Chapter 1 General information

The course consists of lectures, excursions, seminars and project work and the approximate schedule in 2024 is as follows:

  • 5.-6. September 2024: preparatory days at the Swiss Ornithological Institute in Sempach and ETH Zürich
  • 9.-13. September 2024: Excursion to Col de Bretolet.

Preparatory days in Sempach and ETH Zürich 5-6 September 2024. In these two days, we will give introductory lectures to the theme of the course, introduce the student projects and to most important bird species that we likely see at the Bretolet.

How to get to Sempach on 5 September:

  • Travel by train to Sempach-Neuenkirch
  • From the train station, follow the signposts to “Vogelwarte” - it’s an easy 10 min walk
  • Enter the red office building on the right-hand side of the street and follow the signs within the building.

On 6 September, we will be at ETH in seminar room CHN E 46.

Excursion to Col de Bretolet 9-13 September 2024. We will meet on Monday, 9 September 2024 at 13:30h, at the train station in Champery and drive together to Barmaz. Please organise your travel to Champery individually - we will later provide a suggestion. In Barmaz, we will stay in a simple hostel with dormitories and breakfast and dinner provided, i.e. you need to bring your own lunch for those 5 days.

Travel and accommodation costs will be partly covered by ETH. We will communicate how to get reimbursed during the course.