Sustainability

20 newest articles

Article list Sustainability

24.06.2026 Biodiversity

Environmental DNA Reveals Impact of Climate and Humans on Global River Fish Biodiversity

Human activity and climate influence biodiversity patterns in river ecosystems, as a global analysis of fish biodiversity using environmental DNA (eDNA) reveals.

More More
27.05.2026 Remote Sensing

ESA Mission to Explore Understory Biodiversity

The HiBiDiS mission aims to provide new insights into forest biodiversity, answering key questions about climate change. UZH is participating as a scientific partner.

More More
16.04.2026 UZH Staff

Between Campus and Society

Exhibitions that inspire and experiments that lead to new solutions: two UZH employees share how they bring knowledge to life.

More More
14.04.2026 Evolutionary Biology

How Soil Microbes Adapt to Life in Lakes

An analysis of bacteria in Lake Zurich reveals that some soil microbes acquire new traits in order to colonize new aquatic habitats, while others reduce their genome size.

More More
03.03.2026 UZH Sustainable

Imagine Lake Zurich Filled With Diamonds

Sustainability is no longer just nice-to-have, it’s a concrete call to action. The UZH Sustainable event showcased how the University of Zurich is answering this call.

More More
26.02.2026 Climate change

Global Warming Causes Cropland Areas to Shrink

The subtropics are particularly affected. Explore animated diagrams and interactive maps that show the extent of the decline in various climate scenarios.

More More
28.01.2026 Soil Ecology

Pesticides Significantly Affect Soil Life and Biodiversity

Seventy percent of soils in Europe are contaminated with pesticides. A Europe-wide study now shows that their effects on soil life are substantial, as pesticides suppress various beneficial soil organisms.

More More
13.08.2025 Glaciology

Falling Ice Drives Glacial Retreat in Greenland

When an iceberg calves, huge chunks of ice break off at the end of the glacier. These trigger high waves on the surface and underwater, pushing warmer sea water upwards. This accelerates the melting of the ice masses.

More More
05.06.2025 Plant sciences

Fungal Resistance in Wheat: Preserving Biodiversity for Food Security

Wheat production is threatened by a major fungal disease: yellow rust. UZH researchers have found traditional wheat varieties from Asia that harbor several resistance-conferring genes.

More More
15.05.2025 Climate Action

More Sustainability, Less Moral Preaching

If Switzerland and the EU want to become carbon-neutral by 2050, they need to overcome ideological rifts in business, politics and society.

More More
15.05.2025 Agroecology

Dual Associations with Two Fungi Improve Tree Fitness

Tree species that form symbioses with two different types of mycorrhizal fungi cope better with water and nutrient scarcity.

More More
15.05.2025 Natural History Museum

How Plants Communicate with Each Other

A new exhibition on plant communication marks the inclusion of botany at the University of Zurich’s Natural History Museum.

More More
02.05.2025 Plant Physiology

Natural Substitute for Pesticides

Chemical pesticides are becoming less and less effective. UZH plant immunologists are exploring a promising alternative that originates in the plants’ own natural defenses.

More More
26.03.2025 Global species loss

The Devastating Human Impact on Biodiversity

Humans are having a highly detrimental impact on biodiversity worldwide. Not only is the number of species declining, but the composition of species communities is also changing. These are the findings of one of the largest studies ever conducted on this topic.

More More
21.03.2025 World Day for Glaciers

Every Tenth of a Degree Helps

In many regions, the “eternal ice” of the glaciers will not survive beyond the 21st century – with fatal consequences for millions of people, reports the UZH-based World Glacier Monitoring Service.

More More
19.02.2025 Glaciology

Melting Glaciers Increase Loss of Freshwater Resources and Rise Global Sea Levels

The melting ice from glaciers worldwide is leading to an increased loss of regional freshwater resources. Since the year 2000, glaciers have been losing 273 billion tons of ice annually.

More More
30.01.2025 Environment and climate

Climate Change Increases Risk of Successive Natural Hazards in the Himalayas

An international research team reconstructed the Sikkim flood disaster in the Himalayas in October 2023 that triggered a deadly and devastating 20-meter flood wave.

More More
28.01.2025 Sustainability

Cafeteria Food and Carbon Footprints

Decarb UZH is a strategic project that gives new momentum to achieving climate neutrality at UZH. The university is reviewing its current implementation strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as much as possible by 2030.

More More
18.12.2024 Nexus-Report

We must move away from silo thinking

Ecological crises such as biodiversity loss, climate change and food security are interconnected and must be tackled in a coordinated way. This is one of the core statements of the Nexus Assessment Report published by IPBES.

More More
05.12.2024 Sustainability

Facts and Role Models

The sustainability team at UZH has been rebranded as the Sustainability Hub. Over the past decade, it has helped make the university more sustainable. In early September, hydrologist Jan Seibert was appointed as the new delegate for sustainability.

More More