The Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research is the centre of excellence for climate research of the University of Bern. It was founded in the summer of 2007 and is named after Hans Oeschger (1927-1998), a pioneer of modern climate research who worked at the University of Bern.
The Oeschger Centre brings together researchers from nine institutes and three faculties and carries out interdisciplinary research that is at the forefront of climate research. At the University of Bern, approximately 40 professors teach and conduct research in various areas that deal with questions on climate change. Approximately 35 PhD theses on climate change are submitted each year.
The research at the Oeschger Centre is focused mainly on the climate system and its interactions with society and the economy. The research is comprised of four closely linked core areas:
- the long-term development and dynamics of the climate system
- the present and future climate
- consequences of climate change for important land ecosystems
- consequences of climate change for the economy and society as well as the adaptive and legal strategies that are derived from them.
Climate change brings about new economic, research and administrative tasks. That’s why the Oeschger Centre is dedicated to training young scientists as specialists in these areas. The Graduate School of Climate Sciences offers an internationally oriented Masters degree in climate sciences. This unique graduate degree is carried out in close co-operation with the ETH Zurich.
