The Swiss Heritage Society (SHS) is a non-profit organisation

Non-profit organization

Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...

 dedicated to the advancement of Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

’s architectural

Architecture

Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...

 heritage. Its focus is on the preservation of important landmark

Landmark

This is a list of landmarks around the world.Landmarks may be split into two categories - natural phenomena and man-made features, like buildings, bridges, statues, public squares and so forth...

s, the development of the structural environment, and the promotion of good architectural design.

The SHS was founded in 1905, has about 17,000 members and publishes the magazine Heimatschutz/Sauvegarde quarterly.

The SHS pursues its goals mainly with public relations

Public relations

Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....

 activities, through publications, technical consulting in construction projects, advisory functions in planning committees, appraisals, legal action, and financial grants

Grant (money)

Grants are funds disbursed by one party , often a Government Department, Corporation, Foundation or Trust, to a recipient, often a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual. In order to receive a grant, some form of "Grant Writing" often referred to as either a proposal...

 for pioneering projects. The SHS commends exemplary achievements by awarding prizes (Wakker Prize

Wakker Prize

The Wakker Prize is awarded annually by the Swiss Heritage Society to a Municipality of Switzerland for the development and preservation of its architectural heritage....

, Heimatschutz Prize, Schulthess Horticultural Prize). Together with Pro Natura, the SHS has been supporting the annual fundraising drive with chocolate talers

Thaler

The Thaler was a silver coin used throughout Europe for almost four hundred years. Its name lives on in various currencies as the dollar or tolar. Etymologically, "Thaler" is an abbreviation of "Joachimsthaler", a coin type from the city of Joachimsthal in Bohemia, where some of the first such...

(Schoggitaler) for over 50 years.