As we come together to celebrate 70 years of CERN, we also acknowledge that parts of the CERN sites are really showing their age. As Head of the Site and Civil Engineering (SCE) department, this means overseeing a department that is constantly striking a balance between renovation and innovation.

At the SCE plenary meeting on 3 September, we took stock of the work done so far in 2024. Quite frankly, the results are fantastic. The video below shows the new buildings and renovations on the CERN sites this year alone, from the Prévessin Data Centre to the Main Building. It also highlights the new CERN Community Support Centre in Building 33, which is now the first line of support for all the CERN services and activities that were previously housed in Building 55, from registrations and access cards to biometry registration, dosimeter distribution and more.

In addition, the CERN Campus App goes from strength to strength. Launched last year by the SCE and Finance and Administrative Processes (FAP) departments, it provides the community with maps, the phonebook, news, restaurant information and much more. It was also used during this week’s CERN70 Community Event by more than 1500 users to receive site information in real time. Its emergency push notifications are tested on the first Wednesday of each month, and to date about 10 000 phones have received these messages. If you haven’t downloaded the app yet, do so here and make sure that push notifications are enabled.  

Collaboration with CERN’s Occupational Health & Safety and Environmental Protection (HSE) unit has also led to increased awareness of our recuperation schemes and the new biodiversity virtual walk. Earlier this year, CERN’s Mobility Plan was approved and is now helping to promote sustainable and smart transport methods.

While I stood at this week’s CERN70 Community celebration, surrounded by representatives of more than 100 countries, I couldn’t help but think what a remarkable place we work in. I’m proud to work at CERN and proud of my colleagues who strive to constantly improve life on the CERN campus. Thank you all.