ENAC news about education

Modeling travel behavior to support Lausanne's future tram

Published:20.11.25 — Taking Lausanne’s planned new tram line as a case study, Anne-Valérie Preto focused her master’s project in civil engineering on improving a computer model that’s used to forecast how people will use public transportation.

Promoting reuse can help restore cities' charm

Published:12.11.25 — For her EPFL master’s project in architecture, Léa Guillotin outlined a plan for restoring an industrial district in Lausanne while promoting the reuse of construction materials.

Will corn still be a worthwhile crop in Europe in 2100?

Published:29.10.25 — Juliette Salles set out to answer this question for her EPFL master’s project in environmental sciences and engineering. The project was a perfect fit for the recent graduate, who enjoys gleaning insights from data and believes in conducting research with a purpose.

Better climate understanding can improve energy planning

Published:23.10.25 — A new master’s-level class that explores key issues related to energy planning debuted this past spring. It’s called Sustainability, Climate, Energy, and it’s given by EPFL’s Environmental Sciences and Engineering department. How did the class go? We spoke with some of the participants.

“Teaching is about translating popular knowledge”

Published:01.09.25 — If you’re looking for Yves Pedrazzini, you’ll probably find him on the streets or at a local punk-rock club. The winner of the 2024 best teacher award for the architecture section has led a wide-ranging, uncompromising career marked by real-world experience with people from all walks of life.

“I realized that, in Switzerland, you don't give students a zero!"

Published:17.07.25 — Alexis Berne, an expert in precipitation and weather radars, has no qualms about setting off on research expeditions to the Antarctic. And his extended absences don’t seem to bother his students either, as they named him best teacher for the Environmental Sciences and Engineering Section for 2024.

“I wanted to study a subject that has meaning”

Published:08.04.25 — For her EPFL master’s project, Polina Holub developed a plan for recycling the rubble from buildings destroyed during the war in Ukraine – a particularly meaningful endeavor for someone who grew up in a Ukrainian town near the Russian border.

EPFL launches of sustainability course for all first-year students

Published:12.03.25 — Whether they study mathematics, microengineering, life sciences or architecture, all 1862 first-year EPFL students experienced their first session of the common sustainability course on Tuesday February 18. The course is organized by the Environmental Sciences and Engineering Section of ENAC.

Reconciling hydropower generation with biodiversity

Published:22.01.25 — For his master’s project in environmental science and engineering, EPFL student Raphaël Angeles came up with methods for making hydropower generation more environmentally responsible, taking the Dynamo hydropower plant in Courrendlin, in Jura Canton, as his case study.

RebuiLT project shows it's possible to build differently

Published:13.12.24 — In a real-world example of how construction materials can be reused, a team of 230 EPFL students is building a community pavilion in Ecublens, near the Lausanne campus, through a low-tech, participative approach. This bold initiative entailed overcoming a number of logistical, technical and architectural challenges.

2024 Durabilis Award: focusing on solutions and risks

Published:11.12.24 — How can we ensure a low-carbon economy by 2050? What kind of sustainable housing can be imagined? The winners of the 2024 Durabilis prize awarded by EPFL and UNIL suggest ways forward, while raising awareness of potential risks.

“I've always been fascinated with how the body moves through space”

Published:18.11.24 — For her master’s project in architecture, Ada Massarente combined notions of dance, drawing and landscape, focusing on the intimate relationship between the body and the city. She proposed redeveloping the banks of the Veveyse – a river that empties into Lake Geneva at Vevey – to create new community spaces.

“Timber can be a good alternative if it's used wisely”

Published:05.11.24 — For his master’s degree in civil engineering, Matthieu Fehlmann worked on a project in Australia where he studied methods for laterally stabilizing an eight-story timber building without using concrete. This experience was both personally and academically enriching, and it gave him exposure to a whole different set of construction standards.

EPFL student applies engineering to public health

Published:10.07.24 — For his Master’s project, Noé Fellay mapped the presence of an autoantibody known to increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. This cross-disciplinary study, carried out in the Lausanne area, was an opportunity for Fellay to broaden his skillset.

A new Master's degree to meet the challenges of urban transition

Published:21.06.24 — From the start of the 2025 academic year, a Master's degree in Urban Systems will enable ENAC students to become specialists in adapting cities and surrounding areas to climate change.

“The variety of backgrounds in my classroom is to everyone's benefit”

Published:18.06.24 — Julia Schmale is just as comfortable in an EPFL lecture hall as on an icebreaker in the Arctic. This adventurous spirit – along with the specific know-how of her students – enhances her cutting-edge research.

“It's often better to choose simple solutions over complicated ones”

Published:09.02.24 — Vincent Digneaux, Solène Guisan and Vincent Kastl were crowned winners of the Sustainable is Beautiful student architecture prize for their modular footbridge over the Chamberonne river. Designing the structure, which serves as both a crossing and a meeting place, gave them their first taste of life as an architect.

Testing automated crack-detection methods for concrete

Published:10.01.24 — MASTER'S PROJECT – An EPFL Master’s student in civil engineering has evaluated the effectiveness of new computer-based methods for inspecting potentially dangerous cracks in concrete. 

“There's room in Swiss agriculture for greater biodiversity”

Published:13.12.23 — This year’s UNIL-EPFL Durabilis Awards went to two Master’s projects addressing sustainability in the food industry. Both winners – Agathe Crosnier (EPFL – SSIE) and Nicolas Bissardon (UNIL) – came up with fresh ideas for producing and consuming food in a more environmentally responsible way.

What will the Grande Dixence region look like 200 years from now?

Published:07.12.23 — MASTER'S PROJECT – An EPFL architecture student explored what the area around the Grande Dixence dam in Valais Canton might look like in 2223, drawing on scientific data to shed light on the long-term implications of environmental change.