Our reporter Dan Hirschfeld, who is filming in Lebanon, came upon an unusual sight on Tuesday – quiet streets in the usually bustling capital Beirut.

The country is going through political change with newly appointed Lebanese Prime Minister, Tammam Salam, opening  talks to cobble together a government. Salam, a former culture minister, has vowed to work toward ending divisions in the nation and preventing the civil war in neighboring Syria from spilling over into his country.

But Lebanon is struggling with infrastructure challenges too, especially daily power shortages. Many people rely on polluting diesel-powered generators for electricity. That’s the focus of Dan Hirschfeld’s upcoming feature for Global Ideas. He’ll be looking at a planned smart electricity grid which is meant to store renewable energy from the sun and wind and curb power breakdowns in the country.  Germany is helping train Lebanese engineers to operate the smart grid.

Today, international students from the Hertie School in Berlin will be participating in a discussion forum with German Environment Minister Peter Altmaier and Winfried Kretschmann, the Green Party’s first state premier in Baden-Württemberg. The debate will focus on Germany’s “Energiewende,” literally an energy turnaround involving ambitious plans to phase out nuclear power and boost renewable energy.

Also today, we’ll be introducing the students taking part in the debate. Karina Campos from Argentina is our last candidate.

Karina Campos, Argentina from DW_Global Ideas on Vimeo.

Tomorrow, international students from the Hertie School in Berlin will be participating in a discussion forum with German Environment Minister Peter Altmaier and Winfried Kretschmann, the Green Party’s first state premier in Baden-Württemberg. The debate will focus on Germany’s “Energiewende,” literally an energy turnaround involving ambitious plans to phase out nuclear power and boost renewable energy. Until tomorrow, we’ll be introducing the students taking part in the debate. Today: Harrison Epstein from the United States.

Harrison Epstein, USA from DW_Global Ideas on Vimeo.

In a few days, international students from the Hertie School in Berlin will be participating in a discussion forum with German Environment Minister Peter Altmaier and Winfried Kretschmann, the Green Party’s first state premier in Baden-Württemberg. The debate will focus on Germany’s “Energiewende,” literally an energy turnaround involving ambitious plans to phase out nuclear power and boost renewable energy.

Until March 13, we’ll be introducing the students taking part in the debate. Today: Felicitas Schuldes from Germany.

Felicitas Schuldes, Germany from DW_Global Ideas on Vimeo.

In a few days, international students from the Hertie School in Berlin will be participating in a discussion forum with German Environment Minister Peter Altmaier and Winfried Kretschmann, the Green Party’s first state premier in Baden-Württemberg. The debate will focus on Germany’s “Energiewende,” literally an energy turnaround involving ambitious plans to phase out nuclear power and boost renewable energy.

Until March 13, we’ll be introducing the students taking part in the debate. Today: Björn Verse from Germany.

Björn Verse, Deutschland from DW_Global Ideas on Vimeo.