Liv Lewitschnik
Europe
What Finland's president, Tarja Halonen, has in her motorcade, why Russia's building boom has hit the brakes, and how the Vatican is doing its bit in the fight against climate change.
Oceania
Australia's new-generation mosque, and why Cuban doctors are being sent to the Solomon Islands.
20 new heroes
Monocle shortlists 20 individuals from politics, business, music and design to watch in 2009. By overcoming odds and thinking creatively, they have already helped make the world a better place.
2009 forecast
The Copenhagen Climate Conference, upcoming elections in rogue states and expert opinion on a new presidency in South Africa.
Well stacked
A Buenos Aires bookshop with the largest collection of photography books in South Africa.
Oceania
Car-sharing becomes big business in Australia, while New Zealand flies the flag for biofuel.
Travel
With Seattle-based Ace Hotel Group’s revitalisation of the Breslin Hotel, a forgotten New York district just north of Madison Square Park is about to be relevant again.
Culture
This month’s culture roundup. Films include an animated documentary on the Lebanon war and a Russian émigré junkie in London. Books feature Soviet chic, a noir New York tale, and Argentinian memoir.
Travel
The world's highest hotel opens in Shanghai, a Q&A with Priya Paul of India's Park Hotels, plus essential Lisbon addresses.
Floor fillers
Deutsche Börse operates Germany’s biggest stock exchange in Frankfurt. Valued at €26bn, it's one of the world's largest exchange organisations. Its Frankfurt trading floor was recently updated with state-of-the-art technology.
