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Il potere del grano

<p>Climate change, the Covid pandemic and war brings into sharp focus the precariousness of the global food system. The war in Ukraine threatens the food security of many countries that rely on Kyiv as their main source of wheat.</p>

The Power of Grain

Climate change, the Covid pandemic and war in Ukraine brings into sharp focus how important food is. 

"Hard power" means economic, military, and demographic power; "soft power" means symbolic, cultural, and informational power. And now there is also "food power": the weaponised production of food. Wheat, one of the most consumed grains and traded on the stock exchange, has become a geopolitical issue.

The Weaponisation of Wheat

 Wheat, one of the most consumed grains and traded on the stock exchange, has become a geopolitical issue

Mapping the World

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In his memoirs, the founding father of the European project, Jean Monnet, wrote: "Europe will be forged by the crises it faces, and will become the sum of the solutions it finds during those crises." A prescient sentence that has never been more apt than during the Covid-19 pandemic and Ukraine war. During the bad times, Europe has closed ranks and is more unified than it has been in years.

The EU and Crises

During the bad times, Europe has closed ranks.

Huge territories, communist legacies, authoritarian leaders: China and Russia have much in common, as the good personal relations between Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin seem to show. Mapping the World demonstrates that behind the façade, the two countries have a much more complex and ambivalent relationship.

China and Russia: Firm Friends?

Behind the façade of friendship, the two countries have a much more complex and ambivalent relationship.

The construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which would have transported Russian gas to Germany via the Baltic Sea, caused concern in Central and Eastern Europe. Ukraine was particularly insistent of the risks involved. Poland and the Baltic States also repeatedly warned about Europe's dependence on Russia.

The construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline had been a cause for concern for Eastern states for years

Nord Stream 2: The Fears of Eastern Europe

Forty years ago, in June 1982, Israel invaded southern Lebanon, dubbed Operation Peace for Galilee by the Israelis. A small guerrilla group came together in secret to resist this offensive. Formed and supported by the Islamic Republic of Iran, it officially declared itself in 1985 as Hezbollah: The Party of God.
Four decades later, this small group has grown to become one of the most important military and political forces in the Middle East. A party of resistance for some, a terrorist group for others, Hezbollah is admired as much as it is feared. But the organisation, practically a state within a state, is living through turbulent times as Lebanon is experiencing a major political and economic crisis.

As  Lebanon experiences an existential crisis, a focus on the history of militant group Hezbollah, a controversial organisation supported by Iran.

Lebanon: Inside Hezbollah

Egypt is the country of the pharaohs and Abdel Fattah al-Sissi, at the head of the country for almost a decade, often likes to hark back to this glorious past. This nostalgia is a common thread among the leaders of modern Egypt, from Mehmet Ali, Nasser, Sadat, Mubarak, to Morsi. 

Egypt's Pharaoh Syndrome

Nostalgia for a glorious past is a common thread among the leaders of modern Egypt.

A land of fire and ice, Iceland has a dynamic economy which provides for its population of only 340,000 people. Mapping the World takes a look at this country of volcanoes, fishing and geothermal energy.

Iceland: 100% Green

A land of fire and ice, Iceland has a dynamic economy which provides for its population of only 340,000 people.

Russia views the former Soviet republics as its ‘near abroad’ and a strategic sphere of Russian influence. Mapping the World focuses on the former Soviet space and the Kremlin’s efforts to hold sway in these nations.

Putin: Nostalgia for Empire

Mapping the World focuses on the former Soviet space and the Kremlin’s efforts to hold sway in these nations.

China carefully controls the information that its people have access to, and Google, Facebook and Twitter flag up uncomfortable truths that would be better forgotten. But the country still wants to use the internet: so instead China, has developed its own sanitised ecosystem of plaforms. Nothing is anti-government or pro-democracy, and most users are flooded with messages of consumerism and entertainment. 

If I Were From Beijing (1/6)

China has developed its own sanitised ecosystem of social media plaforms

China, Country of Censorship

Bonuses and Extracts

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It’s crunch time: The last afternoon of training as candidates try and impress before the selections.

Day 4: Afternoon

50th Prix de Lausanne

Last day of training as candidates try and impress before the selections.

Day 4: Morning

In Peru, every year, the people who live in remote mountain villages gather to build the Inca bridge of Q'eswachaka, a traditional structure of woven grass, and the last of its kind. This ancestral know-how inherited from the Incas, and the enduring spirit of community, enables the villagers to pull off a stunning feat of engineering, time and again.

In Peru, every year, villagers build the Inca bridge of Q'eswachaka from woven grass, and the last of its kind.

The Inca Grass Bridge of Q'eswachaka

Human beings evolved in the warm climate of Africa before striking out to live in colder parts of the world. It is testament to our ingenuity as a species that we can now survive in hostile climates. But what if the cold was actually good for us? This documentary explores the science of cold with elite Finnish cold swimmer Elina as she attempts the Polar Ice Mile in arctic Svalbard.

What if the cold was  good for us? This documentary explores the science of cold with elite Finnish cold swimmer Elina as she attempts the Polar Ice Mile in arctic Svalbard.

Into the Cold

During the Second World War, two separate resistance networks, one based in Brussels and then Paris, and the other in Berlin, provided inteligence to the Soviets. This in-depth documentary tells their story and how the Third Reich tried to hunt them down.

During the Second World War, two separate resistance networks provided intelligence to the Soviets. The gestapo called them the Red Orchestra.

The Red Orchestra (1/2)

Afternoon training focuses on male competitors with coaching.

Day 3: Afternoon

Emberá Chamí live in the Andes Mountains, a region famous for its high quality coffee. Ostracised by conservative Colombian society, the trans women of this ethnic group find refuge on a coffee plantation that enables them to earn a living. among a community of like-minded peers.

The Indigenous Trans Women of the Andes

Ostracised by conservative Colombian society, a group of trans women find refuge on a coffee plantation.

360° Reportage

The 50th edition of the Prix de Lausanne opens with classical and contemporary classes given by Clairemarie Osta, Julio Bocca and Lakey Evans-Peña.

Day 1: Morning

First morning of training for the young contestants of the prestigious dance prize.

The Prix de Lausanne candidates are working hard before the selections on Friday with another day of intensive training.

Day 3: Morning

An intensive morning of classes at the prestigious dance competition.

Every spring in Sardinia, locals organise a parade in honor of Sant'Antioco, one of the patron saints of the island. In the churches, altars are decorated with cloths adorned with sea silk. These golden threads were once made from the filaments of the large pen shells, but the species is now critically endangered and with it, the skill of crafting sea silk into precious fabrics.

360° Geo

The  large pen shells that produce sea silk are critically endangered, as is the ancient art of sea silk embroidery.

The Silk of the Sea

With all the religious wars, the 17th century was a tense time in Europe. And in art one theme caught everyone’s imagination: the Virgin Mary.

Assumption of the Virgin - Nicolas Poussin

Look But Don't Touch

Russians long considered Armenia an unimportant vassal that could easily be brought back into line if the Kremlin choose to do so. In an ironic twist of fate, it is now this little neighbour that many Russians now turn to for asylum. Russia's youth and well-off middle-class rejects Moscow's politics and fear being drafted into fighting a war they don't believe in. 

Armenia: Russian Refuge

Russia always looked down on Armenia, but now Russian asylum-seekers are turning to Yerevan for help.

ARTE Reportage

Sven Philipp and Martin Rheinländer run workshops called  “Strengthening Masculinity” to teach men about women, flirting and sex. But critics like Christoph May and Susanne Kaiser warn against these types of workshops, which they say promote toxic male values and old-fashioned ideas. Christoph became so bored and annoyed by his male-dominated environment that he now avoids all-male groups as much as possible. As a researcher, he often gives public lectures, urging men to rethink critically their role in society.

Being a Man in the Modern World

The pick-up artist industrial complex has come to Germany.

Re: Male Identity Crisis

This first afternoon of training features classical dance with classes led by Elisabeth Platel and Julio Bocca.

Day 1: Afternoon

Training continues at the prestigious international dance competition.

The morning of Day 2 focuses on the youngest competitors and focuses on classical and contemporary dance.

Day 2: Morning

Focus on Classical and contemporary classes on day 2 of the prestigious dance competition.

Tuesday afternoon at the Théâtre de Beaulieu: as the selections approach, the boys and girls of group B are refining their technique.

Day 2: Afternoon

A journey into the heart of the Andes to discover its landscapes and unique wildlife: salt deserts, high grasslands and prehistoric forests are populated by impressive animals like bears, pumas and condors.

Extreme Nature

The Andes

Anti-Turkey protests by Sweden’s Kurdish community put the brakes on Sweden’s NATO membership bid. The EU green lights the sale of some insects as food, paving the way for bugs to leap into European diets. Our cultural pick of the week is a photographer’s tender gaze for her autistic brother.

NATO membership / Eating insects / Autism

Sweden’s bid to join NATO is blocked by Turkey, while insects are creeping onto European menus.

ARTE Europe Weekly

Spanish viol player Jordi Savall interprets Monteverdi's 7th and 8th book of madrigals, considered to be the composer's musical and aesthetic testament, and among the most beautiful works of Baroque music.

With Jordi Savall

Jordi Savall interprets Monteverdi's 7th and 8th book of madrigals, considered to be the composer's musical and aesthetic testament, and among the most beautiful works of Baroque music.

Madrigali Guerrieri e Amorosi

Since the Elysée Treaty of friendship was signed between France and Germany in January 1962, the two countries have built ever closer ties. In this intimate documentary, individual Germans from both east and west share their experiences of French culture in the post-war era.

In this intimate documentary, individual Germans from both east and west share their experiences of French culture in the post-war era.

Square IdeaThe Power of Grain

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