Ladies and Gentlemen,

It gives me great pleasure to open this 15th International Symposium for Environmental Informatics today here in Switzerland. You are scientists who strive to reconcile information technology with the environment. I am very happy to welcome you here in Zurich -- and not only because this event  promotes tourism in our country. I have been told that this conference is dedicated to the relationship between two developments that have a very high priority for Switzerland:

the development from an industrial to an information society, and
sustainable development. 

Let me go into these concepts in greater detail. Information technology and its potential to transform the economy and the whole society plays a crucial role in the political strategy of our country. As you may know, in 1998 the Swiss government (Federal Council) adopted its strategy for Switzerland as an information society, mandating the Federal Departments and Offices, along with the Information Society Coordinating Group (ISCG), to carry out the relevant implementation. As confirmed by the ISCG’s third annual report which appeared a few weeks ago, a large amount of progress has been made last year not only in the field of e-government, but also in terms of the legal framework conditions for e-commerce and digital signature. In the area of education, a giant step forward was taken thanks to operation “Public Private Partnership – School Online”. The Swiss Parliament too is active in this domain. As can clearly be seen by the parliamentary actions submitted within the last two years, the main focus of political interest is aimed at the field of education (particularly the lack of qualified information technology specialists), at state promotion for the development of an information society, and at the legal as well as security aspects. Naturally, we are eagerly looking forward to the results of the ISCG’s next annual report inasmuch as its activities have been concentrated on examining the integration of those groups of society which tend to be threatened by exclusion from an information society. A digital split in our population would certainly not be in our interest and would be unworthy of a democratically organised society.

At this point, I can hardly refrain from putting in a bit of publicity about our own parliament. The fact is that our institution belongs to the pacesetters in the domain of e-government, or rather e-parliament. Thanks to our “Bulletin 2000” which, by the way, has won an “Administration Oscar”, we are counted among the most rapid parliaments world-wide, at least with respect to the Internet publication of parliamentary debate transcripts.

Sustainable development has always been a very serious concern for our people and it is also an important part of Switzerland’s political strategy.

In its international environmental policy the Federal Council will work for the further development and enforcement of legal instruments which create a strong international environmental system. Its most pressing concerns are to consolidate existing treaties, especially in the climate, biological diversity and chemicals fields, as well as to create international rules on the protection of forests and water.

Environmental policy is a fundamental pillar of any strategy for sustainable development. In order to resolve global environmental problems, the development of international strategies and measures will continue to be essential. At the same time the Federal Council will increase its participation in regional attempts to realise environmental policy objectives, owing to the difficulties in achieving global consensus.

The global environmental problems concern, in particular, the effects of climate change, the loss of biological diversity and the handling of toxic substances. The growing water crisis in numerous countries of the world will also constitute a serious problem both for the environment and for security and peace in the affected regions in the future. It is estimated that one third of the world’s population lives in countries with falling water reserves. 

In the next decade our country – like other industrialised countries experiencing high consumption of resources – will have to continue its efforts to seek more sustainable patterns of consumption. Prime considerations will be to consolidate the conventions in the climate, biological diversity and chemicals fields, in particular the ratification of the Kyoto Protocol and the Protocol on Biological Safety, and to take account of environmental interests in the international trade rules of the World Trade Organisation. 

The follow-up to the Rio Conference, to be held ten years after the Earth Summit in 2002, will present opportunities for setting the course to further protect the natural world. At the Conference the Federal Council will work to ensure that the international environmental instruments are implemented in a consistent manner. Besides this it is striving to consolidate the international regulatory mechanism for sustainable exploitation of forests and water.

These endeavours are in our own interests. It is not sufficient to occupy a leading position at national level in comparison with other countries. Clearly, environmental problems do not respect national boundaries. On the grounds of international competitiveness too, our country has an interest in ensuring that internationally accepted environmental standards and rules on liability are agreed which establish the same general conditions for all.

Sustainability has an ecological, an economic and a social dimension. And as we saw in New York and Washington DC on September 11th, it has a cultural dimension too.

However, the information society and sustainable development are usually treated as two totally different ideas. But it seems quite obvious to me that these ideas have very much in common: information and knowledge are resources that can be multiplied with very little effort, and they become even  more productive when  progress is made in information technology. Whenever we manage to substitute intelligence or information or knowledge for material and energy flow, we create conditions necessary for a more sustainable world.

Of course, the global information society we are approaching will not be sustainable automatically. On the contrary, it will take great effort on the part of scientists and politicians -- and responsible action by many citizens -- in order to find the way to a sustainable information society. All of you assembled here to exchange your expertise and ideas will make an important contribution towards this goal.

I wish you success in the three days before you. I am convinced that you will lay the cornerstone for a truly sustainable information society.