Le Monde, one of France's leading newspapers, produces excellent videos on current and historical events, science, the environment, and more.
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France, French Guiana
French Guiana is currently debating a controversial topic: the Montagne d'Or (Gold Mountain), in the heart of the Amazon rainforest. The environmental impact is a major concern, and many people and organizations are opposing the project.
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France
This video from Le Monde explores the popular and scientific views of astrology. After a brief description of how birth charts are created, the video asks whether astrology "works" at all.
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France, New Caledonia
In New Caledonia, the last French colony, two societies continue to coexist: the descendants of the white colonists known as "Caldoches," and the native Kanaks, whose numbers were decimated by the colonists beginning in 1853.
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France, New Caledonia
In 1988, New Caledonia was on the verge of a civil war as the native population, the Kanaks, rebelled against economic injustice and demanded their independence. A violent incident on the island of Ouvéa prompted the French government to intervene and even bring in a SWAT team. More violence ensued as negotiations failed.
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France, New Caledonia
New Caledonia is still part of France and has not gained its independence despite lenghthy negotiations between loyalists and separatists. Now that the Kanak population is a minority, independence seems unlikely. For more info on New Caledonia, check out these links: https://bit.ly/3cnZgzs, https://bit.ly/2EWfOBG, https://bit.ly/2SyqOrw.
Difficulty:
Adv-Intermediate
France
The slime mold Physarum polycephalum, nicknamed "the blob," fascinates biologists and the public alike due to its amazing features. You can watch the blob in action moving at a speed of one centimeter an hour at the Vincennes zoo.
Difficulty:
Adv-Intermediate
France
Why are there so few streets named after women? The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, decided to change the street-naming regulations to include women's names. Some say that it's far from sufficient, but it's a start!
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France
Where does Santa Claus come from? Santa's history begins in the third century in the city of Myra in Turkey, then to the Netherlands, then finally to America and back to Europe. But where Santa lives still remains a mystery...
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France
Which is better for the environment: a real Christmas tree or a fake one? Find out in this video.
Difficulty:
Advanced
France
In this video, you'll learn how to make delicious sablés, a type of buttery shortbread, for the holidays. They keep for about three weeks, in case you don't eat them all at once...
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France
In December 2019, people took to the streets of large cities all over France to protest the pension reform proposed by Prime Minister Édouard Philippe.
Difficulty:
Adv-Intermediate
France
Meet the dedicated team of Zoodyssée, an animal refuge for a bird called the bustard, a so-called umbrella species. It's important to protect these threatened birds and their habitat, as it will benefit other species in the process.
Difficulty:
Adv-Intermediate
France
Will the French have to dine on cod liver or other such delicacies during this coronavirus pandemic? Can the food industry cope with the extra demand in supermarkets? Watch this video to find out.
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France
In the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, French people have started to remove statues tied to slavery and racial injustice. However, some statues have been relocated, annotated, or simply replaced rather than destroyed.
Difficulty:
Intermediate
France
The Paris Commune was one of the first extensively photographed revolutionary movements. In its infancy, photography wasn't able to capture motion, but professionals from both sides understood the power of images and used them to convey their own visions of the events.
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