The third SWICE conference, which took place on the 4th of June 2025 in Winterthur, has concluded to a resounding success. The annual event gathers all SWICE researchers for a full day of knowledge exchange and networking. This year, discussions benefitted enormously from the participation of cooperation partner representatives from SIG, the Federal Office for Spatial Development, the City of Winterthur, Groupe E and others.
The Conference kicked off with a warm welcome from our SWICE coordinator Marilyne Andersen, who with her usual energy delivered a condensed summary of achievements from the past year. In the morning sessions, each SWICE Working Package presented the advances of their respective research. From personas to microclimate modeling, from mobility tracking to AI-powered sufficiency policy, we were able to witness once again the breadth and quality of SWICE research.
In the late morning, after attendees had had a chance to catch up with their colleagues and refill their tanks with coffee and pastries, two animated fishbowl panel discussions ran in parallel. Many participants were enthusiastic about the format, which worked perfectly to give a plurality of opinions and viewpoints. In the main (“blue”) hall, the discussion centered on how SWICE research can inform new urban and design policies, whereas the adjacent room had a lively conversation on decision-support instruments towards well-being and sufficiency.
After a lunch break that led to an expertly choreographed photo of all attendees, the conference resumed with three parallel workshops. WP8 conducted a world café discussion on the impact of Living Labs, while in the next room, WP4 presented the serious game PowerHood. The third workshop hosted an important open conversation on data management.
The conference wrapped up with a speech from Marilyne Andersen, who explained the story of the first four years of SWICE: how it was conceived of in the Smart Living Lab, how members were recruited in a record time, and how bridges were built across disciplines, schools and work packages. For her final conference as coordinator, Marilyne passed the baton to Philippe Thalmann, who will lead the SWICE consortium going forward, with the continued guidance of our scientific project manager Luisa Pastore. This emotional moment served as the conclusion for the SWICE conference.
The SWICE Management team would like to thank our Monitoring Panel and SFOE members for their engaged participation and thoughtful feedback, and all conference participants for their attendance. Special thanks are due to Anton Sentic and Evelyn Lobsiger for the hard work of organizing logistics and helping to create the program.
See you next year!
