Beat Jans
Swiss Federal Councillor since 2024
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Key Takeaways
- Beat Anton Jans ( German pronunciation: [beːat jans] ; born 12 July 1964) is a Swiss environmental scientist and politician who serves as a member of the Federal Council, after being elected in 2023 to succeed Alain Berset, assuming office on 1 January 2024.
- Early life and education Jans was born on 12 July 1964, in Basel, Switzerland, to Anton "Toni" Jans, a metalworker, and Maria Jans (née Ober), a sales associate.
- His mother immigrated to Switzerland after World War II from Germany.
- In 1924, his grandfather took municipal citizenship, in nearby Mosen on Lake Hallwil, where his father was raised on a farm before moving to Riehen near Basel.
- He completed his apprenticeship as a farmer in 1985 and followed up on his studies at the Technical College for Tropical Agriculture from where he graduated as an agricultural technician in 1987.
Beat Anton Jans (German pronunciation: [beːat jans]; born 12 July 1964) is a Swiss environmental scientist and politician who serves as a member of the Federal Council, after being elected in 2023 to succeed Alain Berset, assuming office on 1 January 2024. A member of the Social Democratic Party, he previously served on the National Council from 2010 to 2020, and as president of the Executive Council of Basel-Stadt from 2021 to 2023.
Early life and education
Jans was born on 12 July 1964, in Basel, Switzerland, to Anton "Toni" Jans, a metalworker, and Maria Jans (née Ober), a sales associate. He was raised in a blue collar family living in the predominantly wealthy suburb of Riehen. His mother immigrated to Switzerland after World War II from Germany.
His paternal family originally hails from Gelfingen (presently part of Hitzkirch) on Lake Sempach in the Canton of Lucerne. In 1924, his grandfather took municipal citizenship, in nearby Mosen on Lake Hallwil, where his father was raised on a farm before moving to Riehen near Basel. His paternal grandfather, Josef Jans (1899–1968), served as the president of the municipal council of Mosen.
He completed his apprenticeship as a farmer in 1985 and followed up on his studies at the Technical College for Tropical Agriculture from where he graduated as an agricultural technician in 1987. He graduated in Environmental Sciences from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich in 1994.
Career
He was involved in the development projects of the Swiss Helvetas in Paraguay and Haiti between 1987 and 1989 and was a member of the board at Pro Natura between 2000 and 2010, when he resigned to assume office as a member of the National Council of Switzerland. From 2010 until 2015 he was a member of the board at ecos.
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