France
Paris votes to make 500 more streets car free
There’s a showdown unfolding in Paris over who owns the streets. Residents recently voted in favor of banning cars from 500 roadways. The plan is to open them up to pedestrians, cyclists and new green spaces. The city’s mayor wants to transform Paris into the world’s first car-free megacity. But not every Parisian thinks that’s a good idea.
The left defies expectations in French elections
A week ago, France’s far-right National Rally party was poised to win the June snap parliamentary election by centrist President Emmanuel Macron. That victory was thwarted by a coalition of center and left parties unifying at the last minute to defeat the far-right. The World’s Gerry Hadden gets reactions in rural villages, where the National Rally party draws much of its support, to understand better the concerns of ordinary French people outside big cities.
Russian athletes deemed ‘neutral’ for Paris Summer Olympic Games
Leading up to the Paris Summer Olympic games, an International Olympic Committee review panel will decide which Russian and Belarusian athletes are eligible to compete. Russian and Belarusian athletes have been sanctioned due to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Some countries have called for a complete ban on the two countries from the Olympics. The World’s Daniel Ofman reports on how one Russian athlete feels about competing in the Olympics as a neutral.
Capitalists Anonymous: Weary French seek help in buying and polluting less
There are many addiction support groups out there — from alcohol and drugs to pornography. In France, there’s one called Capitalists Anonymous, for people who can’t stop buying stuff or worry that their daily actions, like commuting in gas-guzzling cars, are hurting the planet.