Martine Rebetez (born 1961) is a Swiss climatologist. She is a professor at the
University of Neuchâtel and a senior scientist at
WSL.
Biography
Rebetez studied geography and climatology at the Universities of
Lausanne
, neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...
,
Zurich and
Salford from 1979 to 1985.
She received her doctorate from 1987 to 1992 at the University of Lausanne and was subsequently a. a. employed at the
University of Freiburg
The University of Freiburg (colloquially german: Uni Freiburg), officially the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg (german: Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg), is a public university, public research university located in Freiburg im Breisg ...
and the
University of Neuchâtel.
From 1996 to 2006, she was a research fellow at the
WSL before being appointed as a senior scientist at the same institute. In 2017, she was appointed as a professor at the University of Neuchâtel.
Works
Rebetez's scientific work deals with climate change, especially in
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
, as well as with the
consequences of climate change
The effects of climate change impact the physical environment, ecosystems and human societies. The environmental effects of climate change are broad and far-reaching. They affect the Effects of climate change on the water cycle, water cycle, ...
for forests, alpine tourism and snow.
She contributed to the understanding of the effects of
global warming
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
on winter tourism in the context of the
climate crisis. In 2016, it was able to prove that the skiing and sledding season in the
Alps
The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...
was shortened by more than a month for Switzerland compared to 1970; accordingly there are more extreme weather, longer periods of drought and greater precipitation events.
In 2019, Rebetez commented benevolently on the concerns of the climate protection movement
Fridays for Future
School Strike for Climate ( sv, Skolstrejk för klimatet), also known variously as Fridays for Future (FFF), Youth for Climate, Climate Strike or Youth Strike for Climate, is an international movement of school students who skip Friday ...
: "According to
Antoine de St-Exupéry, we do not inherit the land from our parents, but rather borrow it from our children. Today the new generation asks us to give an account of what we have done with the land that we borrowed from them."
Rebetez also looks at people's perceptions of climate change. Her investigation of the changed perception of white Christmas over time attracted media attention; using a comparison of Christmas postcards, she was able to show that the ideal idea of a snowy Christmas festival only spread around the world from around 1860 onwards.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rebetez, Martine
1961 births
Living people
Swiss climatologists
Women climatologists
Academic staff of the University of Neuchâtel