narrator: hello and welcome to a special edition of "focus on europe." we're bringing you some of our favorite stories of the year from the people who inspired us and perhaps even changed our view of the world. after all, the new year offers us an opportunity to come at life with a new perspective. we begin in italy, with bruno ferrin -- a man has fun for a living. he owns an amusement park with a rollercoaster, ferris wheel, the works. and entrance is free even during the energy crisis that is forcing other businesses to

curtail production or even close. so how does bruno keep the wheels turning at his park in northern italy? well, he doesn't pay for electricity because he doesn't need it. bruno's park is powered with good old fashioned elbow grease. >> the "roller conveyor." the "humpback cart." the "wheel of death." those are just a few of the 37 attractions at the amusement park ai pioppi -- italian for "under the poplars." and it was all built by this man. >> stretch your legs out in front of you! straighten them out -- yes, that's it! otherwise you'll land with your nose on the rubber. >> bruno ferrin is 85 years old. he built his first swing here half a century ago.

>> it's always a joy to come here and see what i've built up in 50 years. it's a great feeling to be able to say about your own life: i made all my dreams come true. imagine that! >> his dream began with a restaurant in 1969. he fell in love with this piece of forest, as his wife served wine and sausageunder the poplars, he started building swings. he taught himself everything. >> i only ever went to elementary school, but i've only ever understood numbers. it works this way, working out weights and counterweights for my attractions. of course, i make mistakes at times and i have to adjust the rides if they are too heavy or the slope is not right. >> what's special about bruno ferrins park is that none of

its attractions require electricity. they use the laws of physics and the muscle power of visitors. the newest attraction is this carousel. he had the idea for it after watching a tv report about a training facility for nasa astronauts. >> this carousel is powered by these bicycles operated by visitors. when you pedal, the carousel spins. the faster it spins, the more the centrifugal force increases, causing the seat frames to move backwards from the center. ♪ >> while other amusement parks face closure due to rising electricity costs, bruno ferrin is forging ahead and planning for the future. >> energy prices are through the roof. so i'm thinking of installing dynamos on every ride, to harness the energy from all the equipment moving around. that's my plan. >> applied on a large scale, that idea would foil the

strategies of some world leaders. >> putin wouldn't be very happy at a park like mine, because if everything worked like this, he could no longer sell gas to italy. >> there have been no accidents in the decades-long history of his park, bruno ferrin says. nothing escapes him. >> sit down, young man! come on. you need to sit down because it's dangerous. you see, they don't read the signs. that's how italians are. in germany, signs are law, but here in italy, theyre optional. "maybe i'll read them, maybe not." that's how it works in italy. >> around 50,000 visitors come to the park every year. it's open only on weekends, and entry is free.

bruno ferrin believes it shouldn't matter how much money you have, everyone should have the right to have fun. most visitors buy someing to eat and drink in his restaurant, making the business sustainable. even at 85, he's still pitching in everywhere he can. he says the freedom to do what he loves has kept him young. >> perfetto. >> it's a beautiful way to live. depending on my mood each day, i decide what to do. isn't that great? my dears, that's the poetry of life! >> one that he's devoted to his amusement park. narrator: the freedom of choice is something many of us take for granted. for others, it's an uphill battle. victoria isn't letting such challenges stop her from

achieving her goals. she's fighting for her dream job as a train driver in ukraine. up until a few years ago, women were banned from working in the profession, but the war in ukraine has seen women taking on roles typically reserved for men. trains have become a lifeline for people in the country and victoria is playing a crucial role in the war effort. >> each time she starts work is a moment of validation for viktoria kikot. she is ukraine's first female train co-driver. until recently, sexist regulations banned women from the job. it was considered risky to their reproductive health. now in the war, it really is dangerous for everyone on the trains. >> it's hard mentally and physically because you very often hear the air raid siren. i've even seen when missiles hit. we try to suppress these emotions and continue our work

because it's not just about our lives. the lives of the passengers sitting behind us also depend on us. >> viktoria had to try many times before she could even study for her dream job. i was applying to many universities and colleges and asking if they could teach me . and everyone said the same thing -- "no, you are a woman." that was it. then, one school said they did not have the right to refuse me -- but they could not promise that i would ever work in this profession. >> but by the time she'd graduated, the old soviet-era ban on women doing certain jobs had been dropped.

viktoria started as a co-driver a few months before russia invaded in february. >> attention passengers, our destination is hrebinka station. time of departure from kyiv is 18:27. >> there's a lot to do. update log books, check the speed of the train, the signals, the electrical overhead line, and speak to passengers. and if something were to happen to the driver, she'd have to take over. >> at the beginning, men treated me suspiciously because they didn't believe that we can do the same jobs that they can. and women also didn't think that in our patriarchal society, we could take on such positions. >> ukraine's women are becoming more visible everywhere.

hannah hrytsenko, a gender studies expert, says the necessities of war are changing society. >> it's an interconnected process, meaning that women who are on the frontline become role models for civilian wen. but also those women in the military they want to see examples of women in civilian professions. they want examples of women in traditionally male professions, outside of the military. >> olena also wants to be part of that process. she graduated in economics but two years ago decided to join the army as well and is now on active duty. she served in the kyiv region at the start of the war when the russians tried to invade the capital. >> i set up checkpoints, prepared molotov cocktails, helped order medicine, helped elderly people. it was a mixture of both military and civilian tasks.

she says she feels it's important for women to serve in the military, to break gender cliches. >> but she says civilian women who want to volunteer are being turned away while men are taken on. >> if you just show up at a conscription office and tell them that you want to serve, no one will take you if you have no experience. they simply won't believe in you. it's probably part of the skeptical attitude towards women. >> back on the train, it's late. viktoria's shift will be at least 12 hours today. >> [speaking non-english language] >> trains have become a vital form of transport in this war, and there is never enough staff. nobody here cares whether it's a man or a woman in charge. >> it doesn't make any difference at all. it's the same to me if it's a man or woman, as long as they can do the job.

>> viktoria says she will still need to push hard to make it from the co-driver to driver. that top job is still done by a man. >> it hasn't completely changed yet we still need a lot more time. we need to raise a new generation, a young generation with the idea that women have the same rights as men. viktoria is pushing through the unknn, but sheays there a briger future r ukrainia women. one day she will become a train driver. narrator: while viktoria is building a future in her homeland, for sabriyah norozi, that's simply not possible. she had to flee her native country of afghanistan, where the taliban enforce sharia law. public executions have recently

resumed and women's rights are dismal. sabriyah's life was in danger simply because soccer is her passion. but quitting was not an option for sabriyah or her teammates. so together, they headed to britain, the birthplace of the beautiful game. in leeds, they finally have a real shot at life on an even playing field. >> sabriyah nowrozi can play soccer again at last. in afghanistan, she was captain of the junior team. but they were all forced to flee. she's living in northern england now. >> when i play football, i am very happy. but i don't have any problem in the life. >> this is no longer possible in her home country. she's too well-known there. she co-founded the first women's soccer team in herat, in western afghanistan.

a sport forbidden to women. >> when i arrive, i think i am sleeping. [laughs] now i am so happy. all is new. i am free. i can go to football. i can work. >> when the taliban came back to power, sabriyah nowrazi was forced into hiding. she didn't leave her home for 10 days. the taliban considers soccer players like her to be infidels, and she risked her life to escape. she was scared to death when she handed her papers over to the taliban at the border. >> he treated me horribly. he opened the gate, took my bag and pushed me towards the direction i should walk in and

said, "go, and don't come back because if you do our government will kill all of you." >> sabriyah nowrozi struggled before the taliban came back to power. she was even beaten up. but she'd persevered enough to enjoy success and participated in international tournaments. drawing even more negative attention. >> they tried to kidnap me twice. once they tried to stab me in the back, but someone helped me so only the tip of the knife hit my side, cutting my lower abdomen. >> soccer player khalida popal knows what sabriyah and her team have been through. she helped them and their families escape, procuring british visas for a total of 130 people.

>> afghanistan! >> a visit to the soccer museum in manchester, where they learn how english women too had to fight for their rights. >> i mean, going through the history from english women's football, their ban, the history of how the fa banned it. it's very much like -- it's a 100 years ago and hearing that, seeing the objects, it's very similar to our story, today's story. the women of afghanistan are banned from playing football, just because they are women. [phone ringing] >> sabriyah talks on the phone with her mother-in-law in afghanistan. she tells sabriyah that women today are receiving threats just for going to the market on their own. the terror catches up with sabriyah in england too; she has nightmares about the taliban trying to kill her. her team and her love of the

sport help her to cope with it all. >> i like football, because all the girls, we are together. together, whether we are passing, shooting, it's very amazing for me. when there is a goal, i am so happy. goal, goal, goal! i like it. [laughs] yes, it's emotion. >> sabriyah is hoping for a professional career. because soccer, to her, means one thing above all, and that's freedom. narrator: from freedom on the ground to up in the air. engineer jon batiste loiselet. he feels at home soaring through the clouds. and unlike most other pilots, he doesn't need to refuel. his glider is powered by the sun and wind. the french inventor has flown

several thousands of kilometers this year and he's confident that his technology can one day be used for larger planes. could the future of air travel be powered by mother nature? take a look. ♪ >> it's my dream to travel as far as i want without polluting our planet. and i feel like we're on our way there. it's just wonderful. >> jean-baptiste loiselet has been in the air for five hours and he's covered 220 kilometers today. >> he must be back there. ah, there he is! >> loiselet is on the fifteenth leg of his airborne tour de france. he's landing in graulhet, in the south of the country. the tour is intended to promote his project "wings for the planet."

>> what a flight! >> the adventurer and engineer quit his job to focus exclusively on his solar-powered glider. his invention draws curious onlookers wherever he goes. and they want to know how it works. >> my glider takes off on its own -- with this propeller. it may seem small, but it's a meter across in diameter. it's powered by batteries, and they're charged by the solar cells on the wings. >> loiselet spent three years working on the glider and put all his savings into the prototype. >> i'm impressed. it's very smooth here. he completely integrated the solar cells into the wings. >> i'm an engineer and a pilot, and i have an idea how much work went into this. i think it's fantastic. it makes you dream. >> dream of climate-friendly flight, without emitting a

single gram of co2. >> it's already happening. see? it can fly! . >> he's preparing for the next leg of the tour. the engineer loves nature and technology. he used to work designing underwater robots. once, near the south pole, he watched a young albatross in flight. >> albatrosses in flight are fabulous. they inspired me. i said i wanted to fly like them one day. >> this year, loiselet is touring france by air -- more than 2000 kilometers. it's how he imagines the future of travel. >> i'm currently 7000 feet above mont saint michel. >> many in the aeronautics industry think he's out of his mind. loiselet is convinced that even jumbo jets will one day fly powered by the sun alone --

emission free. >> of course it's hard to imagine a boeing or airbus with solar cells. but modern photovoltaic cells harness just 20% of the energy. intended 20 years, it might be 40% or 60%. planes might be traveling at just 400 kilometers an hour instead of 800, but that's enough for domestic flights. >> during takeoff in graulhet, loiselet demonstrates his invention. conventional gliders need a winch or a motorized plane to start, and a lot of energy. but loiselet makes it up into the air on his own. ♪ >> bye bye, graulhet. my tour de france is almost over. >> the aviation pioneer is already planning his tour of

europe, to get even more people on board with the dream of flying with the power of the sun. narrator: approaching life with a glass-half-full attitude is perhaps on your list of new year's resolutions. but in the finnish town of pwa-lanka, optimism is not on the agenda. for years now, the population has been shrinking and the town in decline. so these two fins decided to do something about it. they're embracing the pessimistic spirit for the greater good of their town. >> this pub closed long ago. and all that's left of this shop's inventory are two chairs. as you enter town there's a sign that reads "you are entering puolanka. there's still time to turn around." puolanka is a small, dying town in the middle of finland with a

remaining population of just 2400, most of whom are over 60. young people tend to move away from puolanka. but these two are staying true to their hometown, oskari and santeri of the local pessimists' society. and it's their pessimism that's raised hopes for a new beginning. >> we have accepted the fact that we cannot revive puolanka. >> it's not something that we are, you know, feeling sad about. we try to find the funny side about it. so that people can, we can joke about it, and people can laugh at it. >> who says that pessimism should be like this? why you couldn't smile if you are a pessimist?

>> and it's precisely these two self-professed pessimists who've broughtome causfor optimism tpuolanka. the pessimists' café does good business. tourists buy t-shirts and buttons with pessimistic messages in the shop next door. >> together with friends, oskari also made self-deprecating and ironic music videos about puolanka. the two pessimists have brought the small town a cult-following in finland. >> it's funny -- typical finnish humor. this shirt says "i'm crossed today and that's ok." social security just informed me that my pension's to be raised 3 percent. that's to home or euros a month >> the facts speak against a bright future for the town. the population has dropped by over half since the 1980s, and every year, it falls a bit more. the town still has its schools,

day-care centers and a retirement home. the question is, who still wants to live deep in the forests of finland? but its mayor says nature is precisely what makes puolanka so great. the pessimism campaign has only enhanced the popularity of his town. he's convinced that, soon, the population will start increasing again. >> i believe that more and more people will want to move to areas where there's pristine nature and lots of room to live. and we've got plenty of room. to be exact, we have one square kilometer per person. so you don't have to worry about the neighbors. oskari and santeri actually insist that they're among the happiest people in puolanka right now. and in the world happiness report, the fins have been named the happiest people on earth for the fifth year in a row.

>> i think the pessimism thing fits really well in their lives. >> yes, yes. people don't expect a lot, so they are happy with less. >> and if we truly had, like, very serious problems, maybe we wouldn't do fun things like pessimism, and put our time and effort to it. maybe we should do something else. >> pessimism has become puolanka's trademark. but will that preserve it from its demise? at least its people are giving it a go with a touch of optimism and a good chunk of humor. narrator: well, whether your glass is half full or empty, here's to a new year with good health, love and laughter, despite the challenges of 2022. we hope you enjoyed our special program. be sure to visit our website, that's dw.com for more of our stories. on behalf of the whole team here at "focus on europe," thanks for your company today, see you soon.

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phil: this is "dw news," live from berlin. a big first day for germany's new defense minister. hours after being sworn in, boris pistorius meets with u.s. defense secretary lloyd austin. top of the agenda, german battle tanks for ukraine. also on the program, after alec baldwin is facing charges of involuntary manslaughter over the fatal shooting of a crewmember on a film set. he could face jail time.