Before Zürich uses its data, someone has to know where it came from
A citywide catalogue, named responsibilities and training for staff sit at the heart of Zürich’s new data strategy. The rollout begins in 2027.
If two city departments collect the same information, can the second one safely use what the first already knows? Zürich’s data strategy starts with the questions that have to be answered first. Who collected it, how current is it, who is responsible for it, and who is legally allowed to use it?
The city plans a common catalogue documenting the origin and use of its data. Departments will remain responsible for their own records. A coordination group will agree shared standards across the administration. Inside IT reports that the starting point varies from one department to another, which makes that division of responsibility important.
The most interesting commitment for a learning leader is to give staff both training and communities where they can exchange experience. It is easy to put a catalogue online. The harder test will be whether a colleague can find a dataset, understand its limits and decide whether to reuse it. Read the city’s strategy.
2027Implementation begins Departments retain responsibility for their data
Global in Holborn and Alzheimer’s Society both want someone who can turn an organisational priority into a learning plan.
Wine
The Cape grape that almost vanished
A grower is propagating colomino, an obscure local cross. Tim James asks what else has slipped out of the vineyards.
Sports
Injuries change England’s choices
Ben Spencer and Harry Randall join the squad before the Wallabies visit Twickenham.
Local News
Decisions that reach the street
A blue-zone permit will depend on the car and the space at home
Rules from 1 January 2027. Zürich’s new parking rules allow one resident permit per person, subject to a declaration that no private parking space is available at the home or business address. The fee depends on the vehicle’s unladen weight and drive type. At 1,500 kg the published rates imply CHF525 for a zero-emission car and CHF600 for a combustion car. The city provides a calculator and expects applications to open in December at the earliest. City of Zürich · eligibility and fee calculator
After the Kreis 4 fires, December’s police budget comes into focus
2 November. Zürich’s security chief Karin Rykart is asking for 17 additional frontline posts. Weekend violence has also revived a much larger proposal from the SVP, which wants to explore the canton taking over the city police. Those are two separate decisions. The first has a place in the coming city budget debate, while the second would alter who runs policing in Zürich. SRF sets out the competing positions. SRF · German
Canton rejects a climate mandate for its National Bank shareholding
2 November. The cantonal parliament rejected a motion by 95 votes to 76. Its supporters wanted the government to align its approach as a Swiss National Bank shareholder with cantonal climate goals. Finance director Ernst Stocker argued that even Zürich, a large shareholder, does not direct monetary policy. The vote settles whether the cantonal government must draw up the proposed strategy. It leaves the bank’s own policy in the hands of its governing bodies. Radio Central · German
A change in the measuring stick redraws Switzerland’s economic map
3 November. The Federal Statistical Office has recalculated cantonal output for 2011–24. Under the revised method, Basel-Stadt’s 2022 GDP is about 30% higher than the earlier estimate, and Geneva’s is nearly 50% higher. That makes the concentration of pharmaceutical activity in Basel and of commodity trading and banking in Geneva more visible. Anyone comparing regional employers or markets should use figures calculated on the same basis before interpreting a jump as business growth. Federal Statistical Office · release
3 November. The BBC reports that a roughly 200-page text has gone to EU governments ahead of a meeting on Wednesday. It would remove a range of post-Brexit checks and charges on food and agricultural trade, including export health certificates that can cost £200. A producer shipping small consignments has more to gain from removing a fixed charge than a large exporter spreading it over a full lorry. Governments still have to agree the terms before traders can change their paperwork. BBC News
Swiss audit questions how the army chooses which buildings need work
3 November. An audit says Armasuisse Immobilien lacks the data, strategy and resources it needs to decide where to build, renovate or add protection. The defence department has promised improvements. The practical problem is a familiar one for anyone overseeing a large portfolio. A barracks, a runway and a shelter may all have a repair bill, but comparing the consequences of deferral requires a reliable picture of their condition and use. SRF · German
US election day and the morning’s world dispatches
Americans vote on who will control Congress
3 November. Tuesday’s elections will help determine how much room President Trump has to legislate in the final two years of his term. Food and fuel prices figure prominently in voters’ concerns, and the campaign has taken him into districts once considered safely Republican. Congress matters beyond legislation. Control of committees affects oversight and the Senate votes on appointments. At Zürich breakfast time, the reported developments are about the voting and the campaign. Results come later. BBC News
US officials report strikes on Qeshm Island
3 November. US officials told CBS that American forces struck the Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz after the Revolutionary Guards fired on a US aircraft. Iranian state media reported explosions. The US description of the strikes as limited is its account of the operation. The location matters for shipping as well as military operations, since Qeshm lies alongside the narrow route used by tankers leaving the Gulf. BBC News / CBS reporting
European forces will rehearse a possible deployment to Ukraine
3 November. Britain and France are leading a planned exercise in Poland involving nearly 3,000 personnel from 12 European countries. Its purpose is to test what deploying a multinational force could involve if a peace agreement is reached. Moving people and equipment across borders is something planners can practise now, even while governments have yet to settle the terms of a mission. The exercise is taking place on Polish territory. BBC News
The Metro is back at Whitley Bay, but the gap starts at Tynemouth
3 November · disruption in force. A damaged bridge in North Shields has split the coastal journey. Nexus says services between Wallsend and Tynemouth will remain suspended until Thursday 5 November while repairs take place. A replacement bus is scheduled every twenty minutes across the gap. For anyone coming from Whitley Bay, reaching Tynemouth by train again is only half the journey if the destination is North Shields or further along the line. Nexus · service notice
Richmond volunteers give a rare native plant four chances to recover
2 November. Residents grew tower mustard from seed at home. More than 1,000 plants have now been planted across Barnes Common, Wimbledon Common, Hounslow Heath and Lesnes Abbey Woods. Richmond helped protect the donor population at Stain Hill Reservoir. It is an unusually tangible first-year result for a conservation project. The next question for those walking the commons is whether the plants establish themselves and reproduce in the places where volunteers put them. Richmond Council
California can proceed with its count after Supreme Court refuses intervention
3 November. The US justice department wanted approximately 20,000 ballots set aside in California, alleging that they might have been issued to non-citizens. Two lower courts had already rejected its request. The Supreme Court declined to step in on the eve of the election. For an Orange County reader, the practical consequence is that the state can proceed with its count. The administration’s allegation should be distinguished from a finding about any individual voter. BBC News
The glacier, the painted goblet and the missing objects
A Swiss glacier at the heart of a British retrospective
2 November. Wilhelmina Barns-Graham’s Glacier (Blue Cave) anchors Tate St Ives’ retrospective. The Guardian’s account traces how seeing ice in Switzerland gave the artist an enduring problem to work on. A glacier has a surface one can look at, and an interior one can only imagine. The exhibition follows that curiosity into a much longer career, including work shaped by music and politics. It runs until 3 May, with images available in the feature. The Guardian
In GaHee Park’s dining rooms, the glass looks back
2 November. In Soft Shell, an eye peers out of a goblet and a finger appears under a curtain. Park uses the familiar arrangement of a still life to lull the viewer into thinking the objects will stay in their appointed roles. Then the objects appear to watch or intrude on the people in the painting. Colossal has reproductions large enough to hunt for those details. The San Francisco exhibition runs through 19 December. Colossal
Sixty-three objects return to Colombia’s national museum
2 November. Bogotá’s Museo Nacional has put objects back in its permanent galleries after a judge reversed their removal. The national government had alleged political indoctrination. Many of the objects address feminism or LGBTQ+ rights. The Art Newspaper follows the decision down to the display cases, where reinstating an object also restores the chance for visitors to see and interpret the evidence for themselves. The Art Newspaper
Two new Visarte members share a small room in the old town
5–7 November · confirmed dates. Céline Brunko works with audio, video and objects to explore how architecture and landscapes retain their history. Elio Lüthi examines what happens when everyday pictures are reproduced and circulated, including decisions about what gets seen. Kabinett Visarte pairs them in its FRISCH series. Plan for Thursday through Saturday. The gallery’s heading ends the exhibition on Saturday, although a line in the description also mentions Sunday. Kabinett Visarte · original listing
A free Monday concert puts music students among Tinguely’s machines
9 November. Sonic Space Basel comes to Museum Tinguely at 19:30 next Monday with students from the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland. The museum lists free entry. If you are weighing a Basel trip, this is a different outing from Sunday’s performance-heavy closing day. The programme lists the concert as an evening event in its own right. Museum Tinguely · programme
Two hours, two players at a time and three improvisers at Ida
7 November. Saturday’s 3 × 2 show offers a different format from Friday’s audience-driven Piggybank Showcase. Three improvisers use pairs as the starting point for the evening, making the change of scene partners part of the attraction. Theater Ida lists the Saturday event from 20:00 to 22:00 at Aargauerstrasse 80. The German event title plays on Zweisamkeit, the feeling of being together as a pair. Theater Ida · original listing
A Cape grower makes room for an almost forgotten grape
2 November. South African grower Adi Badenhorst is propagating colomino, a local cross of palomino and colombar. That detail sends Winemag columnist Tim James looking through the country’s less successful grape-breeding experiments. A cross can take years to be approved and still almost vanish if nobody wants to plant it. One even disappeared from the list of permitted cultivars. It is an entertaining way into a serious vineyard question. Who keeps an unfashionable variety alive long enough for someone else to try it? Winemag · South Africa
Five Danish wineries make a case for Røsnæs
2 November. A windy peninsula about 110 kilometres from Copenhagen could become Denmark’s second protected wine designation. The European Union published the specification in October, opening a three-month period for objections. WineNews profiles the fifteen-kilometre peninsula and its five producers. Denmark’s existing designation, Dons, is for sparkling wine. Røsnæs offers a reason to look north the next time a tasting turns to the question of what a place can contribute to a glass. WineNews · Italian
How a Mâcon Chardonnay gets down to 10.5%
3 November. Domaines Auvigue has released a lower-alcohol version of an existing Chardonnay. The vineyards are in the village of Chardonnay itself. Terre de Vins reports that the two versions follow similar winemaking until reverse osmosis reduces alcohol in the lighter bottling. That gives a tasting group an unusually well-matched pair. Pour both blind, compare texture and aroma, then reveal the labels and see whether the perceived difference fits the figures. Terre de Vins · French
Why younger Swiss workers may be more uneasy about AI
3 November. A survey commissioned by Angestellte Schweiz found greater uncertainty about AI among respondents under 30 than among those over 50. Tanja Tanneberger offers a possible explanation. A new entrant can be fluent with the tools while still having fewer years of professional experience to draw on when work changes. That suggests a question for a learning-needs interview. Where does a junior colleague currently get to practise a judgement call if software now makes the first attempt? SRF · interview in German
Four UK data-centre projects are considering gas while they wait for the grid
3 November. The UK Budget allows data centres to build on-site generation while waiting for an electricity connection. BBC investigators found four proposed large facilities considering gas-fired supply. Emissions estimates depend on whether those plants are built, how hard they run and how long the grid connection takes. For companies procuring AI capacity, the distinction between a supplier’s long-term power plan and the electricity used in its first years could be material. BBC File on 4 Investigates
Swiss earns CHF421.4m despite dearer fuel
3 November. Swiss reports that operating profit for January to September rose CHF10.2m. Strong passenger demand and freight helped cover higher kerosene costs. Its finance chief credits cost savings too, and the airline expects fuel to weigh more heavily in the fourth quarter. Across the border, Ryanair is discussing a possible pay freeze and higher fares. The two sets of comments show different ways the same input cost can reach a workforce or a traveller. SRF · Swiss results
Global wants its next head of learning to help shape AI development
Closes 13 November. This Holborn-based Head of Learning and Development role reports to the Director of Talent Development and Culture and manages two people. One of the stated outcomes is developing Global’s approach to AI within talent development. The remit also includes leadership programmes, working with senior stakeholders and evaluating learning. For an application, the most relevant example would connect an organisational priority to a change in how managers or teams actually work. Global · original employer advert
Alzheimer’s Society is hiring someone to set its learning operating model
Closes 8 November. The permanent Learning and Capability Manager post pays £50,898–£56,553 for 35 hours a week, with a £312 annual working-from-home allowance. It combines strategy, governance and the operating model for organisational learning, a close match for experience in capability leadership and regulated environments. The UK employer describes the role as home-based with occasional in-person meetings. A Zürich-based arrangement would need confirmation. First interviews are provisionally scheduled for 18 November. Alzheimer’s Society · original employer advert
Citizens Advice needs interim leadership during a redesign
Shortlist reminder · closes 15 November. The national charity’s three-to-four-month Head of Learning, Leadership and Culture role is still open. It offers £71,406, with an additional allowance for London-office roles, on a blended England-and-Wales basis. Compared with the two roles above, the immediate task is keeping an established team effective during an organisational transition. Evidence of leading through uncertainty would carry more weight here than a portfolio of new courses alone. Citizens Advice · original employer advert
The Swaddle Daily · AppointmentsDesk 09
Sports
The November Tests and a Sunday double bill
England lose two scrum-halves in the build-up to Australia
2 November. Ben Spencer and Harry Randall have joined the England squad after Northampton’s Alex Mitchell and Archie McParland were ruled out of Sunday’s Wallabies match. Mitchell hurt his hamstring against Gloucester and McParland suffered a calf injury in camp. McParland could still feature later in November. For the Twickenham opener, England’s coaches now have a week to settle the partnership between the scrum-half who delivers the ball and the fly-half who decides where it goes. BBC Sport
Marcus Smith makes his case in the position he wants
2 November. Harlequins’ win at Exeter gave England another look at Smith as a starting fly-half. The BBC’s round review notes that it has been 21 months since he last started a Test at ten. His ability to cover full-back and even fill in at scrum-half has made him valuable to the squad, but that versatility has not guaranteed him the starting playmaker’s role. Sunday’s selection will say more about that prospect than Saturday’s score alone. BBC Sport · Premiership talking points
McLaren heads for Interlagos, with Sunday’s race at 18:00 Zürich
6–8 November. After Mexico, the paddock moves straight to São Paulo. The organiser schedules the race for 14:00 local time on Sunday, or 18:00 in Zürich. Qualifying is Saturday at 19:00 Zürich. For a Sunday double bill, Brentford’s visit to Brighton is scheduled for 15:00 Zürich, leaving room for both if the football runs to time. The race weekend uses the conventional practice and qualifying schedule. McLaren · weekend timetable
A kitchen, an observatory and a changing wine business
Nadia Santini, the cook who made a family restaurant a destination
2 November. Italian food and wine journal WineNews reports the death of Nadia Santini, the longtime chef of Dal Pescatore in Runate, near Mantua. She was the first woman in Italy to earn three Michelin stars. The setting matters to her story. A family restaurant serving the cooking of a particular place became somewhere people travelled expressly to eat. The Italian tribute treats hospitality as a skill in its own right, alongside the precision of the kitchen. WineNews · Italian
A Slovenian scientist in Armagh gets a permanent address in the sky
1 November · weekend profile. Rok Nežič moved to Armagh in 2015 to do a doctorate and stayed to work in tours and outreach at the observatory and planetarium. He and colleague Shane Kelly have each had an asteroid named for them. Nežič’s is about 10.9 kilometres across. For someone whose work involves making astronomy intelligible to visitors, there is now an unusually personal answer to the question of how an object in the sky gets its name. BBC News Northern Ireland
A change at the top of a business that supplies both corks and barrels
2 November. Oeneo has named Magdeleine Allaume to succeed Dominique Tourneix as chief executive from 1 December. The group supplies closures, barrels and winemaking services. That puts its new leader at a different point in the wine trade from a grower or merchant. A winery can change its label quickly, while a change in closure or maturation vessel can affect what a customer discovers years later. Vitisphere reports on the handover in French. Vitisphere · French
3–9 November.Thursday: the Expovina Trophy masterclass runs 17:00–18:00 on the Schwan. Kabinett Visarte’s opening follows at 18:30 in the old town. Sunday: Alzheimer’s Society lists 8 November as its application deadline, and McLaren’s São Paulo race starts at 18:00 Zürich. Monday: the FHNW student concert at Museum Tinguely starts at 19:30, with free entry. The original listings are in the corresponding desks.
Try a ten-minute data handover
Design exercise. Borrow one question from Zürich’s new strategy. Give a colleague a small, familiar dataset and ask them to identify who owns it, when it was last checked and one decision it can support. Let them use the documentation already available. Record the first point at which they need to ask someone. That gives you a concrete choice for the next revision. You might need a named owner, one better field definition, or simply a more visible date. City of Zürich · strategy behind the exercise
Three grapes hiding in plain sight
Original word puzzle. Each sentence conceals a grape name across a word boundary. Read adjacent letters in order, ignoring spaces, capitalisation and punctuation. The hidden names are six, five and five letters long.
The gallery’s summer lottery paid for the frames.
A little yoga may help before a long rehearsal.
I ordered scampi, not the usual moules.
Bonus for the tasting table: which of your answers commonly needs a second word to distinguish between noir, gris and blanc?
The Swaddle Daily · The Back PageDesk 12
Puzzle solution — open when ready
MERLOT hides in sumMER LOTtery. GAMAY hides in yoGA MAY. PINOT hides in scamPI, NOT. Read across each gap and ignore punctuation. The bonus answer is PINOT.