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Teresa Galí-Izard is a Professor at ETH Zurich where she directs the Being Alive Chair within the Institute of Landscape and Urban Studies (LUS) in the Department of Architecture. She also serves as director of the Master's program in Landscape Architecture at ETH Zurich and is a director at Arquitectura Agronomia, a landscape architecture firm based in Barcelona. As a trained agronomist from the Technical University of Catalonia, she brings interdisciplinary expertise to her work bridging landscape architecture, ecology, and agricultural science. Her research focuses on translating the hidden potential of landscapes through understanding climate and geology as foundational elements for design. She has developed innovative methodologies including the BeingAliveLanguage software integrated with Rhino/Grasshopper that revolutionizes visualization of soil-centric information. Her work emphasizes fieldwork as essential practice, with particular attention to soil systems, geological conditions, and climate patterns as primary matter for landscape design. Professor Galí-Izard leads the global Garden of the XXI Century project with installations in Spain, Switzerland, USA, and Chile, exploring regenerative landscape cultivation and experimental gardening practices. Her publications and research demonstrate a consistent focus on translating landscapes through drawing, cartography, and digital tools while maintaining deep engagement with living systems and their evolutionary processes. Nominated for Schelling Architecture Prize (2024) for revolutionary contributions to landscape architecture understanding President of the Jury of the European Prize for Urban Public Space (2022) Member of the Oberlander Prize Jury She actively supervises student work through foundation studios and seminars at ETH Zurich, with recent projects including 'Regenerative Practices for Exhausted Landscapes' and 'Slow Water: Exploring Keyline Design in Switzerland.' Her Being Alive Chair functions as a laboratory for developing new approaches to landscape architecture that emphasize care, translation, and understanding of living systems. The chair organizes fieldwork weeks, research colloquia, and public lectures that foster interdisciplinary dialogue about landscape practices in the Anthropocene.

• Landscape Architecture
• Regenerative Agriculture
• Soil Science
• +6 more

Samuel Frei serves as a Lecturer at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts – School of Design, Film and Art, where he teaches Visual Communication and Data Visualization across Bachelor's and Master's programs including the Applied Information and Data Science and MA Design curricula. His academic journey began after a career shift from biology and finance, completing a Master's in Design in 2011 followed by dissertation research at University College Dublin's SMARTLab (2012-2020). His research focuses on the intersection of analog and digital media, particularly in immersive technologies (AR/MR/VR) , cultural heritage digitization , and data storytelling . Key projects include the Digital Storytelling Lab, ALE (UNESCO World Heritage mobile experiences), and IDN-Kommunale Energie-Transformation. His work consistently explores how mobile and immersive technologies transform learning in cultural institutions and tourism contexts. Frei's 2024-2022 publications reveal a strong trend toward geospatial data visualization in tourism, cultural heritage preservation through mixed realities , and participatory digital archiving , often involving Swiss parks, museums, and indigenous communities like Amazonian collectives. His work bridges technical development with human-centered design principles. Nomination for Swiss Design Prize 2017 (Research category) Best of Swiss App Award 2016 (2x Bronze for ALE project) As former coordinator (2013-2023) and director (4 years) of continuing education programs, he managed interdisciplinary collaborations with cultural institutions, nature conservation groups, and educational organizations. His current leadership of the Investigative Methods in Research Practice module (2025) demonstrates ongoing curriculum development. Frei also maintains professional practice as an illustrator and concept designer, applying research to real-world projects in conservation and cultural sectors. His Visual Narrative research group serves as the primary laboratory context, producing projects like the Digital Storytelling Lab and Virtuelles Museum that integrate mobile technologies, indigenous knowledge systems, and emerging AI/AR platforms for cultural engagement.

• Visual Communication
• Data Visualization
• Storytelling
• +4 more

Dr. Patric Wyss is a Research Associate at the School of Applied Psychology, University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW) and concurrently serves as a Research Associate at the Institute for Social and Preventive Medicine (ISPM), University of Bern. His interdisciplinary work bridges psychology, data science, and healthcare, focusing on innovative approaches to health diagnostics and workplace mental health. Dr. Wyss completed his academic training at the University of Bern, Switzerland with a Doctorate in Biomedical Sciences (2019-2022), Master's degree in Statistics and Data Science (2017-2020), Master's degree in Psychology (2014-2017), and Bachelor's degree in Psychology with a Minor in Mathematics (2010-2014). His research interests center on work and health, predicting health variables with complex algorithms, and data-driven personalized health diagnostics. Dr. Wyss has made significant contributions to dementia diagnosis through data-driven approaches, cognitive assessment tools, and digital interventions for mental health. His work often integrates machine learning with clinical psychology to develop predictive models for health outcomes. Analysis of his recent publications reveals a strong focus on neurodegenerative diseases, particularly dementia and cognitive decline in aging populations. His research increasingly incorporates digital health technologies, virtual reality, and algorithmic approaches to develop personalized diagnostic tools. The publications demonstrate a progression from fundamental cognitive neuroscience to applied health diagnostics with practical workplace applications. Dr. Wyss has been actively involved in several significant projects including Digital Balance, Healthy@Work, and work-related stress and mental disorders in the workplace. His current position at the Institute for Mental and Organizational Health at FHNW focuses on how digitalization, social upheavals, and new forms of work present both opportunities and challenges for mental and organizational health. His professional activities include research collaboration across multiple institutions, development of digital assessment tools, and investigation of HR analytics applications for health monitoring. Dr. Wyss has also contributed to the development of serious games for cognitive assessment and rehabilitation, particularly for older adults and patients with neurological conditions.

• Work and Health
• Health Diagnostics
• Data Science
• +4 more