Research

Scientific research in the alpine and subalpine areas of the UNESCO World Heritage Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch is varied and thematically broad. It is carried out by different education and research institutions and is directly linked to the targets of the World Heritage Region. Research activities obtained through the inscription on the Word Heritage list a supplementary dimension: the analysis and documentation of the changes in the Jungfrau-Aletsch area.
Research in the World Heritage Region has a long tradition. Several renowned research institutions have been active in the Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch World Heritage site for centuries and have contributed to the understanding of the Alps. The most prominent research centre is the «High Altitude Research Station Jungfraujoch» with the Spynx Oberservatory.

A priority of the Management Centre focus on interdisciplinary and integrated territorial monitoring, implemented in close cooperation with the Centre for Development and Environment (CDE) of the University of Bern. It is defined as long term assessment and thus contributes considerably to the understanding of the natural processes.

The Study Centre of the World Heritage Forum is dedicated to the advanced training and formation of scholars and actors of the World Heritage Region and students at university level. The platform «Mountain-Formation» includes «Learning the Alps» with teaching material and projects for primary and secondary schools and «Actors’ Training», which will offer trainings for directly involved people.
The UNESCO Chair «Natural and Cultural Heritage for Sustainable Mountain Development» will focus jointly with similar institutions on teaching and research in mountain research, in the World Heritage Region as well as in the Alpine space. A supplementary focus will be dedicated to international cooperation, with special emphasize on East Africa.