2+ week, 6+ day ago (423+ words) Pelosi's departure, when it does eventually come, is a sign that the guard might finally be changing. Friend and fellow Californian political juggernaut senator Dianne Feinstein died in office in 2023 ... During the years that I lived in the US, I brushed shoulders with power " real political power " twice. The first was meeting Barack Obama's chief of staff, Denis McDonough, at the White House. The second was sitting down in the Capitol office of then House minority leader, Nancy Pelosi, a few years before she would become speaker for a second time. Pelosi wasn't (and isn't) a natural orator and seemed socially awkward. And yet it was obvious that she carried political clout " something that radiates from those politicians who possess it. This is why the recent announcement that the 85-year-old Democrat will retire when her current mandate ends in January…...

5+ hour, 27+ min ago (430+ words) Having previously cancelled compulsory winter sports for schoolchildren, Austria is debating changing tack to bring young people back to the... The 2024 manifesto of the Austrian People's Party (OVP) asserts that the country is at risk of losing its status as "ski nation number one. Sport shapes cultures as much as language and skiing is to Austria what football is to Brazil. In 1972, when ski star Karl Schranz was disqualified from the Winter Olympics in Sapporo for letting his name be used in advertising, there were protests across Austria. Two of the country's best-known crooners, Georg Danzer and Andr" Heller, even recorded a song laying into Avery Brundage, the president of the International Olympic Committee at the time. While the tune, "Der Karli Soll Leb'n, Der Brundage Steht Daneb'n, is still doing the rounds today and public opinion shows that skiing…...

1+ week, 6+ day ago (127+ words) Travel and restaurants Italy South Tyrol blends Alpine tradition with food-tech innovation to cultivate a smarter, sustainable future. A source of pride for locals, the province is one of the largest apple cultivators in Europe and generates 10 per cent of all continental apple production " something only possible due to heavy investment in technological advance. The food-tech sector combines centuries of Alpine tradition with cutting-edge research in sustainability, nutrition and agricultural innovation. Companies such as Iprona and the accelerator Foodseed are involved in developing activities, including plant-based food alternatives, precision agriculture tools, smart packaging and advanced food products. These collaborations between universities, farmers and tech firms drive competition in quality, traceability and circular food systems across the region. Issue #189 | December 2025...

1+ week, 6+ day ago (398+ words) The UK brand's founder and creative director, Nick Wakeman, and US menswear designer Aaron Levine talk us through their new joint collection, and how they propelled each other to greater heights. How did the collaboration come about?Nick Wakeman: Studio Nicholson has collaborated with other brands before but I have never worked toe-to-toe with another designer. I wanted something to light a firework in me and, during a management meeting, I suggested bringing in someone to work alongside me. Aaron's was the only name I put in the pot. Aaron Levine: We'd spoken online for a few years and finally met a year and a half ago in London for a 15-minute breakfast. It clicked. Since then, we've met regularly in Paris or London and begun making something together " I'd been suggesting we should for years. Did you find common…...

1+ week, 6+ day ago (294+ words) Though several storied department stores have shut, a new crop of shops in the Big Apple is piquing interest. (For Monocle's complete city guide to New York, tap here) The Florentine brand, founded in 1929, recently made its debut in the US, opening a 1,000 sq m shop (its first physical store outside Italy) in a historic NoHo building with an elaborate cast-iron fa'ade. Across three floors, the luxury fashion retailer stocks brands such as Auralee and Valextra. It also offers personal styling, with a floor where clients can view exclusive collections. More than 30 years after opening his flagship SoHo store, US menswear designer Steven Alan has a new space in Chelsea. Alan was known for introducing European brands, such as Acne Studios and Kitsun, to US shoppers and for his own-label wardrobe staples in classic silhouettes. The new space mixes his…...

5+ hour, 28+ min ago (282+ words) The freestyle discipline of ski ballet originated in the 1960s as an expression of creativity on the slopes, trading the thrills and spills of raing for elegant spins and acrobatic flips. With its graceful spins, bright costumes and music played against mountain backdrops, ski ballet was once considered the most expressive alpine sport. Born in the 1960s, it rose to fame with demonstrations at the 1988 and 1992 Winter Olympics, only to disappear with a flick of powdery snow. What made it so wonderful to watch and why did it vanish? And could a comeback be on the horizon? Three freestyle alpine sports " mogul skiing, aerials and ski ballet " emerged in the 1960s. In the first, athletes race down bumpy slopes lined with snow mounds. The second focuses on acrobatics: skiers speed towards a steep ramp, launching themselves into the air and performing flips. In…...

5+ hour, 29+ min ago (147+ words) A century-old Swiss magazine caters only to those who are serious about the Alps " and no detail is too small. Few magazines can tread the same ground of a single subject matter for a century. Indeed, a publication would be considered lucky even to survive that long. But for Die Alpen, published every two months since 1925 to serve the members of the Swiss Alpine Club (SAC), the mountains" vastness still offers a wealth of stories and inspiration. Finland claiming the top spot in the Open Society Foundations" annual Media Literacy Index has become an inevitability. The Nordic nation has placed first every year since 2017, when the list " which compares" Alpino #2025 | December 2025 Order by 15 December with Express or Priority delivery to ensure arrival before Christmas. Due to Christmas closures, orders placed after 22 December might not be dispatched until 29 December....

1+ week, 5+ day ago (112+ words) Times of crisis distinguish the professionals from the pretenders. When Hurricane Ida hit Louisiana in 2021, Hitachi's outage management system took charge. Hurricane Ida hit the Gulf Coast of the US in 2021. Louisiana bore the brunt of its devastation; Ida was the second-most destructive tropical cyclone on record. The woods of Louisiana are serene when the sun shines " but during extreme weather events, the trees become a hazard, blowing onto power lines and disrupting electricity supply. DEMCO's linemen relied on Hitachi Energy's OMS software during Hurricane Ida " but it's essential even when the sun shines, providing feedback to avert potential catastrophes. Issue #189 | December 2025...

1+ week, 2+ day ago (357+ words) Monocle follows Le Bon March's team of creative directors, artisans and technicians as they conceptualise the shops Christmas windows, from the early planning phases in a secret Paris workshop to the final installation. There are myriad festive gifts, fuzzy toys, shiny wrapping paper and boxes of artisanal chocolate that will be sprinkled around the shops 50 street-facing windows. The four most prominent frames will also play host to playful animations, from a makeshift chocolate factory to larger-than-life dentures being polished by toy rabbits "anything goes when it comes to imagining festive themes. "The windows have to be magical and joyful but also a little transgressive to get the parents into that playful space of Christmas cheer," adds Bodenes. The windows become an attraction in and of themselves, he says with a sense of pride. "Each year, the unveiling draws a crowd…...

1+ week, 6+ day ago (295+ words) Latin American soap operas are being reimagined for an American audience through a cross-border partnership between Globo and MFF & Co. Plus: Three classic telenovelas to watch this winter. The Brazilian telenovela " with its melodrama, suspense and hairspray " will keep a new cohort of viewers gripped in 2026, thanks to an unexpected twist: international expansion. In recent years, many have dismissed the format as outdated in the age of streaming. It turns out, however, that there's a market for the shows' endless intrigue. "Brazilian telenovelas have been watched not only in their home country but in many other parts of the world for years," Miura Kite, MFF & Co's president of global content, tells Monocle. "Telenovelas are also written in near real-time, adapting to daily audience feedback, so it's a unique process." 1.Roque Santeiro, 1985.Set in the fictional town of Asa Branca, this…...