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Our annual Soft Power Survey reveals the countries whose cultural ambassadors, diplomatic missions, skilled messaging and tasty food have seen them make the grade in 2020. The December/January double issue also looks ahead to a new era of US foreign policy, goes on a culinary tour of Switzerland and wraps up in the season’s coolest coats.

Available now at [The Monocle Shop](https://monocle.com/shop/product/1849758/issue-139/)

We tour the breathtaking studios of artists’ residence Lallukka in Helsinki, which hasn’t changed its purpose since it was completed in 1933. The landmark functionalist building offers spaces at low rents so that its tenants can focus on one thing: making art.

Hands up who’s looking forward to 2021? Monocle is too and The Forecast is our optimistic and informed take on the year ahead. From the offices showing why communal working is here to stay to the changing world of espionage, our global coverage will put a spring in your step. Plus: which city comes top of our Small Cities Index?

Available now at [The Monocle Shop](https://monocle.com/shop/product/1836064/the-forecast-2021/)

As a landmark US election approaches, Jane Fonda, Theaster Gates and Chris Wallace offer their thoughts on where the country should go next. Change elsewhere comes in the form of city farms, the latest design finds and an art fair redux. Plus: we survey North Rhine-Westphalia, a region on the up.

Available now at [The Monocle Shop](https://monocle.com/shop/product/1833371/issue-138/)

The unassuming Shimada Gama workshop in Gotsu doubles up as an open-air museum of traditional stoneware pottery. It specialises in creating large pieces that are burnt in a sloped wood-fired kiln. We talk to the 73-year-old master Shimada Takayuki about the challenges of passing the rare skill and aesthetic sensibility down to his son and grandson.

Japanese company Time & Style knows how to inject innovative spirit into traditional crafts. Over the past two decades its founder Ryutaro Yoshida has criss-crossed Japan to woo reluctant artisans to collaborate on modern designs. We meet him in the remote region of Shimane as he develops a series of handmade washi paper lamps.

The first edition of The Chiefs, Monocle’s high-altitude summit, took place at Suvretta House in the Swiss Alps over a few sunny days in September. After months of being cooped up at home, guests and panellists alike gathered to be together and exchange ideas. We covered everything from assessing risk in these uncertain times and future-proofing our cities to how to turn things around in hospitality or how to design a safe and friendly workspace.

In Monocle’s worldly October issue, we hear from Beirut about the days following the city’s devastating port explosion and the fellowship of its people. We also pay a visit to the retailers that have found success in lockdown, survey a forward-thinking office campus and take a deep dive into Italian innovation.

Available now at [The Monocle Shop](https://monocle.com/shop/product/1815250/issue-137/)

From how to make the most of your free time to rethinking the way you work, shop and even sleep, our new book is packed with tips for making good things happen, doing something you care about and finding a slower pace of life that’s kinder to yourself, those around you and the planet.

Order your copy at [The Monocle Shop](https://monocle.com/shop/product/1788324/the-monocle-book-of-gentle-living/).

Does your company need a rethink? What does winning look like? Should you move to a quieter city? Find the answers – and many more – among the 100 tips inside the latest edition of The Entrepreneurs. It’s time to be bold.

Available now at [The Monocle Shop](https://monocle.com/shop/product/1811519/the-entrepreneurs-2020-issue-3/)