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“Love, tolerance and creative freedom aren’t just for fairytales”. That’s the central message of a new documentary called The Art of Dissent, which celebrates artistic engagement in Czechoslovakia before and after the 1968 Soviet-led invasion. Written, directed and filmed by the American intellectual historian James D Le Sueur, the film aims to debunk the myth that life behind the Churchillian ‘Iron Curtain’ was static and grey, and to inspire viewers through the messages of Václav Havel and fellow former dissidents.

For the past seven years, Denisa Haubertová Šedivá has been living in Brussels with her husband, Czech ambassador to NATO Jiří Šedivý, and their two children. While feeling a bit homesick, she decided to write an alphabet book that would work as a guide to Czech life and culture, covering all sorts of topics from fairy tale characters and nursery rhymes to history, art and design. The book is intended primarily for children, but with its beautiful graphic design and charming, black and white illustrations, it really engages readers of all ages.

The National Czech and Slovak Museum and Library in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, prides itself on bringing Czech and Slovak expats more in touch with their roots, as well as inspiring all people to connect with Czech and Slovak history and culture. The museum’s President and CEO Cecilia Rokusek visited Radio Prague’s studio to talk about its mission, current projects and outlooks for the future. I first asked her to say a few words about the museum’s history.

Janek Rubeš is the face of Honest Guide while Honza Mikulka does the camera and all the technical stuff. Their videos, highlighting great spots to see in Prague and warning visitors of scams to avoid, are huge and their YouTube channel has over 435,000 subscribers. Now they have produced the book Honest Guide Prague, with illustrations by Eliška Podzimková, text by Rubeš and photos by Mikulka. I discussed the unorthodox guide book with the two guys outside their “second home”, the pub Lokál U bílé kuželky.

The demand for craft beer from mini-breweries has been growing the world over. The Czech Republic had just 40 min breweries a decade ago, whereas now it has over 400. And given the reputation of the country’s golden brew, it has plenty of know-how to share. The company TechOrg is engaging in one such venture in Bosnia, where it is offering the locals advice in terms of financing and technology as well as the know-how of Czech brew-masters. The aim is to support the rise of local breweries which would cater to local tastes. I spoke to the coordinator

A recent conference on business and investment opportunities in Africa organized by the Czech Foreign Ministry, focused on innovative forms of investment and modern technologies. Titled “Creative, Innovative and Participative Africa” the event brought together ambassadors and business representatives, underlining Czech interest in establishing new partnerships and projects on the African continent. I spoke to Deputy Foreign Minister Martin Tlapa about the opportunities opening up, the risks involved and what the Czech government is doing to help

An estimated 2.5 billion people around the world suffer from poor vision and over one billion people, mostly in the developing world, can’t afford glasses or don’t have access to them. Previous efforts to address the problem failed because the proffered solutions were either too complex or too costly to scale globally. Now a Czech-US start-up, DOT Glasses, has come up with a solution that offers huge promise. Their one-size-fits-all glasses, designed by a joint venture of Mercedes Benz and Akka Technologies, are self-adjustable, accommodate standard

The 18th edition of the annual Prague Fringe festival is set to start on Friday. Theatres, cafes and many other spaces in the Czech capital’s picturesque Malá Strana district will host a weeklong programme packed with events ranging from theatre to music. The festival is the brainchild of Scotsman Steve Gove, who has been based in the Czech capital since the 1990s. He says the relatively small size of the Prague Fringe is actually an advantage.

Kateřina and Emmanuelle Chauveau are an enterprising couple who fell in love with Uganda and started helping orphans in Bwindi. In order to support their charity project they eventually set up a business based on their mutual love of coffee – exporting Bwindi coffee to their home town of Brno in Moravia where it is processed in a sheltered workshop. I spoke to Emmanuelle about their sustainable business venture and the rewards of being able to give Bwindi orphans the chance to lead a better life.

How did the working poor live in Prague during the Austro-Hungarian Empire? In the days of the democratic First Czechoslovak Republic? Under Communism? And what about the homeless of today? Two separate yet complementary exhibitions now at the City of Prague Museum take a novel approach to presenting the capital’s often forgotten, overlooked or unknown history of poverty and homelessness.