As the canny, optimistic winners of this year’s Monocle Design Awards all demonstrate, staying on top of your game in any field requires the instincts of a true detective – and a curiosity to find out what makes the world tick, writes our editor in chief, Andrew Tuck.

Pablo Escobar’s hippos, manhole-cover designs and a fake cemetery in Egypt.

For celebrated Australian industrial designer Marc Newson, inspiration often comes from unexpected places.

On the perilous stretch of water where the Columbia river meets the Pacific, the US Coast Guard is refining the art of preparation. Can our reporter ride the wave?

Ferrying thousands to the summit of Sugarloaf might seem like a tall order in itself. But Rio’s cable-car team will move mountains for their visitors.

Mary Fitzgerald on why African representation at the UN is becoming a battleground for the West and its rivals.

The world’s highest railway bridge, an Indonesian presidential hopeful and assessing Asia’s strategies for combatting a declining population.

South Korean fighter jets, a defence show in Baghdad and the problem with EU flag waving.

A growing desire to “belong” is driving a private members’ club boom in cities around the world, including London.

Henry Rees Sheridan visits the warren-like headquarters of a New York non-profit organisation that brings hi-tech scientific rigour to its mission to protect consumers from buyer’s remorse.

Why Parisians want a taste of Sweden, a radio station building a global neighbourhood and a spin around Rome’s brand-new vinyl shop.

Mexico City’s “green lungs” and architectural photographer Hélène Binet heads to Milan.

Amid rising global tensions, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations is – quietly –becoming more influential than ever before.

As the war in Ukraine rumbles on, Vladimir Putin, a former KGB officer, is relying on Russia’s spy network to prevent his downfall.

Cautious investors, climate change and the shifting nature of work are challenging the property industry but at trade fair Mipim on the Côte d’Azur, the mood is – mostly – optimistic.

Mexico City stayed open for business during the pandemic, pulling in a global line-up of entrepreneurs. And many have stayed on, joining the ranks of a homegrown team of aspiring business talents.

Radical graphic solutions, stripped-back designs and humour are helping wine brands to win shelf space in a competitive market.

David Walsh is the maverick founder and funder of Tasmania’s Museum of Old and New Art. Now he’s out to break down the distance between music and art – and have fun doing it.

An esteemed weekly newspaper in France is staking its future on pluralism and literary ambition.

The Dutch are reality TV pioneers but as times evolve, shows are voted off. Can these new formats be the catalyst for a renaissance?

Our inventory of cultural unmissables includes a tense paella western, an original Ukrainian crime drama and a collection of top-grade South African sonics.

For the third annual Monocle Design Awards, we’ve scoured the globe for the best in architecture, furniture, graphic design and more, to celebrate projects improving our lives – while looking good.

From a lush desert park and a kitchen showroom to a film camera and a Swiss army knife, our 50 design-world classics for 2023.

The Danish capital has become a fashion and retail powerhouse. We visit new menswear shop Goods, then meet the talent driving a wave of creativity and edgy style.

Fashion brands are focusing on authenticity and sustainability, and the drive to promote traditional manufacturing and shorten supply chains is reinvigorating makers. In the first of a new series, we find the firms defining a city’s fashion culture. First stop: Athens.

The Jun Group is behind some of Japan’s most inspiring labels. We meet the president of the company selling more than just clothes.

As the skies brighten, now is the time to stock up on sunglasses, seasonal collaborations and the shoes to be seen in this summer. Plus: the bag to put them all in.

From piquant pops of colour to playful bandanas and just-so shoes, we select the final touches that will elevate outfits beyond the ordinary

A former waterside inn in a quiet fishing village north of Amsterdam is now a cosy hotel and restaurant where good food, nice design and big views all entice you to linger. Monocle takes a first look.

Many rail projects are finally getting the green light, meaning smarter trains and new overnight services in Europe and the US.

Marrakech’s latest design hotel in Yves Saint Laurent’s old backyard. Plus: the rail projects that are getting the green light.

Alpine retreat The Comodo is breathing new life into the charming village of Bad Gastein.

There’s far more to a hotel than a place to sleep, as Singapore-based Capella Hotels’ ambitious Australian debut proves. We check in to find out more.

Folding phones offer new possibilities for communication and photography. Here’s one of the best. Plus: nifty audio gadgets. 

A beloved Lake Constance chalet gave young chef Silvio Germann the ideal chance to put into practice everything that he learnt from his mentor, Andreas Caminada. The Mammertsberg hotel and restaurant acts as a manifesto for Swiss hospitality.

Whether you want a seafood restaurant halfway up a Swiss mountain, a sourdough loaf made from rare grain varieties or just a Parisian coffee that is worth the wait, this month’s Inventory celebrates the establishments that go the extra mile to get things right.

Launched in 1960 during a wave of postwar, pre-Olympics optimism in Rome, the ETR 252 train was the height of ambitious rail travel. Designed by leading architects, L’Arlecchino boasted jet-age levels of onboard luxury with its 180-degree windows and all First Class seats. Yet how can a retro-futuristic icon keep pace with the innovations of high-speed services and the demands of the 21st-century traveller? Monocle boards a newly refurbished L’Arlecchino for the three-hour trip to Naples – a journey filled with conga lines and brief encounters – to find out.