Ten reasons to be hopeful for the year ahead

As Spain suffers its worst crisis in 40 years, its once beloved monarchy is in turmoil....

Osborne needs a change of direction, says top former Bank of England official

Public disenchantment with the war continues to grow

For all the excitement about change, the generals are still in charge—and refugees...

What policy do people most want the government to pursue in 2013? There's a clear winner

Despite what the chancellor says, the global economic slump is not his main problem

Was the Olympus scandal unique or does it reveal something rotten in Japan?

The mother of a dead officer relates how hard it is to handle death—for soldiers too

The rich must pay

Germans love her, Europe loathes her. Why?

How to secure Israel's future

A climate change agreement is not out of reach

Elected commissioners are here to stay. What now?

Make it easier to get redress—not harder to publish

Prospect asked what people will do—or not—in 2013

Bronwen Maddox introduces the January issue

Extracts from memoirs and diaries

The New Year’s Eve tradition of lowering a time ball from the top of One Times Square,...

Everyone should be able to read this column—I'd use my powers to eradicate illiteracy

Prospect readers have their say

Five things to do this month

Chasing the total eclipse across the Pacific Ocean

A climate change agreement is not out of reach

A superb new history of opera argues that revivals of classic works are keeping the genre...

From the future of America's economy to the rise of China, January's books shine a light...

Does the Nobel Prize-winning author mistrust the power of fiction?

The polymath artist Kurt Schwitters still thrills and shocks today, says James Woodall

Ray Monk's biography of Oppenheimer, the father of the atom bomb, is a heroic failure,...

The region is producing some of the most remarkable and undiscovered wines in the world

A frenzy of old glory and noise—give the 2013 Capital of Culture a chance

Try visiting Greece when it's freezing

The glimpse into history offered by Genoa and Ceuta goes unrecognised too often