Zaha Hadid’s brandname
A British court has rejected an attempt by Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) to end a licensing agreement requiring the firm to pay 6% of its revenue for using the late architect’s name. The ruling marks...
View ArticleThis week’s ministerial U-turns
Following Labour Minister Yiannis Panayiotou’s backtracking after being rebuked by the President – when he admitted his mistake in calling out APOEL football club over the millions it and other teams...
View ArticleGod help us (and bless America)
Hillary Clinton burst out laughing at Trump’s pronouncements, while Biden crossed himself. But Trump is now calling the shots, and while the situation may seem like a laughable parody, it’s reality....
View ArticleBishop Budde and the xenophobe
“The people who harvest our crops and clean our offices; who work in poultry farms and meat packing plants; who wash dishes in the restaurants where we eat and work night shifts in hospitals – they...
View ArticleChaos whichever way you look
For years, officials struggled to install traffic cameras. They faced endless hurdles: technical expertise, data privacy concerns, problematic tenders, and countless other issues. They finally managed...
View ArticleThe witch hunt has begun
More than three centuries ago, in 1692, in the Massachusetts community of Salem, two girls aged 11 and 9 began displaying peculiar symptoms (convulsions, states of ecstasy, screaming) that no one...
View ArticleThe ‘fresh’ that went stale
A few years ago, hardly anyone would have dared to glorify Grivas. And among those few, you certainly wouldn’t have found the Speaker of Parliament or any other state official. When mothers were still...
View ArticleThe people who make a city
Mr Achilleas, who introduced himself as a “shoe therapist,” was an integral part of life within Nicosia’s old city walls. In times when the area was virtually deserted, a few stalwarts kept their...
View ArticleThe Sisyphean struggle of the Palestinians
As one watches the photographs of tens of thousands of Palestinians journeying to return to their homeland, to Gaza devastated by Israeli bombardment, it’s impossible to avoid the parallel with...
View ArticleCitizens still have power
As citizens, we often wonder: “If I take to the streets in protest, will anyone actually listen? Will it make any difference?” Last Sunday in Athens, tens of thousands of people marched to demand...
View ArticleThe rise of the empty towers
By general consensus, Nicosia’s most beautiful streets are Gladstonos, Vyronos, and Markou Drakou. These streets, more than any others, have managed to preserve their identity, largely defined by...
View ArticleCan humans tame nature?
As Santorini has been shaking for days now, with visitors and many residents fleeing the island, one can’t help but reflect on its recent development. Million-euro villas with infinity pools perched...
View ArticleSolutions through property development
One groundbreaking idea follows another. Just weeks ago, one might have thought it was all theatre—merely a performance to convince the masses of his omnipotence. But as the days pass (and it hasn’t...
View ArticleBeyond the emotional response
Beyond the emotional impact of director Alexia Papazarou’s harrowing account of her eight-year battle with cancer, we must address the practical issues she raised. These challenges aren’t unique to...
View ArticleAt Trump’s and Musk’s mercy
Clearly, the announcement about transforming Gaza into a Middle Eastern riviera, after first displacing all its Palestinian residents, wasn’t just a random thought that popped into the president’s...
View ArticleAstrasol and Mari
The Mari explosion stands as a watershed moment, often cited as an example of criminal state mismanagement. However, both before and after Mari, there have been many similar cases where citizens were...
View ArticleHow much ‘development’ can this place take?
One mammoth development announcement follows another. Each comes with price tags of hundreds of millions, designed to dazzle the locals. But beyond the razzle-dazzle, these locals would like to ask:...
View ArticleIs there such a thing as protest etiquette?
On January 26, over 100,000 people took to the streets of Athens (with many more in other cities) to protest the government’s handling of the Tempi railway disaster that claimed 57 lives, mostly young...
View ArticleBetween logic and absurdity
A few months ago, to address the demographic problem caused by low birth rates, the government decided to give €200 monthly for two years to any woman who has a child before turning 30 (total amount...
View ArticleIt wasn’t just bad luck
Exactly a year ago, on 21 February, an explosion rocked a residence in Engomi, seriously injuring an 18-year-old Greek student and demolishing large sections of both her accommodation and adjacent...
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