Caught our eye - Week 16

Polymanga 2026 - more colorful, louder, and more visual than ever before. In just 20 years, the former insider gathering for manga and anime fans has evolved into a pop-culture giant. As the largest event of its kind in Switzerland, the anniversary edition in Lausanne not only broke all records but also proved that cosplay has long since entered the social mainstream.

It is the love letter of a generation that brings fiction to life with impressive precision and craftsmanship.

Images of the 1956 Hungarian Uprising are part of Europe's collective memory. As the first foreign photographer, Magnum member Erich Lessing documented in Budapest not only the destruction but, above all, the will to survive of a population that rose up against Soviet dominance.

Today, following last weekend's elections, we look toward Budapest once again. The historical stages could hardly be more different: the Hungarian Uprising of 1956, the opening of the border in 1989, and the political transformation at the ballot box following the April 2026 Hungarian elections.

The fundamental questions have remained the same over the decades. They involve the struggle between ties to the West and proximity to Russia, between genuine self-determination and politically staged sovereignty.

Further historical highlights

While the political discussion about «compulsory service for all» gains momentum, a new study by the BASS research institute provides the missing piece of the puzzle in the debate. Engagement in civilian service is far more than a mere alternative to the military: it generates an annual economic value added of 1.6 billion Swiss francs.

This amount casts work in landscape conservation or the healthcare sector in a new light. It transforms civilian service from a perceived niche model into an economic heavyweight of Swiss society.

The discussion about the future of compulsory service is not only about social values, but about tangible human and financial resources that the state relies on today.

Further figures

In one of Switzerland's most densely populated regions, the Lorzen plain in Zug has been named Landscape of the Year 2026. The two-kilometer-long strip between Cham and Zug proves that valuable open spaces can survive despite massive development pressure and economic growth.

This interplay of nature conservation, agriculture, and recreation is the result of farsighted planning: after development projects failed, the 2004 settlement boundary line secured the area. Today, the plain serves as a model for the coexistence of economic growth and landscape protection.

Our photographer Gaëtan Bally visited this special retreat and documented what coexistence at Lake Zug looks like in practice.