The Monocle Minute

Greece’s decision last week to pass a landmark bill legalising same-sex marriage was significant both for the country’s citizens and for its soft-power credentials. Over the past 14 years, the country’s government has had to contend with a staggering debt crisis and financial stagnation. The rise of political parties such as right-wing Golden Dawn and leftist Syriza was a symptom of a fractured society. But Greece has made a herculean effort to emerge from the economic crisis and set the foundations for a more inclusive future.

Over the past 10 years, the incumbent New Democracy party hoped that its market reforms would bring in foreign investment. The government, led by centre-right prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, banked on reducing austerity measures to plug the holes – and it worked.

Despite roadblocks put in place by the coronavirus pandemic, the country’s economy is finally improving. Greece is also pushing to bolster its position on the world stage, intensifying its efforts to win a seat as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the 2025-2026 term. In Athens a major urban regeneration development, The Ellinikon Project, is under way. All this starkly contrasts with the city that I left behind in 2008, whose streets were littered, businesses closed and shops shuttered.

“My goal has always been to make Greece a truly European country,” Mitsotakis tells Monocle. “And why not try to set an example in areas where we can be a protagonist?” Legalising same-sex marriage signals Greece’s ambitions to become an equal partner in a progressive Europe.

Emmanuil Papavasileiou is Monocle’s newsletters editor. For more opinion, analysis and insight, subscribe to Monocle today.

More than 1,000 companies from over 50 countries and regions will gather at Changi Exhibition Centre tomorrow for the ninth Singapore Airshow. Asia’s largest aviation fair is among the world’s most important aerospace and defence exhibitions. “Commercial aviation is set for a really strong 2024,” Murdo Morrison, head of strategic content at Flightglobal, tells The Monocle Minute.

Problems with supply chains and materials have recently affected aviation manufacturers but demand remains strong. Thai Airways has placed an order of 45 widebody aircraft from Boeing, while Airbus is set to deliver 800 aircraft in 2024. A good year is also expected for makers in the electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft sector, particularly with Chinese company EHang going into service with its range of autonomous aerial vehicles. “The appetite in the Asia-Pacific region for these novel aircraft is really high,” says Morrison. “It will certainly be an early adopter of this technology.”

Plans to develop the UK’s largest mass-timber neighbourhood in Lewes, near Brighton, have been approved. The South Downs National Park has given permission for the construction of 685 homes, collectively known as The Phoenix, on the former North Street Industrial Estate in East Sussex. The project will be overseen by development firm Human Nature, whose team includes Kathryn Firth, director of master-planning at multinational design firm Arup.

The Phoenix will be powered by renewable energy and its public spaces will include gardens, dedicated community buildings and a mobility hub for electric cars, bikes and shuttle buses. While there has been some local opposition to the demolition of existing warehouses on site, the plans could serve as a benchmark for other developers who want to create communities that are in tune with the local climate and environment.

Aspen has long been celebrated for its breathtaking scenery and winter sports. But now its cultural scene is on the up too. Monocle meets a new generation of collectors and institutions who are reviving its status as a mountain mecca for art.

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Fashion giant Saint Laurent has opened a bookshop in Paris. We find out more. We also speak with the co-founder of ‘This is Badland’, a title about art and design from the Balkans, and head to Manchester to speak with the co-founder of ‘Proper’ magazine.