Depopulation is changing the fire map of Europe
The rural exodus and the climate crisis have transformed Europe's countryside, and with it the fires that affect the continent every summer.
Mapping Diversity – Full dataset release
Today we are releasing the full dataset behind Mapping Diversity, our investigation into the street names of cities across Europe, focusing on the individuals who get celebrated through them. In this project, we mapped dozens of thousands of street names by bringing together data from OpensStreetMap and Wikidata. We automatically filtered and categorized street
Ukraine’s wildfires surge amidst war
Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine led to a surge in forest and rural fires across the country. Combating them is all the more difficult amidst the war that binds all resources and unexploded mines that contaminate the territory.
A Czech national forest park is reviving after a devastating fire
On the first anniversary of the fire in the Bohemian Switzerland National Park, a reporter and photographer from Deník Referendum spent a day there in the company of local experts Dana Vébrová and Jakub Hruška. What they saw contradicts much conventional wisdom.
Roads in Central and South-Eastern Europe are five times deadlier than Scandinavian ones
The number of people killed in road accidents in the EU decreased by 33% in 2010-21. Stark differences between countries remain, with Romania, Bulgaria, and Latvia presenting the most dangerous situation.
Women have been erased from Zagreb’s history
Only nine percent of the streets in 30 large European cities are named after women: a sign that women's contributions to the history of cities have been not just forgotten, but erased. A municipal committee in Croatia’s capital, Zagreb, wants to change the situation, but a series of obstacles is slowing down progress.
Eucalyptus fever: speculation and wildfire in Galicia
Eucalyptus, a tree species that thrives on fire, now accounts for 28% of the forests in the Spanish region of Galicia. The situation has come about through the policies of the local Popular Party.
A long way to go: the Western Balkans and the green transition
To eventually access the European Union, the Western Balkans have to align their legislation with EU law. This includes the Green Deal, which commits countries to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. However, there’s still quite a long way to go for the Western Balkans in their progress towards the green transition.
How fast is Germany cutting its greenhouse gas emissions?
Europe's biggest polluter is ditching targets in its climate law to cut emissions – after mixed progress toward reaching those goals. The transport sector is struggling the most, while waste has already passed its target.
Despite a mild climate, forest fires are a serious problem in Romania
Romania has a temperate continental climate, which does not make it prone to forest fires. So why do so many of them happen? Fire risk is going to increase even further due to climate change – but the country seems not to be fully prepared for it yet.
