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Sun-Ways Is Testing Out Train Track Solar Farms 28 August 2026 at 12:02

Sun-Ways Is Testing Out Train Track Solar Farms

28 August 2026 at 12:02

A pilot program placing solar panels between the rails has proven successful enough that the idea is spreading to Italy, France and Korea.

The Guardian
French far-right leader Jordan Bardella to address Reform UK party conference 28 August 2026 at 16:57

French far-right leader Jordan Bardella to address Reform UK party conference

The Guardian

By: Angelique Chrisafis in Paris

28 August 2026 at 16:57

Speech part of effort to strengthen National Rally party’s international ties before Marine Le Pen’s presidential bid

The French far-right leader Jordan Bardella is to give a speech at Reform UK’s party conference in Birmingham next week as he attempts to boost international ties before Marine Le Pen’s bid for the French presidency next spring.

Le Pen’s far-right, anti-immigration National Rally (RN) is high in the polls and she is predicted to reach the final round of the French presidential race in May.

The Guardian
Weather tracker: More extreme rain in Japan and a tornado in France 28 August 2026 at 11:02

Weather tracker: More extreme rain in Japan and a tornado in France

The Guardian

By: Brendan Wood and Faye Hulton for MetDesk

28 August 2026 at 11:02

Flash flooding and mudslides in Ishikawa and Toyama prefectures, while convective storms hit western Europe

After an “unprecedented” deluge in Chiba in mid-August, Japan has experienced further extreme rainfall in recent days. Moisture from the Sea of Japan brought relentless heavy rain to the prefectures of Ishikawa and Toyama on Thursday.

In Himi, Toyama, 361.5mm of rain fell in 24 hours, equivalent to half the average annual rainfall in London and Paris. Several rivers burst their banks, triggering flash floods and mudslides, felling and damaging buildings.

The Guardian
From maligned second city to Insta magnet: Marseille is France’s new capital of overtourism | Mary Fitzgerald 28 August 2026 at 07:00

From maligned second city to Insta magnet: Marseille is France’s new capital of overtourism | Mary Fitzgerald

The Guardian

By: Mary Fitzgerald

28 August 2026 at 07:00

This summer has been a tipping point. But it’s not too late to save what makes this place unique

When I first started visiting Marseille more than 20 years ago, few could have predicted that France’s then beleaguered second city would become one of the most popular destinations in the most-visited country in the world. Tarnished by stereotypes and home to some of Europe’s most disadvantaged neighbourhoods, the port city seemed down on its luck, unloved and, in the eyes of many, somewhere to avoid. Tourists stopping at the city’s Saint-Charles station would clutch their bags while waiting for their connecting train to rural Provence, or the beaches of the Côte d’Azur.

Two decades on, poverty and drug gang violence still affect parts of Marseille, but this rough diamond has been reinvented as a modish holiday destination. Last month, I saw a local TV channel asking whether Marseille had become France’s capital of tourism, after Booking.com revealed it had surpassed Paris and Nice as the most searched-for destination for French users of the site. Breathless foreign media coverage – the New York Times published a “36 hours in Marseille” guide in 2019 and another one in 2025 – has driven the number of overseas visitors. From seaside petanque to vocoder rap and pizza served on aluminium plates, influencers revel in the golden-hued aesthetic of the urban riviera and promote the city’s most Instagram-friendly corners. Tourist numbers are expected to reach almost 7 million this year.

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