• COVID-19 vaccines have saved over a million lives in the US alone. The Commonwealth Fund.
• 21 things that made the world a better place in 2021. Wired.
• China has eliminated malaria. The New York Times.
• Executions dropped to lowest level in three decades. The Wall Street Journal.
• 56 cities, counties, and states will raise minimum wage rates on January 1. NELP.
• White House unveils plan to replace every lead pipe in the U.S. NBC News.
• Is 70 the new 60? People are aging better. Scientific American.
• 13 animals that made a comeback in 2021. The Progress Network.

For more good news, check out The Progress Network, and Future Crunch.

• Bugs across globe are evolving to eat plastic, study finds. The Guardian.
• Millions of people a year are hospitalized by respiratory syncytial virus and tens of thousands die. After decades of failure, four vaccines are now in late-stage trials. Nature.
• New FDA-approved eye drops could replace reading glasses for millions. CBS News.
• Botswana lowers its mother-to-child HIV transmission rate to under 5%. VOA.
• The world has experienced a 59% decline in deaths of children under five since 1990. Good Good Good.
• As a Logic song topped the charts, helpline saw more calls and fewer suicides. STAT.
• Vehicle emission declines decreased deaths, study finds. AP News.

For more good news, check out The Progress Network, and Future Crunch.

• Between 2000 and 2020 the annual number of measles deaths fell by 94%, from 1,072,800 to 60,700, averting an estimated 31.7 million deaths. WHO (PDF).
• New Canadian Cancer Statistics report reveals 50% decline in prostate cancer death rate since peak in 1995. Newswire.
• After 35 years of conservation, the population of the endangered Burrowing Parrot in Chile has increased from 217 in 1986 to over 4000. Evolve to Ecology.
• Coastal marine species carried out to sea on debris are not only surviving, they’re colonizing the high seas and making new communities on the floating plastic detritus that make up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, an accumulation of trash stuck in ocean currents that’s estimated to be about twice the size of Texas. NBC News.
• After more than 15 years of fear and intimidation, Mosuli musicians in Iraq can finally play music in public again. New Lines.
• There’s been a massive decrease in global deaths from disasters over the last hundred years. Our World in Data.
• Thousands of farmworkers will see pay raises in 2022. The Counter.
• Renewable energy has ‘another record year of growth’ says IEA. The Guardian.
• Hackney man first to receive 3D-printed prosthetic eye. BBC.
• Unique effort reopens girls’ schools in Afghan province. AP News.
• 200 years ago, everyone lacked democratic rights. Now, billions of people have them. Our World in Data.

For more good news, check out The Progress Network, Future Crunch, and Reasons to be Cheerful.

• Seven amazing trends the media ignores that’ll make you feel great about the future. Upworthy.
• The number of tobacco smokers worldwide is falling by about 5 million people a year. Euronews.
• mRNA vaccine against tick bites could help prevent Lyme disease. New Scientist.
• Green Jobs offer ex-offenders a career path after prison. Reasons to be Cheerful.
• As cities wrestle with how to reform policing to reduce the use of lethal force, Albuquerque has created a new kind of responder on the streets. It sends behavioral specialists to deal with calls that involve emergencies like mental health issues and homelessness. Christian Science Monitor.
• Virginia will expand Medicaid coverage up to a year after pregnancy. Virginia Mercury.
• New HIV jabs taken two months apart hailed as huge step forward. The Guardian.
• After record low, monarch butterflies return to California. NBC News.
• Nurse salaries rise as demand for their services soars during Covid-19 pandemic. The Wall Street Journal.
• New law in Kenya allows refugees to work. VOA.

For more good news, check out The Progress Network, Future Crunch, and Reasons to be Cheerful.