National Research Program for Sustainable Economy

The Federal Council has launched the new National Research Program (NRP) "Sustainable Management". The NRP is expected to make important contributions to a sustainable economy with more efficient use of resources and greater resource security. Among other things, this should favor the competitiveness of the Swiss economy and promote the welfare of the population. The research duration of the program is five years, with a total budget of 20 million Swiss francs.

Natural resources have a limited regenerative capacity and are becoming increasingly scarce. The new NRP, conducted by the Swiss National Science Foundation, aims to provide insights from a systemic perspective that takes into account the environment, the economy and society, and considers all natural resources and all stages of the value chain. It invites submissions of research projects that expand existing knowledge and comprehensively identify opportunities, risks and potential. Based on this, measures and instruments are to be analyzed and general findings translated into concrete applications, for example by developing innovative standards, designing innovative consumption and production models, and marketing "clean" technologies and products.

With the National Research Programs, the federal government supports research projects that develop knowledge for orientation and action and thus contribute to solving current problems. NRPs are concluded after a period of about five years.

According to the Research and Innovation Promotion Act, the Federal Council periodically decides on the implementation and financial framework of National Research Programs.

(WBF)