto schlechter können wir uns selbständig in der Welt zurechtfinden.
Now, as this semester ends, the second one after our whole world changed and a faraway threat became an invisible, but real influence on all our lives, I think it is worth reflecting on the importance of kindness.
Big mobility data are being generated on a daily basis. How can they help to make road transportation greener, safer, and accessibility to services such as health care more equitable? Within a Horizon 2020 project we have developed big data technology and demonstration studies.
How do you experience the world around you? And how could you put that into words? In my PhD project I collect descriptions how people perceive landscapes with a completely new approach. Will you contribute?
In the last 15 years, tourism has spread rapidly in the Georgian mountains and became the most potent rival to agriculture. What are the consequences for the host communities' economy?
Wirtschaft, Ernährung, Energie, Migration: Durch die enge internationale Vernetzung betrifft der globale Klimawandel fast alle Bereiche unseres Lebens. Und die Risiken sind eng miteinander verflochten. Wie kann die Schweiz diese Entwicklung beeinflussen?
Mountain regions are biodiversity hotspots and provide half of humanity with freshwater for everyday life. Their conservation is a key factor for sustainable development. Today is the International Mountain Day.
No need to go far outside the city of Zurich to observe hydrologically interesting locations like temporary streams. They fall dry from time to time and play an important role for aquatic life. But data on these streams are still missing. Can we count on you?
Do you like being active in the mountains? Are you a winter sports enthusiast? Or do you want to know how global warming affects water resources in Switzerland? Have a look at the snow maps provided by ExoLabs!
1980 kam es in Zürich zu Jugendunruhen, an denen sich viele Geographiestudierende beteiligten. Sie forderten eine kritische Auseinandersetzung mit ihrem Fach. Heutige Studierende sind dieser turbulenten Zeit nachgegangen.
Twenty biodiversity targets were defined for the past decade to reach the vision of "living in harmony with nature". Not a single one of them was achieved in 2020. Now an international consortium of researchers examined drafts for new targets.
How do you navigate to a place you have never been to before? A PhD project investigates how we should visualize landmarks on mobile map displays to support pedestrians in learning the environment they travel through.
Advances in methods and interweaving of disciplines enable us to better understand what drives changes in biodiversity.
What if you could immerse yourself and experience a future transport system in a realistic looking virtual environment instead of reading about it in a printed booklet before casting your vote?
Raumplanung sei angewandte nachhaltige Entwicklung, meinte einer der Podiumsgäste. Die wichtigsten Bausteine dafür: Eine sorgfältige Abwägung der verschiedenen Interessen und sich vor Augen zu halten, für wen wir unseren Lebensraum gestalten wollen.
Jedes Jahr organisiert der Verein Enviroswiss durch eine Gruppe von Studierenden ein Wochenende für andere Studierende rund um ein aktuelles Umweltthema. Diesmal ging es um die Auswirkungen der Digitalisierung.
A background in laser spectroscopy and a strong interest in computer vision for remote sensing to collaborate on sustainable development projects: Read about the expertise and motivation of a developer at GIUZ.
Mit Färbeversuchen studieren wir seit einigen Jahren die unterirdischen Wasserwege im Gebirgsstock der Chäseren und des Hoch-Ybrig. Das Projekt liefert wichtige Daten, um Strategien für die Wasserversorgung im Alpgebiet zu entwickeln.
Sind sich Öffentlichkeit und Verantwortliche im Bildungswesen bewusst, was der Geographieunterricht leisten kann? Wird das Potential des Fachs bereits ausgenutzt? Wie soll der Geographieunterricht in Zukunft aussehen?
In Nepal stellte die Grossfamilie lange Zeit ein sicheres Auffangnetz für ältere Familienmitglieder dar. Doch mit fortschreitendem sozio-ökonomischem und demographischem Wandel hat sich diese soziale Institution signifikant verändert.
Der Klimawandel ist in seiner ganzen Komplexität nur schwer greifbar – besonders was er für uns in der Schweiz bedeutet. Zwei Studierende haben die einzelnen Wissensbruchstücke zu einem ganzheitlichen Bild zusammengefügt.
Immer mehr Menschen zieht es für das perfekte Instagram-Foto nach draussen. Wie verändert das unsere Wahrnehmung von Natur und Wildnis? Für «SRF Forward» hat Norman Backhaus einige Fotos kommentiert und mit seiner Forschung in Bezug gesetzt.
In unfamiliar environments we often use our smartphones to facilitate wayfinding. A PhD project investigates how navigation technologies should be designed to optimally support spatial learning. Are you interested to participate?
What we aim for is 125 in this anniversary year. A considerable number – as well as the years the GIUZ already has on its back. Our anniversary blog is intended to be a colourful bouquet reflecting the diversity of our topics and activities. Enjoy browsing!
Is it possible to prepare regional and seasonal vegetarian food with a minimal budget? What is permaculture? Check these and other questions on an interactive website created by GIUZ students.
Zum 250. Geburtstag von Ludwig van Beethoven plante das Akademische Orchester Zürich seine 6. Sinfonie mit filmischer Live-Untermalung aufzuführen. Mehrere GIUZ Alumni und Studierende waren an der musikalischen und szenischen Umsetzung beteiligt.
Agrochemicals are key drivers of our current global food system, making today's agriculture dependent on these chemical substances as never before. In addition to the massively rising use of pesticides in the global South, their production has also shifted there.
That's what a farmer said when narrating about detrimental practices on water ecosystems. As part of his PhD research, Rémi Willemin explored waterscapes quality in the Jura based on the farmers' pictures, testimonies and imaginations of futures.
Das Geographische Institut hat eine abwechslungsreiche «Standortgeschichte»: Ausschnitte aus einem Film über die Vergangenheit des GIUZ, der 2014 anlässlich des Jubiläums der Geographisch-Ethnographischen Gesellschaft erstellt wurde.
Die Agglomeration Zürich hat sich in den letzten Jahrzehnten sehr dynamisch entwickelt. Geographie Alumni UZH organisierte einen stadtgeographischen Rundgang mit spannenden Einblicken in die Strategien und Konzepte der Stadt Dietikon.
And what is global change? More than 25 members of the URPP Global Change and Biodiversity give their very personal answers in short video statements, among them many GIUZ researchers.
In February I set out on a travel to Nepal to conduct fieldwork for my Master's thesis. Besides the usual, my luggage contained: a rough draft of a research proposal, a few addresses, many question marks, but only a slight idea about what would actually await me.
Welche Bildung braucht es im 21. Jahrhundert? Welchen Beitrag kann das Schulfach Geographie dazu leisten? Diese beiden Fragen stehen im Fokus des Workshops am 29. Oktober. Reflektieren und diskutieren Sie mit uns!
Global change and the loss of biodiversity threaten ecosystems around the world. Satellites provide continuous data on a global scale. How can satellite data be used to map functional diversity?
Läuft uns die Zeit davon? Eine Frage und drei Antworten im aktuellen UZH Magazin: Eine davon gibt Michael Zemp, Professor für Glaziologe und Direktor des World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS).
Ein Dokumentationsfilm zeigt am Beispiel eines Landschaftsschutzgebiets an der Kantonsgrenze Thurgau - St. Gallen auf, wie ein Forschungsprojekt des GIUZ einen partizipativen Prozess in Gang gesetzt hat.
Bernhard Schmid is the Eminent Ecologist award winner for 2020. In a blog series, he gives further insight into his career, research and ecological experiences. Read here the second part.
An online exhibition focuses on Chitwan as an archive of terrestrial change by fixing into images and sounds of the past. Ulrike Müller-Böker contributed to this project of the Nepal Picture Library in Kathmandu.
Over the past decade, we carried out a large number of flight missions over Swiss territory. This allows us to measure terrestrial processes at regional scale. An animation shows you where we flew!
Wie werten und bewerten Menschen ihre Umwelt? Wie eignen sie sich natürliche und öffentliche Räume an? Und wie können wir diese Prozesse erforschen? Bildergalerie der Abteilung «Space, Nature & Society» zum Auftakt unserer GeoBits-Serie.
Communicating the significance of your project to a non-specialist audience in just three minutes: Kiran Zahra shares this challenging experience for a PhD student.
Bernhard Schmid is the Eminent Ecologist award winner for 2020. In a blog series, he gives further insight into his career, research and ecological experiences.
Autumn semester is here. Coronavirus hasn't gone away, and things are not back to normal. However, the new forms of teaching are great fun and rewarding. A reaction to a report in the Tagesanzeiger.
Verkehrsmittel besitzen oder nutzen? Wie kann automatisiertes Fahren die Effizienz steigern? Müssen wir Mobilität unter Covid-19 neu denken? Und: Wie können wir einen kulturellen Wandel herbeiführen?
Eine persönliche Begrüssung im Hörsaal war dieses Jahr leider nicht möglich. Christian Berndt, Professor für Wirtschaftsgeographie und für die Lehre zuständig, stellt das Institut und die Lehre in diesem speziellen Semester in einem Video vor.
Playfully generating data for research: Gamification is an attractive approach, especially in times of COVID-19. PhD student Manuel Bär wants to know how people perceive the landscape in their immediate surroundings.
Last autumn, many people could not quite understand the choice of my Master's thesis topic. Three months and a pandemic outbreak later things are quite different. Spatial and socio-economic conditions play an important role in the spread of diseases.
Was hat das Studium der Geographie oder Erdsystemwissenschaften neben Vorlesungen und Übungen noch zu bieten? Zum Beispiel Wanderweekends, Berufspodien und die DoBar, die der Fachverein Geoteam gemäss dem Motto «von Studis für Studis» organisiert.
Since the Holocene epoch, we benefit from a relatively stable state of the Earth system. Unfortunately, this equilibrium is increasingly threatened, among others by climate change and nitrogen pollution. Soils play a major role.
From calibration of instruments and flight planning to mission control, operations and the resulting products: Andreas Hueni collected snapshots of the past years to explain the different stages of a flight mission.
Wie gehen Jugendliche mit Abfall um? Welche Bedeutung hat Geld in der Schweizer Gesellschaft? Wie nimmt die Bevölkerung den Einsatz von Pestiziden wahr?
Ein Jahreskredit für das Institut in der Höhe von 1'500 Franken, Raumnot und ein Professor, der eigenhändig das Georelief bemalt: Unterhaltsame Ausschnitte aus Institutsberichten 1926-1929.
How do you monitor micrometer-sized marine phytoplankton using data from a satellite located 800 km above the Earth's surface? In a field campaign in Tyrrhenian Sea, a consortium of researchers demonstrated how it works.
Die Idee, einen Winter im Norden zu verbringen, hat ihn schon immer gereizt. Livio Gerber studiert Geographie und Ethnologie und hat ein Semester in Finnland verbracht.
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed our everyday life in an unprecedented way and has made us very conscious about the vulnerability of our modern society. It has demonstrated an increasingly critical need for systemic transformation, based on the principles of sustainability and resilience.
Wie verstehen Digitale Nomad*innen ihren Lebensstil? Wie wird die Europaallee von der Zürcher Bevölkerung wahrgenommen? Wie erleben jüdische Menschen ihren Alltag in Zürich?
The anniversary blog is taking a break and will be back in mid-August. Enjoy your summer holidays!
Lost in research? Fieldwork under chaos? Congratulations! When we leave the comfort of the already known and fail (our expectations), new territories open up and valuable discoveries become possible.
Covid-19 hat diesen Frühling viele Exkursionen für Geographiestudierende unmöglich gemacht. Doch dank eines Lehrkredit-Projekts können sie nun auf eigene Faust entdecken, wie Wasser die Stadt Zürich prägt.
A chronology of the changes on the western edge of the Greenlandic ice sheet since the Swiss expedition of 1912: historical maps and aerial photographs, but also satellite data, drone photographs and GPS measurements form a bridge to today's climate research.
Im Vorfeld der Abschiedsvorlesungen von Prof. Hans Elsasser und Prof. Klaus Iten im Januar 2009 war diese Karikatur am Geographischen Institut aufgehängt. Bis heute ist nicht bekannt, wer sie gemacht hat.
Durch Direktvermarktung und extensive Landbewirtschaftung versucht die «Solidarische Landwirtschaft» den negativen Folgen des globalen Agrarsektors entgegenzuwirken. Lange beschränkte sich dies auf Gemüse. Doch das Angebot steigt.
Das Berner Seeland ist die «Gemüsekammer» der Schweiz. Die Moorböden, das Wassermanagement und die landwirtschaftliche Nutzung stehen jedoch im Spannungsfeld zwischen Produktivität und Nachhaltigkeit.
Field courses provide some of the most memorable moments in learning and teaching Geography and Earth System Science. The students always show great enthusiasm - sometimes even too much, when they attempt one more sample while daylight is already fading.
In high alpine regions, ice keeps masses of loose debris together. Alessandro Cicoira computed the influence of climate on the dynamics of rock glaciers as part of his PhD thesis.
Das Landesmuseum als Ort der gesellschaftlichen Erinnerung – unter diesem Motto stand eine Exkursion mit Sekundarschul-Studierenden der Pädagogischen Hochschule Zürich. Ihre Eindrücke verarbeiteten die Studierenden gleich vor Ort zu thematischen Comics.
One earth - many worlds: Spotlights visualize nationalities of GIUZ staff members. More than 30 nations are represented. Not surprisingly, Europeans make up a large proportion of them.
Loess deposits are an excellent source of information and are therefore used to reconstruct environments and climates in former times. A master's thesis investigated different soil profiles in Poland.
Die Schlacht wurde angeblich entscheidend von der Landschaft geprägt. Doch wie sah es rund um den Ägerisee damals aus? Ein integratives Projekt von Geographie-Studierenden ging im Jahr 2014 dieser Frage nach.
Where are possible sites for wind and hydropower? How much power can be produced with these alternative energy sources? Check out the interactive maps produced by two GIUZ students!
How can crop roots help to combat climate change? A field study on biochar and rice root architecture shows that roots are highly plastic and can greatly contribute to the soil organic matter pool.
How are we moving around our cities while facing a global pandemic? How have lockdowns affected movement? How do we accommodate urban travel that requires social distancing?
In these strange times, many of us have made use of this situation of confinement to think, research and discuss about how the world will keep developing during and after the Covid-19 pandemic: thoughts on the current crisis and the resulting socio-economic one.
Combining 3d measurements and radiative transfer models helps to improve forest monitoring and to increase understanding of ecosystem functioning.
Die Gletscher schmelzen, die klimatischen Bedingungen ändern sich - das stellt die lokale Bevölkerung vor grosse Herausforderungen. Was sind die Folgen für den Wasserhaushalt und die Sedimentverfügbarkeit im Lötschental?
Recreationists planning backcountry ski tours often rely on web-based avalanche prevention platforms. The analysis of such data provides unique insights into human behaviour in avalanche prone terrain.
National parks aim to protect nature. But different claims to natural resource use often clash and create tensions. GIUZ researchers want to better understand how human-nature relationships influence the different opinions about national parks.
After several weeks of home office once again a visit to the Irchel campus? With the "Irchel Nature Trail" you can learn about the biodiversity and ecosystems of the Irchel Park. On 22 May, GIUZ researchers will accompany you on an exploratory tour.
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The coping mechanisms of field hydrologists and other geographers during the Covid-19 restrictions: Two H2K members share their creative solutions.
What makes games so popular? Perhaps that the outcome depends on behavior, on strategy, but also on pure chance? One thing is certain: they are great tools for learning.
Using rubber boots and rain gauge instead of ice axe and down jacket for glacier monitoring? Getting to know the later husband on a glacier? Gain insight into the work of the national correspondents of WGMS in 23 videos!
Two early career researchers initiated the WomenInHydrology group. This online platform enables female hydrologists to advertise jobs and workshops or to find collaborators, fellows or mentors.
The ShopSensor app determines which shop to go to at specific times to lower the risk of infection with COVID-19. The tool was developed by a PhD candidate at GIUZ in his spare time.
During the corona crisis, our reliance on food supply chains is even more pronounced than usual. This risks to intensify the unsustainable production of agri-food commodities.
"Water is life" – what comes across as a catchy slogan, gets to the point: The inestimable value of this resource. Much research is being done at GIUZ on water and its sustainable use, including outstanding master's theses.
Statt Gletschereis fliesst Slimy-Masse. Gwendolyn Leysinger Vieli und Andreas Linsbauer zeigen, wie der Gletscher als viskoses Medium den Hang hinunter kriecht.
Breites theoretisches Wissen und anwendungsnahe Kompetenzen: Geographinnen und Geographen haben das Handwerkszeug, um komplexe Aufgaben zu bewältigen und interdisziplinär zu denken.
Warum gibt es im Winter weniger Schnee als früher? Jonathan Davidson erklärt für Kinder im Kindergarten- und Primarschulalter, warum das Klima wärmer wird. Zur Zeit schreibt er am Geographischen Institut seine Bachelorarbeit.
As early as the 1960s, the University of Zurich offered in addition to the Geography program also a degree in Geology. This was realigned in 2012 as "Earth System Sciences".
What are the consequences of climate investments in cities of the Global South? In a new podcast episode of "Urban Political" Hanna Hilbrandt talks about the Green Municipal Bonds issued by Mexico City in 2016.
Doing qualitative research in a cross-cultural setting oftentimes requires the support and help of one or several research assistants. However, the appreciation of the commitment and work of research assistants often come missed out.
Was haben Eisbären mit Physik oder Früchte mit Solarzellen zu tun? Und was ist eigentlich Biodiversität? Das Science Lab UZH bietet Workshops rund um Themen der Geographie - neu auch in digitalen Formaten.
Systems thinking aims at breaking down social-ecological systems into the individual components and their interactions. Qualitative and quantitative models help to understand their dynamics.
What is the contribution of sounds to the way people perceive landscapes? Using automatic text analysis methods, Olga Koblet tries to answer this question in her research.
Many of us are currently challenged by parallel home schooling and virtual university teaching. If you were wondering how to generate synergies between the two, here a little idea.
The rapidly changing situation due to the Coronavirus forced us to prepare a new setup for our PhD defenses on March 18. Nobody, not even the presenters, were at Irchel campus. Here are our tips and tricks.
Am 22. März ist Weltwassertag. Dieses Jahr ist der Tag anders als sonst. In Zürich und vielen anderen Orten weltweit mussten die mit viel Engagement geplanten Wasserveranstaltungen abgesagt werden.
To strengthen our role in fostering sustainable practices and collaborating with the public, the GIUZ decided to officially implement a Sustainability Task Force.
This inscription is placed at a central location on the Irchel Campus. But where?
Fünf Geographiestudierende haben sich mit der Vergangenheit des Geographischen Instituts befasst und über kritische Lehre in der Geographie geforscht.
A tour of Zürich-Albisrieden organized by Geography Alumni UZH revealed where the 2000-watt society is taking shape and where action is needed.
You might be familiar with an increasingly common application of spatial genetics research: using people's DNA to identify their ancestry, for example as done by 23andMe or ancestry.com. Variable pieces of DNA are used to identify geographically located clusters.
Das Strebergärtli ist ein Gemeinschaftsprojekt von Studierenden der MNF und ermöglicht, einen Gemüsegarten auf dem Campus Irchel im Kollektiv zu bewirtschaften.
One common struggle of PhD candidates is the writing and publishing of scientific results. Thoughts from the scientific writing workshop of the Zurich Graduate School in Geography and Earth System Science.
EGEA organises five scientific congresses each year on various topics in the field of geography. One of these is the "Western Regional Congress", which EGEA Zurich is organising in April 2020.
Forests mediate important exchange processes between the biosphere and the atmosphere. We provide a tomographic perspective on forest gas exchange to enable the development of sensitive remote sensing approaches.
Zwei Masterstudentinnen und Itta Bauer (GTT) organisieren einen Workshop zur Kraft der jugendlichen Klimabewegung. Er findet im Rahmen des Kongresses «Reclaim Democracy - Reclaim the Future» in der Roten Fabrik in Zürich statt.
The European Geography Association (EGEA) is a network uniting around 5000 geography students and young geographers from almost 100 cities in more than 30 countries across Europe.
What kind of future do we want for biodiversity? Researchers, practitioners, decision-makers and societal actors will discuss at the World Biodiversity Forum in Davos.
Regional and national warning services publish daily avalanche bulletins. The descriptions of danger levels leave room for interpretation. Do avalanche warning services in the Alps speak the same language?
On our excursion to Greenland with students in August 2019, we found ice that dates back to the last ice age - and made coffee from it!
In 1912, Alfred de Quervain crossed the Greenland ice sheet. The data collected by the Swiss explorer are still of great value for today's research at GIUZ.
Intensive Lernphasen im Lichthof, hilfsbereite Kommilitoninnen und Kommilitonen, und ein spontanes Bier in der Irchelbar: Eine Geographie-Studentin berichtet.
Based on the recommendations of a group leader workshop in 2019, the GIUZ decided to establish a monitoring of its business air travels and set an air miles reduction goal of 25% by 2025.
Since January 2020 the newly established society Geographie Alumni UZH (previously Geographisch-Ethnographische Gesellschaft Zürich GEGZ) has been a member of UZH Alumni.
How can information design be used for effective learning and teaching? The Geography Teacher Training (GTT) unit at the exhibition at Zurich University of the Arts: as visitors and as contributors.
Wer an die bewegten 1980er Jahre denkt, hat meistens die sogenannten «Opernhauskrawalle» im Kopf. Die wenigsten wissen aber, dass diese Bewegung auch mächtig an den Fundamenten des GIUZ kratzte.
The method for re-analysis of mass balance series of glaciers as an interactive infographics: Actually, it's as easy as mixing mayonnaise!
Ernstfall 1940: Bei einem Überfall der Wehrmacht hätten die Schweizer Karten vernichtet werden müssen.
Using the CrowdwaterApp developed at GIUZ, citizen scientists worldwide collect data on river water levels and soil moisture. Now the app can also be used to map plastic pollution in rivers and along riverbanks.
Even after 125 years, GIUZ is in constant change. Right on time for the start of the anniversary year, the website of the new unit "Space, Nature and Society" went online.
Otto Stoll was the GIUZ founding father. Originally a physician, he was appointed the first full professor of Geography at the University of Zurich in 1895.
The largest Geography Department in Switzerland is celebrating its 125th anniversary, and what amazing has it been! Research, teaching, service, comradery, and fun have characterized the department's life since its inception.
