Caught our eye - week 12

In many communities of the Rhine Valley and Graubünden, and in Appenzell (pictured), the Bonfire of the Funken was blazing on Funkensonntag, March 15, 2026. However, what stood out this year: The "Funkenbaabe" – the straw figure that burns high on the bonfire as a symbol of winter – is increasingly becoming the spark of a societal debate.

While the protection of hedgehogs using thermal imaging cameras became standard in 2026, criticism this year was heavily focused on the symbolism of the figure itself. In some communities, the traditional "Baabe" has already been replaced by abstract sculptures.

In just a few days, on April 1, 2026, Apple Inc. will celebrate its 50th anniversary. What began in 1976 with Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ron Wayne in a garage in Cupertino as an experiment with the bare motherboard of the Apple I, completely reshaped our understanding of technology: As early as the 1980s, Apple set standards with the Macintosh by introducing the mouse and graphical user interface – our interaction with technology was forever changed.

Our image shows Steve Jobs on July 21, 1999, in New York, where he presented the colorful iBook, which turned the laptop into a lifestyle object and made the internet mobile. It was the precursor to an unprecedented wave of innovation – from the iPod (2001) to the iPhone (2007) to the Apple Watch (2015). Today, in the anniversary year of 2026, the company has evolved from a hardware pioneer to the world's most valuable corporation, with technology we literally carry in our hands today.

More on 50 years of Apple and other historical topics.

This number marks the provisional peak of a Swiss success story: Stadler Rail reported 17,119 full-time positions at its annual press conference this week. While the global industry is under pressure, Peter Spuhler's company alone created around 2,000 new jobs last year – a clear commitment to the industrial base during times of economic upheaval.

The foundation for this growth is a historic order backlog of 32.3 billion Swiss francs. Despite global expansion, the core remains firmly rooted in Switzerland with around 5,300 employees. In light of a national GDP growth of just 1.0%, Stadler is sending a strong signal against the widespread skills shortage and in favor of the local industrial base.

More numbers

This week, an existential fundamental question dominated the political agenda in the Federal Palace: How much room does "perpetual armed neutrality" still allow in 2026?

While the international community increasingly pushes for Swiss involvement in the European security framework and Ukraine's reconstruction, a tug-of-war over the neutrality initiative has intensified in Parliament. As the Council of States continues to insist on a counterproposal that the National Council views critically, the matter must now go to the conciliation committee – a clear sign of the deep domestic divide over our foreign policy role.