New exhibition about CO₂
The new exhibition ‘KEEP IT CO?OL’ by focusTerra is dedicated to a gas that makes our lives possible – and at the same time has become one of the greatest challenges of our time: carbon dioxide – CO?.
Carbon dioxide (CO?) is essential for life on Earth. Plants need it to grow, and our bodies produce it when we breathe. However, since the beginning of industrialisation, humans have disrupted the natural balance: burning fossil fuels releases so much CO? into the atmosphere that the planet is growing hotter and hotter – with unmistakable consequences worldwide.
Technical solutions – a way out?
The new exhibition ‘KEEP IT CO?OL’ by focusTerra shows how the use of renewable energies – such as solar, wind and geothermal energy – helps to reduce emissions. Nature also plays a key role: soils and forests are natural CO? reservoirs and make an important contribution to reducing the CO? content in the atmosphere.
At ETH Zurich, researchers are working on technologies to specifically remove CO? from the air and store it long-term – for example, underground or in products such as concrete. These approaches are promising. However, they must be implemented at the right time and on a large enough scale in order to be effective.
‘KEEP IT CO?OL’ shows that technological progress alone is not enough. Commitment and decisive, joint action are needed to overcome political, economic and social hurdles in order to shape a future worth living.
Get involved
What makes ‘KEEP IT CO?OL’ special is that visitors are not passive participants. Interactive stations, discussion forums and multimedia games encourage visitors to think for themselves – and to question their own CO? decisions. How much emissions are there in my everyday life? And what can I really change? The exhibition does not seek to tell people what to do, but rather to provide guidance on a complex topic that can easily make people feel powerless.
For groups and school classes, there are workshops, guided tours and discussion formats with experts from the fields of research, technology and environmental policy. Here, visitors can ask questions and engage in discussion.
An exhibition for the whole family
The exhibition is wheelchair accessible, free of charge and suitable for families with children. Combined with guided tours, workshops and creative accompanying programmes, ‘KEEP IT CO?OL’ becomes a place of collaborative discovery.
The exhibition ‘KEEP IT CO?OL – Tech to the rescue?’ will be on display from 28 August 2025 to 28 February 2027 at focusTerra, Sonneggstrasse 5, Zurich.
Further information
Award-winning science communication
In 2023, the exhibition was awarded the Optimus Agora Prize, which is presented by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) and Swissnex San Francisco. The prize aims to promote outstanding science communication.
Note on the translation
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