About ETH for Development

ETH for Development (ETH4D) aims to develop innovations that address global challenges and educate future leaders in sustainable development.

Fighting poverty remains one of the biggest challenges of the 21st century. The obstacles poor people face in their everyday lives include access to affordable, functional, and sustainable housing, health, education, nutrition, water, energy, transportation, financial and insurance services, and security.

Scientific knowledge & innovations offer tremendous potential for poverty reduction, but they must be developed and deployed with a profound understanding of people’s needs and behaviour, the planet’s ecology, and society’s diverse structures, histories, and cultures. Find out more about the diverse innovative research projects at ETH. 

ETH4D supports research and learning that combines diverse knowledge and skills from engineering to the social sciences, from the natural sciences to the humanities, from scientists to citizens, and from research to practice. Find out more about our research opportunities.