The debate will be in German.

Tickets: 15.- CHF / 10.- CHF available here.

Is Switzerland having a serious identity crisis? The country prides itself on a strong education system, massive wealth and a strong banking sector. Yet a majority of citizens wanted a ban on the construction of minarets, highly qualified German immigrants feel increasingly unwelcome in Zurich, and the question whether Switzerland should join the EU or not paralyses politics. For once the country which sits geographically at the very heart of Europe seems uncomfortable and genuinely confused about just what it is or should be.

Yet, for once, this identity crisis arguably makes it seem more European than ever. The minaret controversy has been long eclipsed by the sudden rash of burqa bans in Belgium, France and across Scandinavia; the collapse of the Schengen agreement of free movement across European borders and increasing ambivalence towards the European project even in the German political elite suggests that Switzerland’s neighbours are equally struggling for self-definition. Similarly, Swiss models of consultative democracy and local referenda are routinely heralded, even in countries such as the UK, as an opportunity to rejuvenate mainstream party politics in the eyes of an apathetic and cynical public.

What place does Switzerland have in a world where the global balance of power is starting to shift from West to East? Can there be an inspiring vision for where Switzerland goes next, or are the nostalgic appeals to a past that never really existed likely to dominate the political imagination? Will there be the possibility of profound change or renewal in an uncertain geopolitical terrain, or is managing the status quo the best that can be hoped for?