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Series: Monthly Topics

«Palm oil, multinationals and Switzerland’s colonial legacy»
Recherche-Team REFLEKT

Talk

A series of talks organised by Gessnerallee in collaboration with various editorial teams: once a month, a topical journalistic focus is discussed with the audience. This time, we’re looking at Switzerland’s little-known colonial history on Sumatra and its legacy in the supply chains of global corporations.

  • Wed 02/1219:3021:10

    Stall6

Gessnerallee presents a series of journalistic focus topics in collaboration with different editorial teams. Copyright: Bodara GmbH
  • German spoken language
  • Steplessly accessible

In the heart of Sumatra lies the grave of a Swiss man. It is part of a plantation founded by Swiss people more than a hundred years ago – and the land over which a struggle continues to this day.

The investigative journalism team REFLEKT has travelled to the heart of global palm oil production to uncover a little-known chapter in Swiss colonial history. The journalists meet villagers who have been fighting for land for decades, piece together accounts of violent conflicts and uncover controversial land titles. The trail leads back to Switzerland: former Swiss plantations now feature in the supply chains of corporations such as Nestlé and Barry Callebaut.

On stage, the journalists recount what they discovered in Sumatra. Together with guests, they discuss how colonial land relations continue to have an impact today, what responsibility companies bear within global supply chains – and what this has to do with the hotly debated free trade agreement between Switzerland and Malaysia.

Host and Guests: Further information to follow

Journalistic research: Further information to follow

Information about the host

REFLEKT was founded in 2019 as Switzerland’s first independent, not-for-profit investigative team. Since then, a small but highly effective team has been carrying out major investigative projects with a significant impact. To expose abuses and promote transparency, they focus on investigative projects lasting several months – the sort that traditional newsrooms are increasingly unable to undertake. By presenting their work in an engaging way and publishing it across various channels, they make their findings accessible to the widest possible audience. In this way, they promote quality in journalism, increase public awareness and contribute to media diversity and a functioning democracy.

Accessibility and practical information

  • Step-free access

  • Duration: An approximately 100-minute event with an intermission

  • Language: In spoken German

  • Once a month, an editorial team selects a journalistic focus topic and shares it live with visitors on site. Gessnerallee's new series of talks takes place in cooperation with various editorial teams. The ‘monthly topics’ were inspired by the highly acclaimed ‘Kosmopolitics’ series, which took place at the former Kosmos.

  • CORRECTIV.Schweiz is a non-profit research centre. Together with the population, they conduct research to strengthen democracy. They use innovative approaches and methods, such as the CrowdNewsroom they developed. They also network local journalists and uncover social injustices, either alone or together with partners.

    REFLEKT, Switzerland's first independent and non-profit research team, was founded in 2019. Since then, a small, powerful team has been carrying out major research with a big impact. In order to uncover abuses and promote transparency, they focus on investigative research projects lasting several months, which traditional editorial teams are increasingly unable to handle. By presenting their work in an attractive way and publishing it via various channels, they make their work accessible to the widest possible audience. In this way, they promote quality in journalism, increase public awareness and contribute to media diversity and a functioning democracy.

    The Republik is a digital magazine covering politics, economics, society and culture, which has been published since January 2018. It is financed by its readers and publishes one to three articles every day.

    Tsüri.ch was founded in 2015 by Simon Jacoby together with a group of young journalists with the aim of producing independent local journalism. A city magazine that is always critical, on the pulse of the city and transparent. Every year, they organise focus months on topics such as housing, addiction and mobility. The content of these focus months includes panel discussions, city walks and workshops.

    WAV is a twelve-member research collective from Zurich. They have been research partners for journalists and editorial offices, civil society and the non-profit sector since 2021. Their research critically scrutinises and opens the doors of boardrooms and boardrooms where decisions that affect everyone are quietly made. They create transparency - so that those responsible are not judged by their words, but by their actions.

    WOZ – Die Wochenzeitung is an independent, left-wing green weekly newspaper from Switzerland. Since 1981, it has been reporting critically on politics, economics, society and culture, placing particular emphasis on background information, power relations and social justice. WOZ is organised as a cooperative and is largely independent of advertising and corporate interests. With carefully researched analyses, reports and commentaries, it sees itself as a countervoice to the mainstream and as a contributor to an informed public and a vibrant democracy.

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