• New Mexico made childcare free. It lifted 120,000 people above the poverty line. The Guardian.
• Burundi’s under-five mortality rates have significantly declined, from 143 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2002, to 50 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2022. Vaccination is considered the leading factor in the significant decline. Gavi.
• Denmark could eradicate cervical cancer by 2040. CTV News.
• Kuwait and Portugal ban child marriage.
• Paris air pollution is down 50% after its radical bike-friendly transformation. Fast Company.
• One of Brazil’s rarest parrots almost doubled in 20 years, taking the bird from “endangered” to “near threatened” status. Mongabay.
• In Japan, induced pluripotent stem cells are being tested to treat blindness, paralysis, Parkinson’s disease and more. Approvals might be around the corner. Nature.

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• In the past decade, social protection coverage reached 4.7 billion people in low- and middle-income countries, the highest point in history. World Bank.
• The number of people in Indonesia living in extreme poverty has fallen from 120 million in 1984 to just 5 million in 2023. Our World in Data.
• Since 2010, the South-East Asia region has recorded a 53% reduction in the maternal mortality ratio, a 44% reduction in the neonatal mortality rate, a 39% reduction in the stillbirth rate, and a 49% reduction in the under-five mortality rate. WHO.
• New vaccine exceeds 95% efficacy in preventing infection from the deadliest variant of Ebola. Gavi.
• A flu strain has likely gone extinct since 2020. Our World in Data.
• In the US, a nonprofit has struck a deal to pay off $30 billion worth of unpaid medical bills for an estimated 20 million people. NPR.
• Kenya’s electricity access rose from 37% in 2013 to 79% in 2023, with full access achieved in urban areas. Energy Monitor.
• New law will provide free school lunch for 40,000 students in Utah. KSL.
• India overtakes Germany to become 3rd-largest generator of wind, solar power. The Hindu.
• Florida built more large-scale solar than California last year, despite state leadership opposed to climate action. Canary Media.
• Pakistan added 22 gigawatts worth of solar panels in a single year, more than Canada has installed in total. Clean Technica.
• The Ocean Cleanup says it can clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in five years. Good Good Good.
• Plastic pollution littering Australian coastlines has dropped by 39% over the last decade. Oceanographic.
• Scientists invent edible ‘squid shell biofilm’ to double shelf-life of strawberries — without changing their taste. Good Good Good.
• How Japan built a 3D-printed train station in 6 hours. The New York Times.
• Astronomers have found signs of biological activity on a planet 124 light years from Earth, in what they call the strongest evidence yet of extraterrestrial life. Financial Times.

For more good news, check out Fix the News and The Progress Network.

• Thailand bans corporal punishment of minors. Asia News.
• Clean sources made up 41% of the world’s electricity mix in 2024. 80 countries now generate more than 50% of their electricity from clean sources and 47 get more than 75%. The Progress Playbook.
• Clean sources produce over 50% of US electricity for the first month on record. The Progress Playbook.
• Finland nearly coal-free four years ahead of schedule. Euronews.
• The number of proposed coal plants in the OECD region has decreased from 142 in 2015 to five today – a 96% fall. Carbon Brief.
• Adults who received a vaccine against shingles were 20 percent less likely to develop dementia in the seven years that followed vaccination. Nature.
• Japan creates plastic that dissolves in hours in the ocean and enhances soil health. Japan Daily.
• Thanks to AI sound analysis, an endangered bird was located for the first time in 30 years. Good Good Good.
• A new social media app punishes users for rage-baiting. Wired.

For more good news, check out Fix the News and The Progress Network.

• In 1990, 12.8 million children died before the age of 5, in 2023, that number dropped to just 4.8 million. Things are still bad, but they’re getting better. WHO.
• Last week would have been the 111th birthday of Norman Borlaug. The man who developed high-yield, disease-resistant wheat that sparked the Green Revolution, saving over a billion lives from hunger. Wikipedia.
• Vaccines have prevented 18.8 million deaths since 2000. Gavi.
• In 1995, an estimated 55% of Nepalis lived in extreme poverty. By 2023, this figure had plunged to just 0.37%. World Bank.
• In the past 15 years, New Zealand’s grid has went from 65% renewable electricy to 88%, driven entirely by economics, without government incentives. Clean Technica.
• Scientists develop concrete that captures carbon instead of emitting it. Northwestern University.
• California now has nearly 50% more EV chargers than gas nozzles. Electrek.
• Paralyzed man stands again after receiving reprogrammed stem cells. Nature.

For more good news, check out Fix the News and The Progress Network.