Affairs
Page 339
Talk of the town
From a Beijing air-quality expert to an Italian architect, these urban planning visionaries have ideas with the potential to transform our urban world – and soon.
Building the dream
Engineering company Arup connects the Sydney Opera House to the proposed Guggenheim Abu Dhabi. The owner-operated firm’s pioneering staff are the go-to team for constructing the seemingly impossible.
Americas
Mexico City's taxi fleet plans to go green, all change at Chattanooga, and how Twitter is helping track the spread of illness through cities.
Reel estate
If your town needs a tourism boost, a blockbusting film set on your street is a sure way to bring in punters. Cities are offering big incentives for their moment on screen.
Full-speed ahead
President Obama is allocating $8bn for high-speed rail, but much of the expertise will have to come from Europe. Monocle joins US transport secretary Ray LaHood on a tour of the continent's train networks.
Asia
Why English-style village shops are popping up in rural China and how the hutongs of Beijing may be given a reprieve. Plus, the latest figures on who is living the longest.
Secret treasures
These outposts may not score highly on the Monocle city metrics – they’re not very well connected for starters. But they all offer a quality of life we would recommend.
Shop idols
It can take just one retailer to unite a neighbourhood and restore a sense of old-fashioned community. Monocle has found 10 independent shops doing just that, from Barcelona to Tokyo.
Observation
An alluring first impression or a tempting parting glance? For Tyler Brûlé it was the latter, sparking dreams of relocating Monocle to Berlin and finding a perfect summer retreat in the German capital.
50 things to improve your life
Our 2009 global round-up of the people, pursuits, places and pets to improve the way you live, work, rest, commute and communicate.
