Dec 29 - Every week, Reuters journalists produce scores of multimedia features and human-interest stories from around the world.
Below are some stories from this week selected by our editors, as well as explanatory context and background to help you understand world headlines. For a full schedule of news and events, please go to our editorial calendar on Reuters Connect.
New Waterford crystals placed on Times Square New Year's Eve ball
NEW YORK - Nearly 200 new Waterford crystals were installed on the New Year's Eve ball in Times Square in New York in preparation for Saturday's celebration to welcome in 2023. (NEW-YEAR/USA-NEW YORK-CRYSTALS (TV, PIX), 186 words)
Human hair recycled in Belgium to protect the environment
BRUSSELS - Coiffeurs across Belgium are sweeping up and bagging hair clipped from their customers, and then handing it over to an NGO that recycles it to protect the environment. (BELGIUM-HAIR/ (PIX, TV), 271 words)
Battery swapping spurs Kenya's electric motorbike drive
NAIROBI - Over recent months, sets of sturdy, brightly branded battery swapping stations have cropped up around Kenya's capital Nairobi, allowing electric motorcyclists to exchange their low battery for a fully charged one. It is a sign of an electric motorcyle revolution starting to unfold in Kenya. (CLIMATE-CHANGE/AFRICA-TRANSPORT (TV, PIX), 450 words)
Ghana's vintage enthusiasts give new life to Western clothing waste
ACCRA - As the sun set on a courtyard of shipping containers in Ghana's capital Accra, young men and women in Pink Floyd, Grateful Dead and tie-dye tees bartered over army surplus jackets and Adidas sneakers while a live deejay spun Afrobeat classics. (GHANA-CLOTHING/ (TV, PIX), 366 words)
In Hong Kong, designers try out new assistant: AI fashion maven AiDA
At the Fashion X AI show in Hong Kong, attendees noticed a certain "alien" quality about the new clothes modeled on the event's narrow catwalk - and the designs were, in fact, not entirely human. (TECH-AI/FASHION-HONGKONG (TV), 441 words)
U.S. baby formula shortage leads to boom in advertisements
NEW YORK - It's not your imagination if you feel like you're seeing more ads for baby formula than ever before. (SUPPLY CHAIN-INFANT FORMULA/ADVERTISEMENTS (FOCUS, PIX), 758 words)
How a Kyiv manicurist works through blackouts
KYIV - When the lights go out and the power goes down in Kyiv, 18-year-old manicurist Elyzaveta Litvynchuk takes her gel lamp, electric nail file and her clients to one of the capital's "invincibility points" that offer back-up electricity from generators. (UKRAINE-CRISIS/POWER-MANICURE (TV), 148 words)
Nigeria dance carnival helps residents reclaim the streets
LAGOS - In a street in a poor neighborhood of Lagos, a bare-chested young man holds his screaming partner, helping calm the rage within and stop him fighting. (NIGERIA-DANCE/SLUM (PIX, TV), 303 words)
EXPLANATORY CONTENT
FACTBOX-From Dylan to Springsteen, music greats sell rights to labels
FACTBOX-Key U.S. labor policies will face legal challenges in coming year
EXPLAINER-What is Zelenskiy's 10-point peace plan? (Compiled by Mark Porter and Patrick Enright)
