Over 3,500 graffiti artists scrawl on Rome's public buildings and walls. But with citizen-led clean-ups, Retake Roma is reclaiming the capital one neighbourhood at a time. And with its goal resonating with over 6,000 young people, what does its success say about today’s Roman youth?

Germany has got it good; it skipped the recession, house prices and rent costs are low, and Germans take more holiday time than any other nation in Europe. This is a relaxed and happy nation. And new research shows that on top of all this, it has one of the best employment rates, too.

Brits are spending like the recession never ended. But while the purse strings have tightened when it comes to necessities like groceries, products that promise aesthetic perfection are enjoying huge growth. Why do skint 20-somethings feel the need to look good when times are hard?

Germany's educational system allows students to take vocational courses, letting them learn how to be a doctor's assistant, an optician nurse or to specialise in subjects like accounting and marketing. And incorporating both academic and practical methods is minimising unemployment.