RETHINKING Exploration
Join us and our distinguished guests for an insightful dialogue that brings together experts at the forefront of science and technology to rETHink how we explore, understand, and protect our planet.
Please find all ETH Zurich events at WEF Davos 2025 here.
What does it mean to explore in today's world, and how should exploration be defined for a responsible future? As technological breakthroughs and environmental awareness shape our era, exploration is taking on new meanings and possibilities. This discussion reimagines exploration, from the search for life on distant planets to the narratives that shape our cultural identity, and from the limits of curiosity to the ethical responsibilities of sustainability. Astrophysical insights into exoplanets challenge our understanding of life in the cosmos, historical perspectives reveal the impact of exploration on collective memory, and sustainable innovation shows how we can push boundaries without compromising the Earth. Together, these perspectives redefine exploration and reveal a new interplay between curiosity, responsibility and the drive to push human limits.
RETHINKING Exploration
Wednesday, 22 January 2025
18.00 – 19.00 (CET), followed by a reception until 20.00
external page Physical Meteorological Observatory / World Radiation Center (PMOD/WRC)
Dorfstrasse 33, 7260 Davos Dorf
Door opens at 17.30
This event will be live-streamed. The link will follow in due course
Opening remarks by
- Jo?l Mesot, President, ETH Zurich
Distinguished guests in conversation
- Sascha Quanz, Professor of Exoplanets and Habitability, ETH Zurich
- external page Amanda Bellows, Historian, The New School
- external page Bertrand Piccard, Serial explorer, psychiatrist and clean technology pioneer
Moderation
Chris Luebkeman, Head Strategic Foresight, ETH Zurich
This event is a part of ETH Zurich’s RETHINKING LIVING initiative. We all feel massive change across just about every aspect of our lives. Climate change, the destruction of biodiversity and technological disruptions present threats, but more importantly, an opportunity to focus on grand challenges, to embrace deeper meaning, and to rediscover overlooked aspects of our lives. RETHINKING LIVING convenes scientists, industry experts and outstanding global thinkers from ETH Zurich and across the world.