Aargau

Aargau operates as Switzerland's nuclear and research epicenter—home to Beznau (Switzerland's oldest operating nuclear plant) and Leibstadt (its most powerful at 1,285 MW), plus the Paul Scherrer Institute with 3,000 researchers running Europe's most powerful synchrotron. This combination of baseload power and frontier science exemplifies niche construction at industrial scale. In 2024, PSI partnered with Copenhagen Atomics to develop molten salt reactor technology, positioning Aargau as a potential training ground for next-generation nuclear workforce. The canton generates roughly 29% of Switzerland's nuclear electricity while simultaneously hosting the planned Nagra deep geological repository in Würenlingen—managing both the production and eternal storage of radioactive materials.