If you are interested in Syria beyond the headlines, I encourage you to listen. It offers a small but meaningful glimpse into the lives of courageous individuals who choose humanity over division.
This piece resonated with me deeply. It reflects a truth I and many people I know, long believed in: human connections, love, empathy and friendship can transcend political, religious or societal fractures.
The short but powerful piece describes how, despite deep-rooted sectarian divisions in Syria between the Sunni majority and the Alawite minority, there are still people who resist being drawn into these divides.
Today, I listened to this podcast from SRF’s “Rendezvous by journalist Monika Bolliger. (in German)
www.srf.ch/audio/rendez...
As we shared before, and was reported by Reuters, some of the notable exclusions we found are Chevron, Shell, Rio Tinto, and Lockheed Martin.
The updated equity list shows that investments continue to be made in companies associated with environmental destruction, surveillance technology, and weapons manufacturers.
As one would expect, the portfolio is heavily concentrated in large-cap tech companies. The “top 10” alone account for a significant portion of the disclosed holdings.
Through an estimation method based on the global index MSCI ACWI, the data research extends beyond disclosed holdings, to reflect a more complete picture of the SNB’s portfolio. read the methodology here:
unsere-snb.ch/themen/probl...
Once again this year, we were commissioned by Climate Alliance Switzerland to fill this gap in transparency.
unsere-snb.ch/themen/probl...
‼️ The Swiss National Bank holds over USD 223 bn in equities, but nearly USD 46 bn remain hidden from public view.
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Image: Roland zh, via Wikimedia Commons
Strengthen democracy at the grassroots with empowering local journalists, because important stories don’t just happen in New York or Washington; they also happen in our towns, cantons, and communities.
It is an alliance of investigative reporting organisations that supports and collaborates with local journalists across Switzerland, which offers:
- Joint investigations
- Support for local journalists
- Community and development
While the Swiss mainstream media abandons investigative reporting, at WAV Recherchekollektiv we’re doing exactly the opposite. Together with Recherche-Team @reflektch.bsky.social and @correctiv.org Schweiz, we launched the #LokalHub, a new platform for investigative local journalism.
Yes, your subscription to the New York Times is great, and indeed Donald Trump is dangerous. But we also live here in Switzerland, and local journalism is far more important than the big international headlines. And it is time to support local journalistic work.
The message is becoming unmistakable: climate risk is transforming into legal risk.
#HumanRights #SustainableFinance #ClimateCrisis #Investing #Switzerland #EU #InterAmericanCourt #ECtHR
1. Climate inaction = human rights violation.
2. Governments face new legal duties to align policies with climate targets.
3. Institutional investors must rethink portfolios, stewardship, and disclosures or risk legal and reputational consequences.
- The European Court of Human Rights ruled in KlimaSeniorinnen v. Switzerland (April 2024) that Switzerland violated the rights of elderly women by failing to take sufficient climate action.
These rulings, together with recent EU decisions, make it clear that:
- The Inter-American Court of Human Rights issued its OC-32/25 advisory opinion yesterday, affirming that states must tackle climate change to protect human rights, including responsibilities for cross-border harms.
Major legal breakthroughs on climate & human rights ☀️
In just three months, courts across Europe and the Americas have perhaps reshaped the legal landscape:
As investigative researchers, we see how laws like Article 47 foster a climate of fear, discouraging reporting in the public interest.
🇨🇭 Switzerland must urgently reform its banking secrecy laws if it wants to uphold its reputation for transparency and democratic values.
The raid on Inside Paradeplatz shows just how dangerous Article 47 of the Swiss Banking Act is. This law doesn’t just threaten journalists with massive fines or prison, it shields powerful financiers from scrutiny and weakens democracy.
Hässig, a freelance economic journalist at Inside Paradeplatz, was raided on 3 June. According to Hässig, half a dozen police officers stormed both his newsroom and home, seizing his laptop, phone, and documents—after the Zurich public prosecutor placed him under criminal investigation.
Police raids against Swiss finance journalist Lukas Hässig expose the dangers of Switzerland’s draconian banking secrecy laws. One of the gravest attacks on press freedom in the country in years.
🤐 Is it any wonder major stories about misconduct in Swiss finance rarely break in Swiss papers? 🧵
rsf-ch.ch/de/razzia-be...
A broader exclusion policy covering all weapons manufacturers would better align institutional investments with modern expectations of responsible and ethical investing.
For institutional investors such as the SNB, holding shares in companies like General Dynamics or Northrop Grumman exposes them to significant ethical, reputational, and potentially regulatory risks.
Even if legal under export controls, the use of bombs like the Mk-82 in dense urban settings leads to devastating humanitarian consequences.
While the SNB excludes companies producing cluster munitions or nuclear weapons, it continues to invest in companies that manufacture conventional bombs like the Mk-82, even though such weapons can cause mass civilian casualties when used in populated areas.
General Dynamics is a publicly traded company. Notably, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) is the 46th largest shareholder, holding around 660,000 shares valued at approximately $180 million.