The environmental movement in Switzerland is represented by a wide range of associations (non-governmental organisations).
The article also present green politics and environmental policies of Switzerland.
Organisations exist and act on local, cantonal, federal and international scales. Environmental non-governmental organisations vary widely in political views and in the way they seek to influence environmental behaviours and policies.
In 1874, an article to protect forests was introduced in the Swiss Federal Constitution. [8] In 1962, a constitutional article was introduced for the protection of nature. [8]
In 1967, the Federal Act on the Protection of Nature and Cultural Heritage introduced notably the right of appeal of environmental organizations ("entitlement to appeal", article 12) which gives all Swiss organizations concerned with nature protection the right to raise general objections or to file appeals against some projects. [9] [10] The right of environmental organizations to appeal was later also included in the Federal Act on the Protection of the Environment (1985, article 55 [11] ) and the Federal Act on Non-Human Gene Technology (2004, article 28 [12] ). [10]
In 1971, a constitutional article for the protection of the environment was approved by 92.7 per cent of voters (article 24, currently article 74 of the constitution of 1999) and the Federal Office for the Environment, Forests and Landscape (renamed Federal Office for the Environment in 2006) was founded (as part of the Department of Transport, Communications and Energy). [13]
The Federal Inventory of Landscapes and Natural Monuments was introduced in 1977.
On 21 May 2017, 58 per cent of Swiss voters accepted the new Energy Act establishing the energy strategy 2050 (energy transition) and forbidding the construction of new nuclear power plants. [14]
Several federal popular initiative were launched to increase environmental protection. Several of them were accepted: [15]
The federal chancellor is the head of the Federal Chancellery of Switzerland, the oldest Swiss federal institution, established at the initiative of Napoleon in 1803. The officeholder acts as the general staff of the seven-member Federal Council. The Chancellor is not a member of the government and the office is not at all comparable to that of the Chancellor of Germany or the Chancellor of Austria, or to the United Kingdom's Chancellor of the Exchequer.
The Green Party of Switzerland is a green political party in Switzerland. It is the fifth-largest party in the National Council of Switzerland and the largest party that is not represented on the Federal Council.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Switzerland since 1 July 2022. Legislation to open marriage to same-sex couples passed the Swiss Parliament in December 2020. The law was challenged in a referendum on 26 September 2021 by opponents of same-sex marriage and was approved with the support of 64% of voters and a majority in all 26 cantons. The law went into force on 1 July 2022. A provision of the law permitting same-sex marriages performed abroad to be recognised in Switzerland took effect on 1 January 2022. Switzerland was the seventeenth country in Europe and the 30th in the world to allow same-sex couples to marry.
The Federal Assembly, also known as the Swiss Parliament, is the federal bicameral parliament of Switzerland. It comprises the 200-seat National Council and the 46-seat Council of States. It meets in Bern in the Federal Palace.
Ten referendums were held in Switzerland during 2008. The first two were held on 24 February on business tax reform and aircraft noise. A further three were held on 1 June on public information campaigns, naturalisation and health reform. The final five were held on 30 November on legalising cannabis, making the pension age flexible, restricting the right of appeal of associations against construction projects, amending the constitutional article on narcotics and eliminating the statute of limitations with respect to pornographic crimes against children.
In 2008, nuclear energy provided Switzerland with 40 percent of its electricity, but a survey of Swiss people found that only seven percent of respondents were totally in favor of energy production by nuclear power stations. Many large anti-nuclear demonstrations and protests have occurred over the years.
Energy in Switzerland is transitioning towards sustainability, targeting net zero emissions by 2050 and a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
The largest immigrant groups in Switzerland are those from Germany, Italy, France, the former Yugoslavia, Albania, Portugal and Turkey, including Turks and Kurds. Between them, these six groups account for about 1.5 million people, 60% of the Swiss population with immigrant background, or close to 20% of total Swiss population.
Pro Natura, founded in 1909 in Basel as Swiss League for the Protection of Nature, is the oldest environmental organisation in Switzerland.
Noé21 is a non-governmental organisation founded in 2003 and based in Geneva. It promotes solutions to climate change.
Switzerland has eighteen official natural parks classified in three categories.
Seven national referendums were held in Switzerland during 2017. Polling took place on 12 February, 21 May and 24 September, whilst no referendum was scheduled for the November date.
Ten national referendums were held in Switzerland in 2018. Voting took place on 4 March, 10 June, 23 September and 25 November.
Several federal referendums were held in Switzerland in 2019, with votes taking place on 10 February and 19 May. Federal parliamentary elections were held on 20 October, which led the Swiss Federal Council to postpone the November round of voting until 2020.
The 2021 Swiss same-sex marriage referendum was a facultative referendum held in Switzerland on 26 September 2021 about an amendment to the Civil Code to legalise marriage between people of the same sex, as well as adoption rights for same-sex couples and access to assisted reproductive technology for lesbian couples. The amendment was called "marriage for all" in Swiss public discourse.
The Federal Act on the Reduction of CO2 Emissions (CO2 Act) (German: CO2-Gesetz, French: Loi sur le CO2, Italian: Legge sul CO2), is a Swiss federal law that regulates carbon dioxide emissions to mitigate climate change.
In Switzerland, spatial planning is the sum total of public policies concerning land use, the organization of the built environment, and the distribution of facilities and activities throughout the geographical space. Given the country's small size, this is an important issue that has been part of the political debate since the 1930s.
Switzerland has tobacco legislation defined at federal and cantonal level. It covers protection of the population against passive smoking, restrictions on tobacco advertising, warnings on packaging and taxes.
The federal popular initiative "For the Expulsion of Criminal Foreigners," also known as the "expulsion initiative," is a Swiss popular initiative that was approved on November 28, 2010.
The federal popular initiative, is a Swiss civic right enabling 100,000 citizens with voting rights to propose a total or partial amendment to the Federal Constitution and submit it to a popular vote. The citizens behind the initiative, grouped together in an initiative committee, have 18 months in which to gather the approval of 100,000 citizens. To do this, the 100,000 citizens must affix their handwritten signatures to a signature list, including the text and title of the popular initiative. If 100,000 signatures are collected within 18 months, the initiative is put to the vote. If this is not the case, the initiative is declared "unsuccessful" and the procedure is terminated. The right of initiative also has its counterpart at cantonal and communal level; the procedure, including the number of signatures required and the deadline for collecting them, varies from one sovereign Swiss canton to another.
