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Perspectives of Swiss Climate Research

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Abstract

Owing to its global and long-term impacts, climate change is a major issue in sustainable development. Due to its complexity, fundamental questions have not yet been answered. As international research programmes and major publications demonstrate, Swiss climate research occupies a key position.

The OcCC considers the following measures as crucial to ensure the efficiency of future contributions by Swiss climate and global change research teams to sustainability-related research at the highest international level:

1. Increasing cooperation with emerging and developing countries to integrate these countries' specific problems and potential solutions into research.
2. Close connections to fundamental research for early identification of unexpected changes and questions as well as continuing access to fundamental knowledge.
3. Increased integration of Swiss climate and global change research into European and global research programmes to make maximum use of synergies.
4. Establishment of national research centers and their integration into a strong Swiss competence network, especially to ensure a) holistic approach to the study of specific causes and impacts of global problems (syndrome approach).
5. Funding of international coordination at research level ('glue money') so that renowned Swiss research teams may adopt a leading role internationally.
6. Complementing of promotion criteria to improve quality assessment of sustainability-related integrated research projects.

Introduction

After the completion of NRP311 and the expiry of SPP1 (in 1999), Switzerland no longer has a research programme on climate and global change. Therefore, the Advisory Body on Climate Change Research and Policy (OcCC) of the Swiss Federal Departments of Home Affairs (FDHA) and of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communication (DETEC) has studied possible perspectives of Swiss climate and global change research, also taking into consideration suggestions from other sources.

1. Climate and Sustainable Development

At the Earth Summit of Rio in 1992, an Agenda for Sustainable Development was formulated, identifying the following core issues of global change :

• climate change
• land use and soil degradation
• severe degradation of ecosystems, loss of biodiversity
• depletion and pollution of water, soil and air
• anthropogenic natural disasters
• population dynamics and development disparities
• human health hazards and food security
• security of energy and natural resources

Changes in the atmosphere and the concomitant climate change impact all people, regardless of whether or not they participated in causing these changes. Understanding the climate system and its interactions with social systems and the biosphere is therefore of vital interest to a sustainable development.

In the U.N. Climate Convention , which was also ratified by Switzerland, the international community of states has set itself the task of studying the potential impacts of climate change, and of developing suitable adaptation strategies. In the Kyoto Protocol of 1997, quantitative targets were set for the first time concerning the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Switzerland thereby agreed to reduce emissions by 8% compared with 1990 levels within the period of 2008-2012.

Anthropogenic influences of the climate system will greatly depend on future developments - e.g., of land use, increased energy consumption and mobility - especially in emerging and developing countries with high population densities.

Measure No. 1 In order to integrate into research the specific problems and potential solutions of these countries, increased cooperation with emerging and developing countries is required.

2. International Research

The global change of the environment and the economy require the research community to reconsider existing structures and research topics. At the international level, this requirement has been met by the introduction of coordinated programmes.

2.1 Relevant Issues of Climate and Global Change Research

At the international level, the large, worldwide research programmes (WCRP, IGBP, IHDP) and their numerous sub-programmes fulfill a crucial role in coordinating climate and global change research. Well-organised research communities achieving top results exist within these international structures. European research programmes are also integrated into these worldwide programmes, whose main issues are the following:

World Climate Research Programme (WCRP):

• To what extent can climate and its variability be predicted?
• To what extend do human activities influence climate?
• What regional characteristics can be deduced from global climate variations?

International Geosphere - Biosphere Programme (IGBP):

• How is the chemistry of the global atmosphere regulated and what is the role of biological processes in producing and consuming trace gases?
• How will global changes affect terrestrial ecosystems?
• How do biological processes interact with the hydrological cycle?
• How will changes in land-use, sea level and climate alter coastal ecosystems, and what are the wider consequences?
• How does climate change influence and respond to ocean biogeochemical processes?
• What significant climate and environmental changes have occurred in the past and what were their causes?

International Human Dimensions of Global Environmental Change Programme (IHDP):

• How do human activities interact with the environment?
• How does global change affect present and future social, economic and political structures and institutions (local, national, and international)?
• How does global change affect energy consumption, industrial growth and land-use?
• What adaptation and mitigation strategies are there?
• What are the socio-economic causes and effects of global change?

2.2 Assessment Reports (IPCC)

Results obtained from international programmes and from a large number of national and individual projects are especially relevant if they are disseminated, not only across disciplinary boundaries but also to decision-makers in politics, the economy and the administration. This is being achieved by the internationally established experts of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), where Swiss researchers have played an important role since the beginning.

2.3 Important Swiss contributions

Switzerland has made important contributions to the following areas within international global change research programmes :

Priority research questions	Programme
Solar forcing - global radiation balance	WCRP (GEWEX)
Paläoclimate research - Data archives	IGBP (PAGES)
Global to regional climate variability - Process studies	WCRP (CLIVAR)
Downscaling, regional and impact studies	WCRP (GEWEX), IGBP (GCTE)
Alpine climate - hydrology - Mesoscale Alpine Program (MAP)	WCRP (GEWEX), IGBP (BAHC, GCTE)
Atmospheric boundary and air pollution, chemistry of the higher troposphere and stratosphere	IGBP (IGAC), WCRP (SPARC)
Measuring systems (incl. satellites) and monitoring	GAW, GCOS
Climate change and natural hazards	WCIRP, GCOS
Aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems under climate change (incl. nitrogen and CO2 effects)	IGBP (GCTE, BAHC)
Land use and soil degradation	IGBP / IHDP (LUCC)
Biochemical and geochemical cycles (ocean, air, soil, biosphere)	IGBP
Biodiversity in a changed environment	IGBP, DIVERSITAS
Environmental change and tourism	IHDP, GCTE
Sustainable activities	IHDP*
Public attitudes to global change and influence on human behaviour	IHDP, GOES
Energy consumption and international global change policy	IHDP*
Resources and resource-related conflicts	IHDP*
Policy instruments to mitigate and adapt to global change	IHDP*

* In IHDP, the international integration of research is least developed; hence, various subjects are as yet not covered in the programme.

3. Suggestions for future climate and global change research in Switzerland

The OcCC considers three mutually complementary research levels as a suitable basis of appropriate knowledge transfer between research and implementation:

3.1 Fundamental research at high international level

Measure No. 2 To ensure an early identification of unforseseen changes and questions as well as continuing access to fundamental knowledge, close links to fundamental research are essential.

This research is well-established in Switzerland and will continue to be supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation through individual projects. This aspect will therefore not be discussed any further in the present report.

3.2 Research projects within large international programmes

Measure No. 3 Our understanding of complex global problems needs to increase rapidly, making maximum use of synergies. This requires a strong integration of Swiss climate and global change research into European and, particularly, into global research programmes while avoiding unnecessary duplication of research.

Traditionally, funding of such projects originates from various sources, e.g. fundamental research, research institutions, and federal institutions, as well as programmatic research (both in the EU and nationally). In view of the complex requirements, such flexible funding is likely to remain the best option.

Far-reaching networking can be achieved especially by committed research teams acting as international coordinators in their fields. 'Glue money' (cf. 3.4) is required to establish such networks at all levels.

3.3 Focused cross-cutting research issues (syndromes)

Measure No. 4 The specific causes and effects of global problems require a holistic approach for which the proposed identification of National Research Centers (NRC) and their integration into the Swiss network of competences are suitable instruments.

In their position paper , Swiss researchers agree that a holistic research into focused cross-cutting issues (e.g., involving several of the above-mentioned core issues) is required to complement research into environmental processes.

Methodologically, the focus is on the syndrome approach . The public (society and economy) need to be increasingly involved in the planning and implementation of research projects.

The concept of replacing the Swiss Priority Programmes (SPP) by National Research Centers (NRC) proposed by the Swiss National Science Foundation presents an opportunity to form flexible thematic cores under the guidance of leading research teams. However, it will hardly be possible to cover a significantly wider topic (sustainability) than that of PP Environment by only a small number of such NFSs. Past experience has shown that a fairly large number of smaller, but well-connected priority research groups would be advantageous and that partnerships, e.g. with programmes promoting technology, are essential.

The plans of the Swiss National Science Foundation concerning NFSs require, significant committment also from Swiss universities and research institutions. Therefore, early and clearly defined basic conditions as enough time between the announcement and the deadline for proposals are required to give holistic, integrated projects a good chance despite the greater coordinating efforts required.

3.4 Funding of coordination

Measure No. 5 In order for particularly active and internationally renowned Swiss research teams to play an increasing role as project coordinators in international programs, additional funding ('glue money') needs to be earmarked for this purpose.

According to international recommendations, a small percentage of the research budgets should be used as 'glue money,' which could be pooled and used for coordination purposes at any level (e.g., for reviewers' panels as well as coordinating researchers). Details concerning the sources and management of such funds, as well as award criteria need to be worked out.

3.5 Funding criteria

Measure No. 6 In order to improve quality assessment of integrated, sustainability-related research projects, the funding criteria need to be complemented.

Research funding traditionally focuses on the scientific quality and depth of a proposal. For the funding of projects related to sustainability and global change, the following also need to be taken into account:

• international integration
• national significance
• integration with national and international programs
• inter and transdisciplinary

A detailed definition of these criteria and guidelines for their assessment need to be worked out.

OcCC Members
Prof. G.-R. Plattner (President)	University of Basel
Dr. Thomas Bürki	Thomas Bürki GmbH
Prof. Huw Davies	ETH Zürich
Prof. Ruth Kaufmann-Hayoz	University of Bern
Dr. Ivo Knoepfel	Swiss Re
Prof. Christian Körner	University of Basel
Prof. Urs Luterbacher	IUHEI, Geneva
Prof. André Musy	EPF Lausanne
Prof. em. Heidi Schelbert	University of Zürich
Prof. Thomas Stocker	University of Bern
Prof. Hans Thierstein	ETH Zürich
Prof. Heinz Wanner	University of Bern
Advisory Members
Dr. Pierre Berlincourt	Federal Office of Education and Science (FOES)
Dr. Thomas Gutermann	Swiss Meteorological Institute (SMI)
Hans-Jörg Lehmann	Federal Office of Agriculture (FOA)
Alexander Rist	Bureau for Transport Studies, DETEC
Dr. Gerhard Schriber	Federal Office of Energy Supply (FOES)
Dr. Gilbert Verdan	Federal Office of Environment, Forests and Landscape (FOEFL)
Dr. Jean-Bernard Weber	Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF)
Member (ex officio)
Anne-Christine Clottu Vogel	Swiss Academy of Sciences (SAS)
Administration
Dr. Christian Plüss	OcCC Secretary, ProClim-, Bern
Dr. Christoph Ritz	ProClim-, Bern