Swiss troubles mirror those of the world

By Natasha Josefowitz, Ph.D.

LA JOLLA, California — We often hear about the effects of climate change in the U.S.—floods, fires, droughts, shrinking coast lines, and sinking islands, but we don’t hear much about how it affects other countries.

I have dual citizenship (U.S and Switzerland), therefore, I get the Swiss local news which is not usually found in American papers. The following is from “Revue Suisse” (November 2018):

In Switzerland this year, it has been not only the hottest since 1864, but also the driest. The water reservoirs in the Alps where cattle graze are depleted. A cow needs to drink 40-80 liters a day. Army helicopters bearing water made over 500 drops to isolated farms. Some farmers resorted to taking their livestock down to the valley, but there, too, the grass has wilted. With no available pasture for them to feed on, animals which could not be maintained were killed, which made beef prices plummet. Fruits have also had to be picked prematurely, resulting in smaller and less flavorful fruit. Many rivers and lakes heated up to 86 degrees making them inhospitable to the species that live there, while others just dried out, killing most of the trout, a favorite fish in Switzerland. The lack of snow accumulation has accelerated the melting of glaciers. It is predicted that 80 percent of them will disappear by the end of this century.

Switzerland is an archetype of the European countries that have similar issues. Switzerland is bordered by France at the west, Germany to the north, Italy to the south, Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. For me, it’s a critical reminder that other countries have challenges both different and similar to our own.

Switzerland has its share of problems which are prevalent throughout the world. With a total population is 8,211,700 in a country just under 16,000 square miles, Switzerland has refugee problems. Twenty-three thousand Eritreans are now living in Switzerland (Eritrea borders Ethiopia). Ninety-five hundred have been admitted temporarily and 3,000 more are waiting to be registered. There is a backlash from Swiss citizens who want to see these groups deported. Their integration is made more difficult because of substantial language barriers which create a need for re-education. With the rapid increase of immigrants everywhere, this has become a global problem that so far has not found a viable solution.

Switzerland is also grappling with issues related to the transition from traditional to 21st-Century culture. Twenty percent of the Swiss population is now Muslim, and one quarter is without any religious affiliation. This creates a problem with what to do with all the churches. In the past 30 years the number of Protestants went from 84,000 to 52,000, yet every village has its churches, which are costly to maintain. Some churches have been sold, others demolished; 200 now stand slowly disintegrating into ruins.

The scale of climate change affects the residents of small or large countries similarly. While glaciers are melting in Alaska, they are also melting in the Alps; individuals are being affected everywhere. Host countries are struggling to integrate people displaced by wars, ethnic purges, and economic instability. All societies are facing cultural evolution which challenges long-standing values and customs. Whether we live in a small village or a large city, today’s global issues will touch everyone.

I learned to ski in Switzerland. Now many of the winter resorts have closed or have a shorter season due to lack of snow. The house in Lausanne where my children grew up was sold last year after my first husband’s death. I still have my Swiss costume for the next masquerade party and a cow bell is hanging on a wall. I even used to know how to yodel! I just threw out my French teaching notes I used for my classes at the University of Lausanne…so little by little the distance is increasing between the years.

Reading about the drought in a country as lush as Switzerland, brought back fond memories from almost half a century ago of the rivulets gurgling in the meadows everywhere from which we drank, fashioning daisy chains for our hair, and blowing dandelions in the wind. “You can’t go home again!”

*

© Natasha Josefowitz. This article appeared initially in the La Jolla Village News. You may comment to natasha.josefowitz@sdjewishworld.com