Federal Council appoints Martin Vetterli President of EPFL

The Federal Council today appointed Professor Martin Vetterli as the new President of the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), thus following the recommendation of the ETH Board. Martin Vetterli is a Full Professor at EPFL and President of the Research Council of the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF). He will take office on 1 January 2017.

Martin Vetterli succeeds Patrick Aebischer, who has had a successful 16 years at the helm of EPFL. In a press release issued today, the Federal Council recognises that during Patrick Aebischer's incumbency, EPFL has developed into a globally leading university for natural sciences and technology, whose reputation and impact extend far beyond the region and the national borders.

According to the Federal Council, Martin Vetterli has proved his suitability as an executive of a globally oriented university in the course of his professional career, notably on the Executive Board of EPFL and as President of the Research Council of the SNSF. Martin Vetterli is thus optimally placed to continue the successful development of EPFL and of its position as an internationally oriented, innovative and extremely dynamic place of education and research.

Today, the Swiss National Science Foundation complemented, that Martin Vetterli, president of the National Research Council of the SNSF, will step down after finishing his four-year mandate at the end of 2016 to become president of EPFL. He will be leaving "convinced that the SNSF's support of investigator-driven basic research of high quality is more important than ever",