Recogn.ice is a Swiss non-profit association founded in February 2019 that wants to raise awareness on the presence and the crucial role of the so-called cryosphere. We are officially supported by the World Glacier Monitoring Services (WGMS, based in Zurich).

“Recogn.ice” is a play on words in English. We want people – both locals and tourists – to observe and recognize by themselves the beautiful icy parts of the surrounding nature, and ultimately care for them.

We are three co-founders: Jochem Braakhekke, a Dutch glaciologist; Larissa de Palézieux dit Falconnet, a Swiss doctoral student in engineering geology, and Timothée Beckert, a French communications specialist. Our passion for outdoors activities – in an academic or sports field – has united us and led to the foundation of Recogn.ice.

In addition, we can rely on a large group of friends who have been supporting us since Day 1 at different levels: design, IT, app, environment, legal, politics…

Our primary goal is raising awareness on the surrounding presence and the crucial role of the cryosphere: from tiny glaciers on African volcanoes to gigantic ice masses in the Antarctic and from wintry canals in Amsterdam to the permanently frozen tundra in Siberia. Ice is everywhere! Together, all this cold stuff forms the cryosphere, an important component of the climate system.

In Switzerland (and all Alpine regions), glaciers act as water reservoirs that are crucial to our eco-system. Switzerland is home to 1’462 glaciers!

Our world is changing and all over the planet, this change is expressed in different ways. However, the melting cryosphere appears to be the most visible indicator of environmental change. Over the last few decades, we have observed an ongoing retreat of glaciers across the globe, we have experienced shorter winter sport seasons, and the extent of Arctic sea ice has drastically declined.

Recogn.ice has two main focuses to help people recognising the cryosphere and its role:

1. Familiar.ice: educating people on our website (blogposts, galleries of images, glossary), with field classes, and the installation of Freezy Frames (fix + mobile) to highlight the icy surroundings.
2. Revital.ice: we actively support the maintenance and the restoring of the cryosphere. Hence the creation of a Cryo Fund to support ice-related initiatives.

We are full of ideas to help people both familiarizing themselves with the cryosphere and revitalizing it (see above). Further projects will be announced in a near future.

Sebastian Marbacher designed the frame. He studied industrial design at Zurich University of the Arts and founded his own office in 2013 in Zurich, Studio Sebastian Marbacher. In 2017, he was awarded the prestigious Swiss Design Award by the Swiss Federal Office of Culture.

For Sebastian, the size of the Freezy Frame “is motivated by two aspects. First, it should mark a presence in a natural as well as in an urban environment. And second, it should be a suitable frame for a photo of a single person as well as provide enough space for a small group – from selfie to groufie. Color wise, we have chosen a luminous tone that fits well into the varied color palette of nature”. Note that the frame material is 100% recyclable.

On the front side, one reads the name of the corresponding panorama as well as #recognice, so you can share your images on social medias.

On the back side, one reads a brief description of Recogn.ice in four languages (EN, IT, FR, DE) and a QR-code. By scanning it, you will land directly on our dedicated webpage and learn more about the corresponding panorama, for instance the dynamics, the altitude and etymology of the glaciers visible.

First of all, our installations are made with 100% recyclable materials. We also offset the CO₂ emissions that have occurred during production and transport.

In the case of Lugano, we are fixing our frame to an existing terrace. However, we also possess a mobile frame, which can be installed temporarily in key locations.

By future installation of frames in city centres, we want to show you that you can observe and enjoy this beautiful panorama even from urban regions. One does not have to travel far away to spot and recogn.ice glaciers!

So far, Recogn.ice as an NPO has only been relying on volunteering activities and financial contributions via donations. Last year for instance, we successively financed the creation of a Freezy Frame via a crowd-funding campaign.

However, we are proactively looking for more financial support (via grants, partnerships a/o donations), and are very open for discussions.

We do not have a connection to it. We are not politically bound to any party. However, we welcome all kind of texts and initiatives that foster a greater awareness and protection of the environment.