Eruptions Across Disciplines: Where Climate Meets History
Niklaus Bartlome and Richard Warren are doctoral researchers in the interdisciplinary VICES project at the University of Bern, bringing together history and climate science. Their shared focus is on tracing how volcanic eruptions affect climate systems and societies, from local harvests to global connections. One product of this collaboration is ClimeApp, a digital web application that makes climate data accessible for historical research.
This episode of the podcast by the Institute of History at the University of Bern asks what we can learn from this entanglement: How can climate data and historical sources be brought into dialogue? And what new perspectives emerge when climate science and history jointly trace the legacies of volcanic eruptions in past and present?
Sur la route (5/5): The Thriller of Swiss Highways
On November 24, 2024, Swiss voters rejected a proposal to fund the expansion of six highway sections. This rare victory for highway opponents marks a turning point in Swiss citizens’ relationship with expressways. For since the 1950s, arguments in favor of a national high-speed network have resonated with a majority of the population. The ideal of freedom, enhanced safety, and smoother traffic flow are all promises of progress desired by a segment of the Swiss population. From the very first construction projects, dissenting voices have been heard. From the refusal to use the word “Autobahn,” which is too evocative of National Socialism, to the environmental arguments that flourished in the 1970s, opposition has not waned, even if it has achieved few victories.
Tiphaine Robert, historian and author of an SNF-funded research project: The Autocratic Car? A Political History of the Automobile in Switzerland (1950–2000) talks to Pierre Jenny prior to the vote on November 24, 2024.
Nuclear power plants as architectural monuments
In 2025, an international conference on the architectural heritage of the nuclear age was held, which also examined the handling of nuclear power plants in Switzerland.
Radio SRF and Radio Raabe reported on the Nuclear Cultural Heritage Conference at the University of Bern in two broadcasts.
Bild: ZVG / Bernhard Betschart
From cow calling to yodeling diploma: the history of a vocal tradition
Swiss yodeling is part of UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage. But what is behind this vocal tradition? How has yodeling changed over the course of history? In terms of its sound, its function, and its perception in society?
Dr. Lea Hagmann talks on Passage about different forms and traditions of yodeling, landscape references, regulations, and contemporary developments.
Reimagining the Ocean in times of Global Warming
David Castillo, PhD student at the Institute of Theatre Studies discusses marine ecosystems and their entanglements with other systems such as ‘the Earth’ with oceanographer Kai Schulz. They question our understanding of ‘the Globe’ and discuss if it comprises oceans and other bodies of water equally as terrestrial zones.
Guest: Kai Schulz, Visiting researcher at the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel and Associate Professor with the School of Environment, Southern Cross University Australia
Host: David Castillo, PhD student at the Institute of Theatre Studies, University of Bern
The podcast episode is part oft he Podcast «Rethinking the Global», hosted by Prof. Dr. Elize Mazadiego and doctoral students from the Global Studies Program at the Graduate School for the Arts and Humanities at the University of Bern.
Katajjaq – An Inuit Throat Singing Game
What happens when music is also a game, a breath, a dialogue?
Sara Valentina Hauser explores Katajjaq, the Inuit throat singing tradition often performed by two women in playful competition.
More than just music or a game, katajjaq is a living practice of rhythm, laughter, communication, connection and resilience — where voices intertwine and celebrate nature and community.
This podcast episode is part of the Walter Benjamin Kolleg’s newly launched channel «Fieldnotes & Footnotes».
