A collection of recent, random articles about Switzerland and Canada!
Jan 24, 2022 A study published in Nature, conducted in Switzerland and Canada, brought to light that carbon tax rebates given to households in the two countries have gone largely unnoticed by the taxpayers. The authors conclude that these rebates were not communicated in an efficient way given that the majority of respondents were unaware they received such a rebate. Furthermore, the rebates did not increase support for the carbon taxes and most individuals’ opinions were still guided by their political biases when it came to supporting the initiatives. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-021-01270-9
Jan 21, 2022 Read on nau.ch why many ski resorts in the Canadian West would not exist without the initiative of some Swiss immigrants. According to this article Swiss and Austrian immigrants built the first remote lodges in the Rockies and later also started the heliskiing industry in the late 1960s. Given the steep cost and exclusivity of such ski excursions Swiss tourists were also responsible for many of the bookings. More recently smaller heliskiing excursions have also become available in the BC coastal mountains. [in German] https://www.nau.ch/lifestyle/reisen/warum-es-kanadas-skigebiete-ohne-schweizer-nicht-gabe-66083846
Jan 20, 2022 Read this exposé on the Radio Canada website about how Haitian dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier and his entourage were able to fraudulently transfer funds from Haiti into bank accounts all over the world. The investigation follows the money trail through Switzerland (where the funds were eventually blocked) to finally end up in Quebec. This is an interesting article that cross references events what happened over 30 years ago with information that has become available more recently through the Pandora Papers and SwissLeaks. [in French] https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/1855729/haiti-fonds-duvalier-montreal-merceron-suisse
Jan 18, 2022 According to Swiss IT Magazine the top three countries for salaries in the IT field are the USA, Switzerland Canada. Apparently recruiters are no longer looking for specifics in applicants’ resumes but have started doing technical assessments in live interviews. For the tech resources remote work has been become one of the main expectations. [in German] https://www.itmagazine.ch/artikel/76306/IT-Fachkraefte_verdienen_in_den_USA_und_der_Schweiz_am_besten.html
Jan 13, 2022 “Havana Syndrome” which had affected members of the US and Canadian embassies in Cuba has now also made an appearance amongst American diplomats in Geneva, according to the BBC. One person was even evacuated from Switzerland to be treated in the USA. The symptoms of “Havana Syndrome” are headaches, dizziness and extreme fatigue. So far, no hypothesis has been proven as the cause of the mysterious affliction. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-59986297
Jan 13, 2022 And in related diplomatic news … a Canadian “tourist” has been spotted in Washington by the Swiss Ambassador to the USA. The Swiss Ambassador, Jacques Pitteloud, happens to be an avid ornithologist and spotted a snowy owl right downtown Washington DC. This is a very uncommon sight as these birds very rarely venture this far south. Follow the link below to see some pictures on the CTV website. https://www.ctvnews.ca/climate-and-environment/arctic-snowy-owl-captivates-crowds-in-washington-d-c-1.5739776
Jan 5, 2022 Similarly, in Geneva some Canada geese have been spotted on the shores of Lake Geneva. These birds apparently did not travel all the way from Canada, but likely escaped from captivity. There are about 80,000 Canada geese in Europe, but they are considered an invasive species. [in French] https://www.20min.ch/fr/story/un-oiseau-sous-surveillance-observe-dans-le-petit-lac-663609671479
Jan 8, 2022 If you hear yodeling in random places in Sudbury, ON, it’s probably Christian Howald. He was born in Switzerland and decided to pass his heritage on to his children through his yodeling. His main goal is to spread positivity, a goal he seems to have achieved based on the many comments on his youtube channel. The CBC did a report on him that you can watch here. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/yodelling-sudbury-youtube-channel-1.6307253
