Federal Council appoints Monica Duca Widmer as new member to the ENSI Board

The Federal Council confirmed the current ENSI Board members for the 2016 to 2019 term and appointed Monica Duca Widmer as a new member to the board. She will succeed Hans Pfeiffer, who is retiring from the board at the end of 2015.

Thanks to the appointment of Monica Duca-Widmer to the ENSI Board, it now complies with the requirements imposed by the Federal Council, according to which at least 30 per cent of the members of the top management bodies must be women. In addition, by appointing Ticino-born Dr Duca Widmer (56), Switzerland’s Italian-speaking area is represented on the ENSI Board for the first time.

Dr Duca Widmer completed a degree in chemical engineering at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology of Zurich and a doctorate at the University of Milan. For over twenty years she has been the executive director and chairperson of the board of EcoRisana SA, which provides expertise in environmental engineering, investigations of contaminated sites and restoration projects.

Dr Duca Widmer also holds various positions in scientific and research bodies. For example, she has been a member of the Federal Energy Research Commission (CORE) since 2009. She also served as a member of the Federal Commission for NBC Protection (ComNBC) from 1995 to 2007 and on the Board of the Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology (ETH Board) from 1998 to 2008.

ENSI Board chairwoman Anne Eckhardt is pleased with the appointment: “With Monica Duca Widmer, the ENSI Board will have a new member who possesses experience in various security-related areas and has excellent contacts to the research community.”

Federal Council confirms current members

The Federal Council also confirmed the current ENSI Board members Anne Eckhardt, Jürg Schmid, Werner Bühlmann, Jacques Giovanola, Oskar Grözinger and Karine Rausis. As per the Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate Act (ENSIG), the ENSI Board comprises five to seven members who are elected by the Federal Council every four years. The last confirmation election took place at the end of 2011.