• France: Paris is using the Seine to keep 800 buildings cool this summer, and locals love it
• Joyful Parisians take a historic plunge into the Seine after 100 years
• Want to take a dip in Paris? River Seine reopens to public swimming for first time in a century

• One in ten French people may suffer from PTSD: Transcendental Meditation is a solution - Forbes France reports
• Filmmaker David Lynch recommends Transcendental Meditation to solve problems in schools
• France: French culture, Vedic gardens featured in women's programmes

• High temperatures threaten to reignite blaze after France's largest wildfire in decades
• Unsafe levels of E. coli found in Paris' Seine River less than 2 months before Olympics
• 'A first in Paris': city fumigates for tiger mosquitoes as tropical pests spread, bringing disease

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Positive Trends
Short Summaries of Top Stories

France: Paris is using the Seine to keep 800 buildings cool this summer, and locals love it
2 October 2025 - Paris has quietly pulled off an eco-innovation that benefits both visitors and residents alike. By channeling naturally cold water from the Seine through an underground network of pipes, the city now cools more than 800 buildings, from historic landmarks like the Musee d'Orsay and the Palais Garnier to modern office towers and cultural centers. (more)

Joyful Parisians take a historic plunge into the Seine after 100 years
5 July 2025 - Cries of 'It is warm!' rang out across the Seine on Saturday morning as Parisians jumped into the river -- legally -- for the first time in more than 100 years. ...Woos and cries of joy echoed across the riverbanks as the first swimmers entered the emerald-green water. (more)

Want to take a dip in Paris? River Seine reopens to public swimming for first time in a century
4 July 2025 - For the first time in over a century, Parisians and tourists will be able to take a refreshing dip in the River Seine. The long-polluted waterway is finally opening up as a summertime swim spot following a 1.4 billion euro ($1.5 billion) cleanup project that made it suitable for Olympic competitions last year. (more)

Enigmatic Carnac megaliths reveal Europe's earliest monuments
27 June 2025 - A groundbreaking archaeological study has determined that the renowned Carnac stone alignments in Brittany, France, may be one of Europe's oldest megalithic landscapes, dating back to ca. 4600 BCE. (more)

New light on the stone alignments in the Carnac region
25 June 2025 - The enigmatic stone alignments in the Carnac region of Brittany, France, are among the most famous megalithic monuments in Europe -- alongside Stonehenge, Menga, and the megalithic temples of Malta. For the first time, it has now been possible to date parts of these alignments with a higher precision and gain new insights into their function. (more)

Paris's rewilded railway line: the disused track turned into a green space for wildlife and walkers
3 April 2025 - Inside the French capital's ring road, the Petite Ceinture, a disused circular rail line, now abounds with nature trails, shared gardens -- and even urban farms. Like the city's different arrondissements, each section of walkable track has its own personality and has been approached differently. In some places, paths, nature trails and shared gardens have been created, while others have been left to rewild. (more)

Renowned actor Forest Whitaker sets up his Peace and Development Initiative in poor Paris suburb
17 May 2023 - Renowned actor Forest Whitaker officially inaugurated on Wednesday [17 May] his Whitaker Peace and Development Initiative in Seine-Saint-Denis, meant to bring business, communication, and conflict resolution skills to the young people of France's poorest region. Free classes are being offered in a small space with big ideas in Aubervilliers, outside Paris. (more)

French law now requires large parking lots to be covered in solar panels
9 December 2022 - With much of the world very dependent on cars, parking lots fill landscapes around the world. The dark pavement absorbs the Sun's rays, creating heat islands which trap heat in urban areas. However, a new French law is aiming to harness these hot spots by mandating large lots have solar panel rooftops. The law, which just passed the French Senate, is part of President Macron's initiative to vastly expand France's wind and solar energy supply. (more)

France to require all large car parks to be covered by solar panels
9 November 2022 - All large car parks in France will be covered by solar panels under new legislation approved as part of President Emmanuel Macron's renewable energy drive. Legislation approved by the French Senate this week requires existing and new car parks with space for at least 80 vehicles to be covered by solar panels. (more)

The mystery of France's 'Stonehenge'
15 September 2022 - Built 1,000 years before the famed English site, the Alignements de Carnac's 3,000 perfectly aligned stones continue to baffle historians. Stretching 4km along the coast of Brittany and consisting of more than 3,000 menhirs (man-made, often tapered, stones erected in prehistoric times across Western Europe -- not unlike those Obelix from the Asterix comics made a career sculpting and delivering), the Carnac Alignments represent the largest group of man-made standing stones in the world. (more)

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Success of Maharishi's Programmes
Short Summaries of Top Stories

One in ten French people may suffer from PTSD: Transcendental Meditation is a solution - Forbes France reports
6 July 2018 - Managing the devastating problem of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has become a public health issue in France today, not only in the military, but across the population - one in ten French people may be affected, Forbes France reports. Some of the proposed solutions include meditation techniques, among which Transcendental Meditation has given the best results. The effects of this independent practice build up over time. A study funded by the US military has shown its superiority over long-term psychotherapy, and a recent meta-analysis found that it can be up to ten times more effective than mindfulness meditation. (more)

Filmmaker David Lynch recommends Transcendental Meditation to solve problems in schools
22 December 2012 - On a tour of Europe and other countries, film director David Lynch spoke often about the power of Transcendental Meditation to improve creativity and reduce stress in the individual and society. Many of his statements during this tour several years ago are featured in the recently released documentary, Meditation, Creativity, Peace. Some presaged the deep concerns now echoing throughout the US and the world following the Newtown, Connecticut school tragedy. Mr Lynch described how Transcendental Meditation, giving the effortless, direct experience of the fundamental field of consciousness--a field of 'creativity, intelligence, love, power, and bliss'--unfolds one's 'full potential as a human being', offering a solution to the stress and violence plaguing schools. (more)

France: French culture, Vedic gardens featured in women's programmes
26 November 2012 - Women in France have been enjoying programmes this year including presentations on French culture and Maharishi Vedic Gardens, in-residence assemblies and special conference calls, and the inauguration of a new club in Paris where people can enjoy practising Transcendental Meditation together. (more)

David Lynch on the Unified Field: 'Everything emerges from a field of no-thing'
6 November 2012 - What is beneath the surface of the mind and matter? Film director David Lynch explains his understanding of the Unified Field, the source of creation, underlying all existence--first from the scientific perspective of quantum physics, and then from the perspective of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's Vedic science and technologies of consciousness. The Unified Field is 'the unity of all the particles and all the forces of matter,' Mr Lynch said. Not only did scientists discover the Unified Field, 'but they found that everything that is a thing emerges from this field of no-thing . . . . It is no-thing, but all things come from it.' (more)

How to experience the Unified Field: David Lynch
6 November 2012 - Scientists have developed theoretical knowledge of the Unified Field from which everything in the universe emerges, but they don't know how to experience it directly, said film director David Lynch. 'It is unmanifest. You can't walk into this field. But any one of those scientists could practise a technique, Transcendental Meditation.' Mr Lynch described the technique, which one learns from a certified teacher in a systematic course of instruction, and which 'turns the awareness within'. In this natural process, 'each deeper level of mind and each deeper level of intellect has more happiness. . . . At the borderline of intellect, you transcend. Transcend is the key word. It means to go beyond. You're going beyond the field of relativity, duality, experiencing oneness . . . . pure, unbounded, infinite consciousness.' (more)

Transcendental Meditation increasingly popular in France
23 July 2012 - During the past year the number of people who learned Transcendental Meditation in France increased substantially, by almost 50 per cent. Another new development was the opening of the Veda Club in the centre of Paris. With its proper orientation according to Maharishi Vastu architecture, the Veda Club has become a central hub for Parisians to practise Transcendental Meditation together regularly. This group practice has been shown through scientific research to reduce negative trends and create an influence of coherence and harmony in society. (more)

France: Spring 2011 tour inspires interest in Transcendental Meditation and advanced programmes
23 July 2011 - Six cities in different regions of France--Paris, Narbonne, Bordeaux, Nantes, Lyon, and Strasbourg--hosted presentations during a tour this spring on the benefits of the Transcendental Meditation Programme for the individual and society. Highlighted in the presentations was scientific research documenting positive results in many areas including development of mental potential and improved brain functioning, better health, and business success and productivity. (more)

Vastu community planned in France
13 July 2011 - Interest in the programmes of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in France has inspired potential plans for a Vastu community constructed according to principles of Maharishi Vedic Architecture, and has drawn hundreds of people to celebrations and lectures throughout the country. (more)

Consciousness-Based Education, Vedic architecture and music offered in France
13 July 2011 - Special programmes and courses have been offered this year in France in Consciousness-Based Education, Maharishi Vastu architecture, and Gandharva Veda music. (more)

Expansion of holistic health programmes in France
13 July 2011 - Last year, hundreds of people in France enjoyed natural holistic health programmes including Maharishi Ayur-Veda consultations, spa treatments, and Maharishi Light Therapy with Gems. (more)

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Flops
Short Summaries of Top Stories

High temperatures threaten to reignite blaze after France's largest wildfire in decades
8 August 2025 - Firefighters and local authorities remained on high alert Friday [8 August] after France's largest wildfire in decades was contained in the south of the country, amid forecasts of very high temperatures which could reignite the blaze. Over three days, the fire spread across more than 160 square kilometers (62 square miles) in the Aude wine region and claimed one life, forcing hundreds of residents to flee their homes. (more)

Unsafe levels of E. coli found in Paris' Seine River less than 2 months before Olympics
15 June 2024 - Water in the Seine River had unsafe elevated levels of E. coli less than two months before swimming competitions are scheduled to take place in it during the Paris Olympics, according to test results published Friday (14 June). Contamination levels in the first eight days of June, after persistent heavy rain in Paris, showed bacteria such as E. coli and enterococci beyond limits judged safe for athletes. (more)

'A first in Paris': city fumigates for tiger mosquitoes as tropical pests spread, bringing disease
31 August 2023 - Parisian health authorities treat French capital for the first time as Zika and dengue-carrying tiger mosquitoes advance through northeastern Europe. Health authorities in Paris have fumigated areas of the French capital for the first time to kill disease-carrying tiger mosquitoes whose rapid advance through northern Europe is thought to have been accelerated by climate change. (more)

France in midst of 4th heat wave amid historic drought
8 August 2022 - France was in the midst of its fourth heat wave of the year Monday [8 August] as the country faces what the government warned is its worst drought on record. The high temperatures aren't helping firefighters battling a wildfire in the Chartreuse Mountains near the Alps in eastern France, where authorities have evacuated around 140 people. (more)

Europe broils in heat wave that fuels fires in France, Spain
19 July 2022 - A heat wave broiling Europe spilled northward Monday [18 July] to Britain and fueled ferocious wildfires in Spain and France, which evacuated thousands of people and scrambled water-bombing planes and firefighters to battle flames in tinder-dry forests. ... High temperatures have gripped the continent in recent days and triggered wildfires from Portugal to the Balkans. Some areas, including northern Italy, are also experiencing extended droughts. Climate change makes such life-threatening extremes less of a rarity -- and heat waves have come even to places like Britain, which braced for possible record-breaking temperatures. (more)

France sets record amid western European heat wave
16 June 2022 - As countries across Europe contend with a potentially lethal heatwave this week, one area in France has set a new record. ... Climate scientists have previously warned that such heat waves are becoming more frequent and increasingly severe because of the climate crisis. Five of the top 10 hottest June days in Paris have occurred since 2017. ... This heatwave comes on the heels of broader Europe's hottest summer on record, last year. (more)

Dry weather in France will cause irreversible damage to crops - Expert
5 May 2022 - Dry, hot weather in France in the coming 10 days after several months of little rainfall will cause irreversible damage to grain crops in the European Union's largest grains producer, a technical institute said on Thursday [May 5], adding to worries about tight global supplies. Between January 1 and May 10 France will have received about 30% less than the average precipitation of the past 20 years, making the soil sensitive to further dry weather, Jean-Charles Deswarte, agronomist at crop institute Arvalis told Reuters. (more)

French beekeepers expect worst harvest in decades due to climate change
19 October 2021 - French beekeepers expect their worst harvest in decades as unseasonably cold and wet weather due to climate change has prevented bees from producing honey. 'This will be worst harvest in the history of our organisation, the worst in at least 50 years,' UNAF president Christian Pons told Reuters on Tuesday [19 October]. (more)

Thousands flee wildfires near French Riviera
17 August 2021 - Thousands of people, including tourists in campsites, have been moved to safety as firefighters tackle a wildfire close to the French Riviera. Many were given only minutes to leave as hundreds of firefighters were deployed in the Var region to the west of Saint-Tropez. Fire officials say the blaze broke out on Monday and has consumed some 6,000 hectares (14,820 acres). ... Southern France is the latest area in Europe to be ravaged by wildfires this summer as temperatures soar to record levels around the Mediterranean. (more)

Drier than the Sahara: heatwave fans fire risk for French farmers
10 August 2020 - On a farm in France, firefighters beat down the flames that had turned a field of wheat black, but they were too late to save the combine harvester. Caught in the blaze, it belched out flames and thick smoke while the farmer looked on helpless. Crop and forest fires are a ritual of summer in France, but a warming climate has meant the risk has increased and the danger zone has expanded from southern France to the north, scientists say. (more)