News from the Executive Board 2022 / 8

New continuing education programme: CAS ETH in Climate Innovation

The Executive Board has approved the 2023 regulations for the new “Certificate of Advanced Studies ETH in Climate Innovation” continuing education programme. These will go into effect on 1 January 2023.

D-USYS’s new CAS programme is aimed at professionals from business, industry, the public sector and non-governmental organisations who deal with complex problems related to climate change. In its orientation, the continuing education programme is unique on the market in terms of content and didactics.

The programme delegate is Prof. Nicolas Gruber and the deputy delegate is Prof. David Bresch from the Chair of Weather and Climate Risks. The first time the six-month CAS programme is scheduled to run is in early 2023, after which the programme will be offered annually.

Re-elections and new elections to the Teaching Commission

The Executive Board has re-elected Prof. Roland Riek (D-CHAB) and Prof. Ulrike Grossner (D-ITET) to the Teaching Commission for a second term.

Prof. Fabio Gramazio (D-ARCH) was newly elected to the body as of 1 September 2022. Prof. Guillaume Habert (D-BAUG) will end his work for the Teaching Commission as of 31 August 2022. The Executive Board would like to thank Prof. Habert, who joined the Teaching Commission in 2018, for his service.

The Teaching Commission is an advisory body of the Executive Board. In the context of ETH Zurich’s development as a university with regard to areas of teaching, it is responsible for managing innovation in teaching and learning. The Teaching Commission is focused on fostering teaching innovation and projects within the framework of Innovedum.

Elections and re-elections to the ombuds office

The ombuds office at ETH Zurich is where members of the ETH community can turn for advice in the event of conflicts that cannot be solved by direct communication and to report suspected illegal actions. It comprises former members of the ETH community, who bring in-depth knowledge of the university, as well as external persons, whose outside perspectives diversify and expand the ombuds office’s professional breadth.

With the terms of the current ombudspersons ending this year, the Executive Board conducted the following elections and re-elections at its latest meeting:

• Kathrin Teuscher, lawyer (existing): Re-elected for a regular term of four years.
• Dr. Margrit Leuthold (existing): Re-elected for an abbreviated term of two years.
• Prof. Annette Spiro (new): Annette Spiro, Full Professor of Architecture and Design at D-ARCH until 31 January 2022, was elected to replace Prof. Gerhard Tröster, who had already stepped down as an ombudsperson at the end of March 2022.
• Jonas Nakonz (new): Since Peter Frischknecht, an existing member of the ombuds office, was not available for a second term due to the age restriction that applies to this office, the Executive Board elected Jonas Nakonz to the ombuds office as his replacement. The Executive Board’s intention in electing the 37-year-old mediator from Zurich was to meet the desire of the students and doctoral candidates for an ombudsperson who not only brings the experience necessary for this office but also establishes a good link to the younger members of the ETH community.

The ombuds office is completed by Martin Hohmann, who has already been working for the body since March 2022.

The Executive Board would like to thank the retired ombudspersons Gerhard Tröster and Peter Frischknecht for their exceptionally valuable service to the ETH community and wishes the new and the re-elected members of the ombuds office every success in their work.