The ITW Heterodox Economist Database (HED) seeks to gather experts and practitioners who offer views on various economic, social, and political topics that differ from those of popular mainstream economists. The people on the list have professional or practical links to prominent matters in Swiss domestic economic and social policy, or foreign issues key to the Swiss context (i.e. the European Union). Those who are open for media appearances will be marked as such, allowing for easy distinction between economists to contact for advice and for commentary. The purpose is to promote plurality in discussion by providing access to an increased diversity of voices within the economic field that offer critiques of the major issues facing mainstream economics and the policies developed from mainstream economic thought.

The principal target audiences are media outlets, journalists and organizations from civil society. Media outlets tend to rely on a small set of economic pundits deeply enmeshed in the mainstream economic thinking, which has failed to help in the face of massive societal challenges, such as the financial crash of 2007/08 and policymaking concerning environmental degradation. Journalists can also fall into this trap, as it can be very time-consuming to find an economist from outside mainstream economics who focuses on the topic for a particular piece. By connecting journalists and media outlets to the database, they can more easily access heterodox views to better inform their audience on differing opinions for a current debate. Groups in civil society that draft policy can also use this database to quickly find a specialist in their field with experience in academic investigation on the subject, further allowing them to develop their policy with more informed insight. Another group which we encourage to use this database is anyone interested in learning more about alternative schools of economic thought and how they connect directly to the Swiss context, or those that wish to add such pluralism to their curriculum.

Rethinking Economics Summer School Switzerland

Since 2021, a group of 9-15 students and young adults have been organising the Rethinking Economics Summer School Switzerland. With over 120 people at the Summer School every year, the Summer School is one of the biggest project of the Institute for Transformation and Economy Studies. We are not supported by a university and organize the Summer School completely on our own - including housing, the week-long program, and catering. With the Summer School we aim to create a space to learn together and strengthen the network of heterodox economics actors in Switzerland and beyond. We are very happy that the Summer School advanced to a place where young people active or interested in heterodox economics can connect, build project groups, and rethink economics. Every year, the Summer School focuses on different topics, perspectives, and school of thoughts and we’re looking forward to meeting for the next edition - which will take place 8 - 15 August 2026 in Chandolin! To keep the Summer School accessible for participants with various socio-economic backgrounds, we rely on external funding and are very grateful to have been supported by the Mercator Foundation Switzerland, the Sunflower Foundation, and the Anny-Klawa-Morf Foundation. We are currently looking for supporters of next years’ editions. To find out more about the program and the history of the Summer School, visit resuso.ch

History of the Summer School

In September 2021 a group of around 8 people got together to plan the first Summer School, focusing on Feminist Economics and Ecological Economics. After a year of planning, it was held end of August 2022 in Beatenberg, where around 50 participants, 8 team members and 7 speakers joined and together created an incredible experience.

As the Summer School was quickly fully booked in 2022, and Haus Amisbühl can not host more than around 80 people, we decided to look for a bigger location. We found the biggest group house in Switzerland (as far as we know) in Grand Hôtel Chandolin, that can accommodate 130 people. Focusing on Climate, Finance, and Inequality in 2023, we were happy to experience another successful Summer School. Building on the previous year's momentum, we returned not only to beautiful Chandolin, but also "Back to Utopia"—the theme of the 2024 Summer School. That time, we focused on transforming Labour, Power, and Institutions from a Pluralist Perspective. Now, in 2025, we return to Chandolin with the fourth edition, “Economics as Resistance”, where we look into Heterodox Strategies on Housing, Energy, and Agriculture against the New Right.

Connections to Rethinking Economics

Originally, the Summer School was a project of Rethinking Economics Zurich (back then: Plurale Ökonomik Zürich), but today our orga team is made up of individuals based in various Swiss cities and neighbouring countries. Some are active in local Rethinking Economics groups, some are not. To find out more about Rethinking Economics Switzerland and other local groups in Switzerland, you can visit their website. Our aim is to bring members of all Swiss Rethinking Economics groups, as well as other activist groups, together at this Summer School and provide a yearly meeting where we can talk about our events and projects, share ideas and plan a pluralist future together.

ITW Conference Series – Heterodox Economic Strategies & Alternatives

There is no shortage of critiques and analyses of the prevailing economic conditions. What is missing, however, are systemic alternatives and coherent long-term strategies. Heterodox economists can make a valuable contribution to developing such alternatives, but they often lack both the political background and - even more so - the resources to develop credible political strategies.

With our ITW Conference Series - Heterodox Economic Strategies & Alternatives, we are creating a safe space where activists, politicians, NGO representatives, actors from the social and solidarity economy, as well as critical economists and social scientists can come together for three days to collectively articulate the long-term perspectives that are currently lacking. We carry out this work for and with actors based in Switzerland - with the aim of being as concrete and grounded as possible. The conference will take place every two years, each time focusing on a different systemic issue and a set of programmatic solutions.

1st Conference in 2026: Pathways to Post-Growth

Our first conference, taking place at the end of 2026, will focus on the climate crisis as well as degrowth/post-growth as long-term, systemic responses. Preparations for the conference started a few months ago in coordination with other organizations.