Opportunities for Master's theses at D-MTEC
Explore opportunities to write your Master's thesis at a research group at D-MTEC or an associated lab. The feed is based on SiROP placements.
Master Thesis Economics of spatial and temporal information for improving nitrogen efficiency in agriculture.
Background Switzerland has ambitious goals to reduce nitrogen surpluses in agriculture. An important mechanism in this context is to improve nitrogen efficiency. In this context, new technologies such as precision farming, and remote sensing and new sensors can provide better information on nutrient availability in the field. In the past, these efforts were mainly focused on improving spatial application patterns. This thesis aims to also include the temporal application pattern, i.e. when to apply fertilizer. Such spatial and temporal information can help farmers avoid nitrogen losses by applying the right amount of fertilizer at the right time and place to meet crop needs. Soil health sensors (such as those developed by Digit Soil) can provide additional information about the timing of fertilizer application. Combining spatial and temporal information about fertilizer application could improve nitrogen efficiency in crop production and contribute to a more sustainable agricultural sector. Research questions ● What are the economic costs and benefits of knowing when to fertilize? ● How big is the potential to reduce fertilizing by using temporal information? ● What is the potential of spatial and temporal information for achieving nitrogen efficiency goals in Swiss agriculture?
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Master Thesis , ETH Zurich (ETHZ)
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Published since: 2025-06-12 , Earliest start: 2025-09-01 , Latest end: 2026-12-31
Organization Chair of Agricultural Economics and Policy D-MTEC
Hosts Finger Robert, Dr. , Wacha Nadine
Topics Agricultural, Veterinary and Environmental Sciences , Economics
Master thesis: Crop protection in organic and non-organic pesticide-free arable farming
Pesticide-free (non-organic) crop production is currently gaining ground in European agriculture as a new alternative pathway between conventional and organic farming. To successfully produce crops without using pesticides, farmers must adopt sustainable crop protection measures, e.g., following the principles of integrated crop protection (IPM) or agroecological crop protection (ACP). Even though both production systems, i.e., pesticide-free non-organic and organic, work without pesticides, the alternative crop protection measures used may differ between organic and non-organic farms. To date, little is known about potential differences between farming systems without pesticides regarding the adoption of alternative crop protection strategies.
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crop protection, pesticide-free, organic, integrated pest management (IPM), wheat, maize, Switzerland
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Master Thesis
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Published since: 2025-06-12 , Earliest start: 2025-02-02 , Latest end: 2026-01-22
Organization Chair of Agricultural Economics and Policy D-MTEC
Hosts Akter Sharmin
Topics Agricultural, Veterinary and Environmental Sciences
Master thesis: The effect of soil erosion risk on Swiss dairy production
Healthy soil is essential of agriculture and a key resource for meeting 21st-century human needs such as food, feed, fiber, clean water, and clean air (Amundson et al., 2015). However, soil degradation is a major problem for agriculture globally but also in Switzerland. Agriculture significantly contributes to soil degradation due to its reliance on resource-intensive practices, such as overgrazing (see Borrelli et al., 2017, and references therein). From a theoretical perspective, soil erosion can have a dual effect on agricultural production. On one hand, it degrades soil quality, reducing the effectiveness of land and other inputs, such as fertilizers, and subsequently lowering agricultural output. On the other hand, at higher levels of soil erosion, farmers may adopt advanced technologies that enable more efficient use of land and inputs, allowing them to adapt to ongoing erosion risks and potentially increasing agricultural output. Thus, the net effect of soil erosion on production depends on whether the negative impacts outweigh the positive adaptations or vice versa. The relevance of soil erosion and production also holds for dairy production in Switzerland, e.g. due to the relevance of on farm feed production. Despite its importance, there is a lack of farm-level studies examining the dynamics of soil erosion within the production structure of dairy farming. Addressing this gap could provide valuable policy insights for promoting sustainable farming practices to mitigate soil erosion.
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Dairy farming, soil erosion, Swiss agriculture, sustainability
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Master Thesis
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Published since: 2025-06-03 , Earliest start: 2025-01-01 , Latest end: 2027-01-01
Organization Chair of Agricultural Economics and Policy D-MTEC
Hosts Parikoglou Iordanis
Topics Agricultural, Veterinary and Environmental Sciences , Economics
Fully Electric Railway Supply Chains: Rail-City Portal as Key Infrastructure for Sustainable E-Mobility
Switzerland is committed to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Innovative and sustainable freight solutions are essential as the transport sector accounts for a significant share of CO2 emissions. Currently, road transport dominates the modal split (62%), with rail transport contributing only 38%. Traditional urban logistics rely heavily on road-based transport, contributing to congestion, emissions, and inefficiencies in last-mile delivery. While rail offers a sustainable alternative for long-distance freight, its integration into city logistics remains limited. Therefore, this thesis investigates how a fully electric railway supply chain centered around a rail-city portal (e.g., intermodal urban connectors between rail and last-mail logistics) can reduce emissions and improve the efficiency of urban freight distribution. A rail-city portal can be a transshipment node, bridging rail and e-mobility for last-mile logistics.
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Supply Chain, Rail freight, City logistics, Transport, MATSim, Operations Research
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Master Thesis
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Published since: 2025-04-16 , Earliest start: 2025-05-01 , Latest end: 2025-10-31
Organization Chair of Logistics Management
Hosts Shan Jing
Topics Engineering and Technology , Economics , Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services
Bottlenecks in Climate Change Adaptation for Arable Crop Farming
This master thesis examines the bottlenecks in climate change adaptation for arable crop farming, with a focus on the behavioral and socioeconomic factors. By analyzing survey data from 700 farms in Germany, it aims to identify the key barriers to effective uptake of adaptation measures and provide insights for developing more efficient and targeted strategies to enhance agricultural resilience to climate change.
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Climate Change Adaptation, Arable Crop Farming, Agriculture, Resilience, Adaptation Strategies
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Master Thesis
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Published since: 2025-03-13 , Earliest start: 2025-03-13
Applications limited to Agroscope , ETH Zurich , University of Zurich
Organization Chair of Agricultural Economics and Policy D-MTEC
Hosts Stetter Christian
Topics Economics
Is Reducing Livestock Populations Necessary for Achieving Low-Emission Agriculture?
Livestock farming is the largest contributor to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions within agriculture, raising the question of whether reducing livestock populations is essential for achieving low-emission agriculture. This thesis examines whether such reductions are a necessary condition and identifies bottleneck levels of livestock counts for given GHG emission targets. Using Necessary Condition Analysis (NCA), the research also explores the potential of alternative mitigation strategies, such as feed optimization, manure management, and technological innovations.
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Climate Change Mitigation, Livestock Farming, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Low-Carbon Agriculture, Sustainable Food Systems
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Master Thesis
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Published since: 2025-03-13
Applications limited to Agroscope , ETH Zurich , University of Zurich
Organization Chair of Agricultural Economics and Policy D-MTEC
Hosts Stetter Christian
Topics Agricultural, Veterinary and Environmental Sciences , Economics
Behavioral drivers of climate change adaptation in crop farming
Agriculture is widely recognized as one of the most vulnerable sectors to the adverse effects of climate change, which is particularly true for arable farming. Projections indicate that these effects will worsen in the coming decades. Farmers will have to adapt to the changing climate. Multiple climate change adaptation strategies have been suggested over the last decades, including, e.g., diversification, conservation tillage or crop insurance. However, little is known about the behavioral factors influencing the adoption of such strategies. This master thesis aims to investigate the influence of farmers’ behavioral characteristics on the uptake of climate change adaptation measures in the context of German arable farming.
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Clilmate change adaptation, arable farming, behavioral economics, decision-making
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Master Thesis
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Published since: 2025-03-06 , Earliest start: 2022-12-09
Organization Chair of Agricultural Economics and Policy D-MTEC
Hosts Stetter Christian
Topics Agricultural, Veterinary and Environmental Sciences , Economics
Do extreme weather shocks amplify structural change in European agriculture?
Agriculture is widely recognized as one of the most vulnerable sectors to the adverse effects of climate change. This thesis aims to identify effects of weather shocks on farm structural indicators. It combines official statistics provided by the EU with meteorological data and provides causal estimates of weather shocks on farm structural indicators using econometric methods.
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Climate change, extreme weather, structural change, farm exits
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Master Thesis
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Published since: 2025-03-06 , Earliest start: 2023-05-15
Organization Chair of Agricultural Economics and Policy D-MTEC
Hosts Stetter Christian
Topics Agricultural, Veterinary and Environmental Sciences , Economics