isha: hello, and welcome. it's good to have you with us. some eight million people have fled ukraine since the war began in february. the last few months have been extremely traumatic for those who had to flee their homes. but not for all, it seems. some are seemingly living a dream life among the super-rich on the french riviera. these images show the luxurious lives of ukrainian billionaires and oligarchs far from the war. many of these people live in

huge villas on the coast, like here on the saint-jean-cap-ferrat peninsula. that's right by nice, where one of the three french camps for war refugees is located. this can lead to absurd situations, like when traumatized refugees catch a glimpse of the luxurious lives of their ultra-rich countrymen. many of them hold these rich people partly responsible for the war in their country. reporter: a protest against russia's bombing campaign. these ukrainian women, children, and elderly refugees have fled to southern france where volunteers like iryna bourdelles look after them. iryna, from ukraine herself, has been living in france for a long time. irina: the war continues. the winter will be very, very hard. yet so much harder for people in ukraine. that's why people keep coming here. reporter: oksana basova, a kindergarten

teacher, has been helping out, too. she fled kyiv after the russian invasion. her husband, an engineer, is still there, fixing electrical infrastructure destroyed by russia. oksana's son oleksii knows his father is in great danger in ukraine. and that his mother faces hardship in france. but not all ukrainian refugees along the côte d'azur find themselves in dire straits. in fact, some are very well off, living on the luxurious cap-ferrat. these ukrainian millionaires, billionaires, and oligarchs are happy to flaunt their riches. many are considered decades-long supporters of putin and deemed deeply corrupt. now, many frequent monte carlo's casinos. this summer, independent online media outlet “ukrainska pravd”" revealed their identities, dubbing them the “monaco battalion.” some were members ukraine's pro-russia party, which was outlawed in the summer. irina: these people were not only part

of the corrupt elite. they're also responsible for the war in ukraine, because they called on russia to come to ukraine. in our view, they are truly responsible for this catastrophe. reporter: iryna bourdelles and oksana basova have no ties to these rich ukrainians. the city of ni has allowed the french-ukrainian cultural center to use this property free of charge. here, volunteers look after refugees, providing psychological counselling to children traumatized by war. donations pile up next door. but the cultural center needs plenty of space to look after ukrainian children and teach them french. outside, ukrainian mothers and grandmothers wait in line to receive donations. they're allowed to come here once a week. everyone is registered.

those in need can get private donations and groceries, paid for by the welfare state. like a few cans of sardines. but is that enough to get through the entire week? >> no, no. reporter: the rich ukrainians, meanwhile, relax on luxury boats, or cruise around in expensive cars. in march, a ukrainian anti-corruption blogger published this picture, reportedly showing $28 million u.s., and 1.3 million euros in cash. the picture was taken by hungarian customs officers when the wife of a ukrainian parliamentarian crossed into the eu. it's unclear why ukrainian customs officers didn't catch her smuggling the money. maybe this money indicates

something larger is afoot. in the summer, ukrainian parliamentarian ihor abramovytsch was spotted on cap-ferrat. he left ukraine's pro-russia party before it was banned. and set up a network of ukrainian parliamentarians abroad. are ukraine's old pro-russia networks resurfacing in france? ihor abramovytsch won't talk to ukrainian media about this. in kyiv, where winter has set in, experts are closely watching these pro-russia networks abroad. oleksandr salizhenko is specialized in ukrainian parliamentarians and their contacts. oleksandr: according to ukrainska pravda, we can see former deputy head

of the economic protection department of the national police on the right, beside ihor abramovytsch. reporter: kyiv investigators have called on european police authorities to track down two ukrainian suspects. we speak to the spokeswoman of ukraine's state bureau of investigation. tetyana: we are investigatingnd assessing if the citizens named in this journalistic report left the country legally, whether they were involved in laundering large sums of money. our investors suspect this money was acquired through criminal deeds. oleksandr: experience so far shows that extraditions are unlikely in such cases. reporter: a prospect the refugees sheltering in nice's refugee center find hard to accept. people will ask them what they did and then they will have to be held accountable. reporter: they hope to see these

pro-russia ukrainians end up in jail and want to see the so-called “monaco battalions” broken up. isha: now, in ain, the sex business is flourishing more than anywhere else in europe. many spanish people consider the lax legislation responsible. the state can only intervene if exploitation or abuse can be proven. but now, the government wants to ban prostitution altogether. however, not all sex workers approve. many are worried that they will be driven into illicit prostitution. but vanessa silva is hoping that the ban will be enacted. she has had a very long and painful journey. reporter: this area of madrid brings up bad memories for vanessa silva. the brazilian had to a young daughter to feed and was desperate for money.

that's how she ended up in the clutches of human traffickers who brought her to spain. vanessa: when they recruit you, they paint a great picture. but when you get here, it's completely different. they took away my i.d. suddenly i was all alone in the middle of nowhere. reporter: for a decade, she was a sex worker here in spain, where the demand for paid sex is the highest in europe. it is the only eu country that has not regulated prostitution. vanessa: spain is the european thailand, an entry point for migrant women who fall victim to human trafficking every day. the government knows this but does nhing. reporter: but now the spanish government

is planning to introduce a law with harsh penalties for pimps and fines for clients. it wants to crack down on human trafficking and sexual exploitation. it's step in the right direction, say nieva pérez and teresa madueño. they work for an aid organization and check up on sex workers on the streets of madrid. nieva: the law wants to help women get out of prostitution. but it needs to be improved. that can help make sure they will also receive a legal residence status. this will give victims of human trafficking and sexual exploitation a perspective. this will also make it easier to report the perpetrators. reporter: but belén drake opposes the law and fears for her livelihood. the spanish woman says she is a sex worker by choice.

she meets her clients at home or in a hotel. but if clients face punishment, prostitution will go underground, she says. belen: prostitution isn't going to disappear. there are many examples from other countries that introduced such laws that show this. prostitutes still exist, but their quality of life worsened if they can't practice their profession. prostitution should not be criminalized. we need laws that recognize our work so that we too can be entitled to unemployment benefits, pensions, and so many other things. reporter: vanessa silva visits the aid organization that helps sex workers. graciela: the state has to make sure that women in precarious situations

don't end up in prostitution in the first place and that men don't buy sex. vanessa: it can't be that women who have nothing to eat are forced to sleep with men who are disgusting, dirty, sick, violent, drug addicts. there's no sexual freedom in that. reporter: vanessa silva experienced terrible things as a sex worker. though she has managed to leave all it behind, she still fears she might slip back into it. vanessa: as a dark-skinned woman of my age, i am unlikely to find wo, and so the is a risk of falling back into prostitution. reporter: that's why she wants to see tough laws against prostitution, human trafficking, and sexual exploitation. not just in spain, but throughout europe.

isha: the rising heating costs are giving many people in europe cold feet. energy prices have exploded. this has elicited mixed responses. some people are heating less and donning thick sweaters. others are not using the heating at all, and are instead going on vacation. turkey seems to be a hot destination right now, with some planning on spending the whole winter over there. and of course, why bother about heating when you can sunbathe at the seaside? reporter: 8:00 a.m. on the beach of turkey's coastal town of side. towels indicate the lounge chairs are already occupied, mostly by veteran holiday-makers from germany, britain, and the netherlands. yusuf öztürk is already out and about, as well. yusuf: as long as i can feed my family, i'm not worried.

and thank goodness, i can take care of my family. life isn't easy, but i love my job. reporter: this hotel in side has space for about 1000 guests. but not nearly as many show up during the winter months. now, that's set to change. staff members like yusuf öztürk make only about 330 euros a month these days. so, from november 1 on, german vacationers can soak up, not stoke up the heat. one month of vacation here, including food, lodging, and the plane tickets, goes for less than 1000 euros per person. and they save the power and heating bills at home. the duxlers from austria and the herresthals from germany are marathon-holiday-makers. this day, a cooking course is on the vacation program. the hotel management knows full well that guests here for more than two weeks need an occasional break from the pool and sunbathing. all four are retirees. when they heard that energy bills at home would soar, they

immediately decided to spend the winter in turkey. manfred: we've been here for eight weeks, and we've saved eight weeks of gas bills and power bills. so, it's definitely paid off. erwin: we're even considering going abroad this winter for longer because we love the climate, the weather, and saving money. doris: you can save quite a bit. reporter: it would hardly be any cheaper to stay at home given these high energy costs, both couples have confirmed. and the quality of life on the turkish riviera is undoubtedly better. deniz ugur is head of a tourism company. he predicts that, with a projected 900,000 travelers from germany, the numbers of winter vacationers is set to more-than-double this season. deniz: they used to be mostly retirees. today, many companies or their

employees whom they allow to work abroad are coming, as well. reporter: 22 days of vacation in side go for under 600 euros. the tourism-workers' union in antalya warns that this could spell bankruptcies. mustafa: travel agencies are trying to sell turkey cheap. but that's wrong. they're only hurting themselves. you can see that by the hotels going bankrupt or changing owners or being forced to sell. we know of hotels whose managers can no longer pay their rent and simply vanished at the end of the season. reporter: evening has come. the hotel gardener has to put in overtime. but that's a secondary concern, he says. yusuf: for us staff members, our guests are the priority, because if they stop coming, we won't have jobs. isha:

and work is most important right now, considering the economic crisis and inflation in the country. talking of winter, in poland when people heat their homes, you can actually see the chimneys puffing. and more than three million polish households still rely on coal for heating. but sanctions against russia have made coal both scarce and expensive. but for zbigniew chrapkowski, this isn't really a concern. together with a colleague, he equipped his apartment block with renewable energy. and thanks to him, he residents of an old building in szczytno, a small town in southern masuria, are now reaping the benefits. reporter: one pre-fab apartment block among many in poland stands out. zbigniew: e cars stop here, and the people take photos. it is pretty unusual. i'd also recommend trying this to everybody i know. reporter: the building's residents are

quite relaxed about the coming winter. >> i enjoy looking at the generator. it makes electricity and money. reporter: szczytno is a small town in southern masuria. it has one attraction -- a 1970's pre-fab at number 12, slaska street. the balconies sporting solar panels were added on in september. head of the residents' association, zbigniew chrapkowski, makes his routine rounds. ela: hello, good afternoon. zbigniew: hello, ela. i just wanted to see if our installation is working properly. ela: everything's alright on my end. no scratches. it was built in correctly. but right now, i'm cold. zbigniew: alright, ela, go back inside. reporter: the façade may be an acquired

taste, but in the end, that's secondary. the former coal cellar has been converted to an office for the two “visionaries,” as the residents call their building managers. the idea for the innovative energy system came from a simple lack of cash. zbigniew: it was a tragedy. the power company put us under financial pressure. believe me, i did ask them to let us pay in installments. they just laughed at me, “ooh, you don't have any money.” that gave me the impetus. reporter: that was back in 2014. soon, a thermal heat pump was installed in the cellar and a solar power system on the roof, all financed by loans from the voivodeship and contributions from the residents. they succeeded in saving around 80% of the energy costs. they used the money they saved to payff the loa and even finance new projects, such as

the balconies. now, they heat the water. the residents of number 12, slaska street, are as good as immune to rising energy prices. while everyone else is turning the heat down, they're staying toasty warm. stanislawa: recently, i was talking to my neighbor. she asked me, “well, have you received the increases?” i asked her, “what increases?” “well, the utilities increases.” i said, “no, we haven't been getting those for quite some time now.” reporter: stanislawa keeps her home at a comfortable 22 degrees celsius, but she could keep it warmer. stanislawa: my son tells me, “oh, it's always nice and warm for you. even in summer, if the days turn a little cooler now and then, you can just turn the heat on.” i've already suggested that we trade places. and i think he'd actually do it. reporter: the balconies by themselves are the envy of all.

but the air outside isn't always the freshest, with the neighboring buildings firing up their heating. number 12, slaska street, is still an island of renewable energy in a vast sea of fossil-fuel burners. at the start, in 2014, zbigniew even asked residents of the neighboring buildings if they wanted to join him, but they only made fun of him and called him a day-dreamer. today, they regret that. marian: well, we keep getting more price creases. and we can't do anything. we just don't have a management that's dedicated to their residents. reporter: zbigniew and his deputy may be so involved because they live here in the building. and what started out as a financial motivation has since taken on aspects of climate-and-environmental consciousness. their building saves nearly 70 tons of co-2 more than their neighbors'. zbigniew: if we did this to other

apartment blocks -- and there are 25,000 in all of poland -- then imagine how much we would safe. some 40,000 people die every year from the smog. they'd still be alive. reporter: zbigniew chrapkowski is hoping his fellow townspeople will wake up and feel the heat. he's even thinking about running for mayor in the next elections. isha: no from poland, let's move to the u.k. the coastal landscape of wales is spectacular. the sea view, breathtaking. adele williams, a hairdresser, wants to preserve the beauty of her country. and for this, she recycles the hair of her customers in her salon in the small town of haverfordwest. washes, cuts, and blow-drying create more than just good looks here. >> i'd like a little bit of shape in my hair as well.

because i usually get one length. adele: we'll do a nice face frame, liven you up a little bit. we'll also do a nice repairing treatment for you as well. reporter: hairdresser adele williams loves to pampeher clients in her hair salon iwales. cutting hair has always been more than just a job for her. adele: hair means a lot to people. i think it's not even a vain thing, really caring about how your hair looks. it is an essence of who you are and your personality. and i think if your hair is not feeling great, then you kind of don't feel great either. reporter: it's a win-win for adele williams, making her clients feel good while saving the environment with their hair cuttings. everyone in the salon supports the cause.

adele: i've always tried to recycle and things, but it always felt like there was something more that i could do. it's nice to be trying to start a business that is using a waste product to do something that is so good for the world. reporter: today, this client's hair is going from blond to pink. her hair cuttings will end up in the back room and, with this felting device, will be turned into an oil mat that absorbs oil spills in the sea. adele: what i'm doing is i'm splitting it up into fine little pieces so that it resembles a piece of netting. and then this gets fed through the machine multiple times until it gets thick enough. about an inch thick, really, and then it's a hair mat. reporter: adele williams grew up in the town of haverfordwest, on wales's west coast. she loves the beach and the sea near her hometown.

in case of an oil spill here in future, her mats could be used. that's because hair is a good natural absorbent of grease and oil. the hair mats can soak up to nine times their own weight in oil. according to environmental organizations, they are already being used in the usa as an eco-friendly alternative to plastic mats. lisa: hair is cut by hundreds of thousands of salons in the united states, about 900,000 salons that are licensed to cut up to a pound or two a week. and we all know that we shampoo because hair collects oil. so, we started working with a hairstylist who came up with the idea of making oil spill mats. reporter: to prepare in case an oil spill hits europe, adele williams is cooperating with the american ngo. she is optimistic because even the oil industry is now showing interest. adele:

at the moment, i have a few companies trialing mats. hopefully they will soon order the mats and start pushing out those polypropylene mats that they're using at the moment. reporter: the makeover is almost ready, and the customer is pleased, not only because of her new hair color. >> getting my haircut and being able to donate my hair to a good cause to mop up oil spills is really amazing. adele: nice to see you, lotty. >> so nice to meet you. thank you so much. reporter: hair, says the young hairdresser, is so much more than about looking good. adele plans to continue proving just that. isha: that's a great idea, isn't it? perhaps i'll tell my hairdresser, too. that's all we have on “focus on europe” today. thank you for tuning in. we'll be back next week with more reports from europe. until then, goodbye, and take care. ♪ [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its

caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

from berlin. ukraine's president urges americans to keep supporting his nation's fight against russia. during his visit to washington, volodymyr zelenskyy receives pledges of military assistance including the patriot air defense system. pressure responds by accusing the u.s. of fighting a proxy war. also coming up, covid-19 sweeps throughna