Switzerland – Candidate for the World Heritage Committee

Expertise
Oliver Martin has extensive experience in managing and preserving cultural and architectural heritage. Since 2012, he has been head of the Baukultur Section and a member of the senior management of the Swiss Federal Office of Culture. Charged with the preservation of historical monuments and sites, he has led conservation projects linked to major infrastructure and played a strategic role within several organisations, including the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) and UNESCO, in the protection and promotion of world heritage. He also chairs the Davos Baukultur Alliance, which works with the World Economic Forum to promote international cooperation on Baukultur quality.

Education
Mr Martin holds a degree in architecture from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich), where he also obtained a doctorate in 2002. Before that, he studied art history at the University of Bern and was awarded prestigious scholarships to pursue his research at the Swiss Institute in Rome. This educational path prepared him for a career in heritage conservation and architecture.

Skills
Fluent in German, French, Italian and English, Mr Martin has developed skills in cultural governance, strategic management and international diplomacy that set him apart. He is adept at leading teams, managing large budgets (CHF 30 million per year) and navigating complex legal and international environments. With his role entailing the development of strategies to address current challenges such as climate change and the energy transition, Mr Martin is recognised and appreciated for his work within the EU and UNESCO in particular.

Expertise
Carlo Ossola is a specialist in natural and landscape heritage, with over 20 years’ experience in managing protected areas and world heritage. He has been a research associate at the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment since 2006, and is responsible for managing Switzerland’s natural parks and world heritage sites. His experience includes coordinating strategic projects to assess impact on these sites and has overseeing the revision of management plans to ensure their preservation. He is also involved in international projects with organisations such as the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM), and the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), aimed at promoting sustainability and heritage conservation.

Education
Mr Ossola holds a master’s degree in biology, specialising in zoology, botany and ecology, from the University of Lausanne (1996–2001). In 2004, he obtained a postgraduate diploma in natural resources engineering and nature management from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL), where he developed expertise in environmental impact studies, particularly in new conurbation areas. This training solidified his skills in resource management and nature conservation.

Skills
Mr Ossola has expertise in managing conservation projects, in inter-institutional collaboration and in training international experts to manage heritage assets. He is fluent in Italian, French, English and German, and has served actively on the Swiss Commission for UNESCO. In addition, he regularly takes part in the IUCN’s work to assess and improve nature sites. With his wide-ranging experience, he is excellent at coordinating strategic impact studies and developing guides such as UNESCO’s Enhancing Our Heritage Toolkit 2.0 initiative, which aims to strengthen the links between heritage protection and sustainable development.

Expertise
Benoît Dubosson is an expert in cultural heritage policy and heritage impact assessments. He has been a member of the Council of the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) since 2021 and is its chairperson for 2024 and 2025, overseeing the management and strategic direction of the organisation. At the Swiss Federal Office of Culture since 2016, he heads the Baukultur advisory and expertise unit, where he is responsible for national heritage policies, impact assessments and the management of world heritage sites. He was also in charge of the architectural heritage inventory for the Canton of Vaud from 2013 to 2016, as well as deputy head of the federal inventory of sites built in Switzerland.

Education
After completing a bachelor’s degree in architecture at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL), Mr Dubosson obtained a master’s degree in archaeology, ethnology and the history of religions from the universities of Lausanne and Neuchâtel (2000–06). His academic training has allowed him to develop in-depth expertise in managing and preserving heritage resources by incorporating archaeological, historical and spatial perspectives that are essential to his current role in the field of cultural heritage.

Skills
Mr Dubosson has demonstrated his skills in team management, heritage analysis and the supervision of conservation projects. His experience in Switzerland and abroad includes research activities at the institute of archaeology and antiquity sciences in Lausanne and the Swiss Archaeological School in Greece, where he supervised fieldwork and produced publications. He also has strong skills in steering complex projects, with expertise in inter-institutional collaboration for the protection of cultural heritage. He thus plays an active role in the development of heritage policies and inventories at both regional and national level.

Expertise
Muriel Berset Kohen has had a distinguished career in Switzerland’s Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, during which she spent eight years as an ambassador in Africa, first in West Africa and then in North Africa, before moving to Sofia, Bulgaria, where the next World Heritage Committee meeting will be held. She is currently serving in her second multilateral position. In her capacity as Switzerland’s permanent delegate to UNESCO, she chaired the preparatory group of the executive board in 2022–23, took on the vice chairpersonship of the Intangible Heritage Committee at the committee’s meeting in Rabat in 2022, and represented Switzerland at meetings of the World Heritage Committee in Riadh and New Delhi.

Education
Ms Berset Kohen studied literature in Geneva, specialising in Arabic and Islamic Studies. Her academic training was enriched by a long stay in Cairo, Egypt, where she deepened her knowledge of Arabic culture and language.

Skills
Ms Berset Kohen has a finely attuned intercultural skills and is trained in negotiation. She is constantly at work to further open dialogue and consensus-building.

Expertise
Nicolas Mathieu has been responsible for UNESCO-related matters at the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs for many years now. On behalf of Switzerland, he has taken part in a large number of statutory meetings of the organisation’s governing bodies, its programme committees and its conventions, including the World Heritage Convention. Accordingly, he has in-depth knowledge of the workings and processes of negotiation and decision-making throughout UNESCO. As the Secretary General of the Swiss Commission for UNESCO, Mr Mathieu has the advantage of being able to grasp in concrete terms the decentralised work carried out at the level of networks of actors in the field, such as managers of world heritage properties or UNESCO chairs. In these contexts, he can bring in both national and international perspectives, providing support for the cooperation with other committees.

Education
Mr Mathieu has a degree in art history from the University of Geneva, specialising in the contemporary period at the intersection between visual arts and architecture. He also studied Japanese literature and civilisation and lived in Tokyo for several years. In addition, he has pursued practical training in the fine arts. On the business side, Mr Mathieu has taken a number of courses in management, communications and negotiation.

Skills
Mr Mathieu pursues a systemic approach to the issues at stake between the various processes linked to UNESCO and beyond, and their impact at the operational level. By virtue of his remit, over and above his main work in intra-governmental coordination, he is adept at devising innovative and creative multi-stakeholder dialogues involving civil society, academia, international organisations and the authorities, with a view to bringing about policy change.

Expertise
Elly Tzogalis Corbaz joined the Switzerland’s Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) in 2010. She began her diplomatic career at the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations in New York, before moving to the Security Council and Political Affairs Section of the United Nations Division in Bern, followed by the Permanent Mission of Switzerland in Geneva. She then worked for several years in the political section of the Embassy of Switzerland in Moscow. On her return to Bern, she worked for the staff office of Swiss Humanitarian Aid, part of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. Based in Paris since 2022, she represents Switzerland’s interests at UNESCO and the Francophonie on a wide range of issues, with a focus on administrative and financial matters (she co-chaired UNESCO’s Geneva Group until summer 2024) and cultural issues.

Education
Ms Tzogalis Corbaz studied political science at the University of Lausanne and Sciences Po Paris. After rounding off her education with training in journalism, she worked as a journalist for various media outlets (television, radio, written press) before starting her diplomatic career. She has completed various courses on negotiation and multilateral diplomacy (Geneva Centre for Security Policy, United Nations Institute for Training and Research) and management, communication and intercultural competence at the FDFA.

Skills
Ms Tzogalis Corbaz has accompanied numerous UN processes and has solid experience in negotiating in multilateral contexts. Regularly called upon to draft political or strategic documents, she has well-honed expertise in analysis and anticipation. Putting her communication skills to work for Switzerland, she is committed to promoting Switzerland’s image at UNESCO.

Expertise
Jeanne Berthoud is a seasoned specialist in cultural and project management, with extensive experience in coordinating and implementing cultural policy projects in Switzerland. For over a decade, she has worked in the UNESCO Section of Switzerland’s Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, where she coordinates the country’s cultural policy at UNESCO. As a member of the secretariat of the Swiss Commission for UNESCO, she implements projects at national level, in particular to raise public awareness of world heritage values. Her work includes project steering, promoting intercultural cooperation and strategic communication.

Education
Ms Berthoud graduated from the Lausanne’s cantonal art school with a cum laude diploma in audiovisual production. She has also broadened her knowledge through further training in theatre studies at the New School in New York and the universities of Bern and Fribourg, and through Russian language studies.

Skills
In addition to German, her native language, Ms Berthoud is fluent in French, English and Russian. Specialised in targeted copywriting and public communications, she draws on her strong organisational and decision-making skills when pursuing projects. With her rich experience in intercultural dialogue and passion for promoting culture, Ms Berthoud is fully committed to furthering UNESCO’s objectives.