SWICE Newsletter

2026 Conference special edition

Dear SWICE community,

In today's special newsletter, we look back at two days of outstanding scientific dialogue on living and working in the energy transition: the SWICE + Lantern conference and our Monitoring Panel's site visit.

Have a great day!

The SWICE Management Team

The SWICE + Lantern Conference

Three weeks ago, the SWICE and Lantern consortia partnered up for a joint conference in Fribourg. Under the tagline “Building bridges for an energy transition that accounts for human needs”, this year’s conference saw the two sister consortia come together under a unified banner.

The engaging program of the day attracted many cooperation partners of both consortia (including utilities SIL, SIG, Groupe E and BKW AG, and the Swiss Society of Engineers and Architects (SIA)), as well as other representatives of the private sector and civil society, such as the Centre de compétences pour la durabilité dans la construction (CCDC). Public sector representatives were also present, most notably of the City of Fribourg.

Architectes pour le climat / Architekt*innen für das Klima was in charge of the keynote presentation.

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Monitoring Panel Site Visit

On the day after the conference, the SWICE Monitoring Panel and selected researchers gathered in Fribourg to visit the two SWICE Living Labs located in the city.

The event started with a tour of Living Lab Schönberg, located in a residential neighbouhood of Fribourg that is home to about a quarter of the city's inhabitants. The Living Lab focuses on co-creating welcoming outdoors spaces where the local community can gather, especially during summer heatwaves.

The afternoon program took place at the Halle Bleue, at the opposite end of the city, where the team that manages the Smart Living Lab is located. They walked the MP through the history and challenges of constructing a research and development center where experiments are carried out in real-life conditions. The construction is currently well advanced and expected to be finished in the summer of 2027.

Many thanks to our Monitoring Panel for your insights and feedback: Luca Castiglioni, Ruth Mourik, Barbara Lenz, Martin Ménard, Sylvia Lorek and Martina De Sole.

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