France Builds Zero-Carbon Future with Social Conscience

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Arrayed between elegant stone buildings and run-down railway tracks in the northwest of Paris lie bustling playgrounds, plant-filled ponds and stretches of lush grass.

The Clichy-Batignolles area, a former industrial wasteland, has morphed into the French capital's first "eco-neighborhood," billed as a model of sustainable development for the rest of the city.

Clarisse Genton, project coordinator for the Clichy-Batignolles district, said it aims to be "environmentally responsible" — with solar panels on homes and clean geothermal energy for heating, for example.

But the eco-effort also has a social aim: to address the city's affordable housing crisis and ensure green benefits reach the poor as well as the rich.

"We wanted to create a district that's accessible to all and to bridge the gap between poor and rich parts of the city," said Genton, referring to the neighboring posh district of Monceau and the poorer La Fourche.