ALBANIA: Preserving a Beauty Called Biodiversity

It takes a short walk from the famous Velipoja beach in Shkodra town on the Adriatic coast to put behind the stresses of modern life, and the beach attractions themselves.

RIGHTS: Violations Expected to Last Beyond Putin

Human rights campaigners in Russia and Finland fear that denial of rights will continue beyond the term of President Vladimir Putin, who is expected to step down in March next year.

ALBANIA: Thermal Plant Threatens Tourism

The building of a thermal power plant in Vlora could reduce Albania's electricity deficit, but it would also damage one of the country's most beautiful tourist destinations. The local population is fighting to have the factory built elsewhere.

ICELAND: Jobs May Go Down With Cod

A crisis is looming in Iceland as, once again, cod populations have crashed.

ALBANIA: A Provincial Capital On The Move

Friendly, small-scale and cheap, colourful and somewhat improvised, Tirana, like its people, seems to be happy and curious about any visitor. Whether it can preserve this charm remains to be seen.

ALBANIA: But Where Are the Differences

People across the Balkans have much in common, forget the conflicts of the recent or distant past, and the efforts of politicians to convince them how "different" or "distinctive" they are.

RIGHTS: Who Protects Hungarians from the Police?

In a year rich in riots and police violence, the Hungarian police have now completely lost the trust of the public after a group of policemen allegedly raped a 21-year-old woman.

ALBANIA: Saving Beaches for Others, and Itself

Albania has launched a new programme to save its beaches for tourists – and from tourists.

ENVIRONMENT: EU Finds Green Reasons Against Biofuels

European Union officials have signalled that they will ban subsidies for biofuels in cases where their production causes serious environmental damage.

Q&A: Time to Know the Unknown

Albania is too often and too superficially described as "a European country little is known about." The issues the nation of 3.1 million is facing on its thorny road of development and towards democracy are also often met with little knowledge and loads of prejudice abroad.

ROMANIA: Gay Rights Far From Being Acknowledged

The third Gay Pride Parade that drew strong opposition earlier this month underlines the fact that gay rights are far from being accepted in this country.

ALBANIA: Tourism Brings Environmental Challenge

It was not so long ago that Albania, a tiny nation of 3.1 million in the western Balkans remained off route for hundreds of thousands of tourists who rushed to the Adriatic coast for their summer vacations.

GERMANY: Warming Climate Helps Some Species, Kills Others

The weather conditions in the heart of Europe were abnormal last year - the summer too hot, too dry, and too long, and the winter too warm. But they were excellent for some foreign species, which, benefiting from the changed weather, settled in Germany, and have become a headache - or worse - for farmers and just about everybody else.

DEVELOPMENT: EU Not Matching Promises for MDGs

Increases in development aid will not be sufficient to reach the United Nations targets on improving health in poor countries, a new European Parliament report has warned.

ROMANIA: Cannes Award Brings Back Memories

A Romanian triumph at the Cannes film festival this year has revived painful memories for thousands of women.

ALBANIA: Environment and Tourism Can Hold Hands

A pleasant hilly town of narrow, winding streets, Berat has survived the chaotic urban development of central Albania and hopes to grasp a unique opportunity in tourism. But it is also threatened by the unavoidable environmental and urban perils of a transition economy.

CORRUPTION: Chirac’s Immunity Is Over, But…

For the last six years, the date Jun. 16, 2007 was the most awaited day by many in France. It was the day that ended immunity for former president Jacques Chirac from pending corruption cases over his 12-year mandate as head of state.

Q&A: Albania on the Road from the World

-When psychiatrist turned political leader Ylli Pango took over as minister for tourism, besides holding other portfolios, Albania was always going to open welcoming gates to visitors from the world. And it has, with an almost fourfold jump in tourism over the last four years.

ALBANIA: Landing Might Be An Idea

'What, you haven't been to Albania?' Let's face it, not a question many of us are ever likely to have been asked.

SPAIN-PORTUGAL: Binational Village Wants to Be Simply ‘European’

This tiny village of 109 people straddles the border between Portugal and Spain. On one side are the 50 houses of Rio de Onor de Braganza and on the other are the 20 houses of Ríohonor de Castilla. But the locals feel they are one community, and they want their hometown to be declared the first simply "European" village.

ENVIRONMENT: Whaling in Iceland Faces Uncertain Future

No whales have been caught under Iceland's commercial whaling programme since October last year, when whaling stopped for the year. Over a two-week period beginning in late September, seven fin whales and two minke whales were hunted, out of a quota of nine fin whales and 30 minke whales for the period up to Sept. 1.