Valerie Hamilton

Greece hopes Brexit will stir a renewed debate over Parthenon Marbles

PRI's The World

November 14, 2018

More than 200 years ago, the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire took a large part of the decorative marble sculptures and architecture off the outside of the Parthenon and brought them to London, where they now sit in the British Museum. For nearly 200 years, Greece has been asking for them back, to no avail. 

Environment

What Munich's coffee houses learned about waste from beer culture

PRI's The World

August 14, 2018

Take-out coffee cups are a popular American import that are filling up the country's trash bins. Now there's an effort in Munich to replace throwaway cups with cups you borrow and return, inspired by the longstanding practice at the city's famous beer gardens.

Environment

In Germany, miners and others prepare for a soft exit from hard coal

PRI's The World

December 11, 2017

Germany is shutting down the last of its underground coal mines next year, and the the way it's handling the end of this once-dominant industry could be a model for the US and other countries.

Environment

Germany talks a good game on climate, but it's still stuck on coal

PRI's The World

November 15, 2017

Even as it makes a big push into green energy and hosts big climate conferences, Germany has remained stubbornly reliant on coal for a big share of its energy. That might finally be starting to change.