Good News Friday

  • There are over 100 million fewer children in child labor today than in 2000, even as the child population increased by 230 million over the same period. UNICEF.
  • Jamaica records significant decline in murders: 42 percent year-on-year reduction. NY Carib News.
  • $105M reparations plan for descendants of 1921 Tulsa race massacre unveiled by mayor. ABC News.
  • In the first quarter of 2025, the United States added 8.6 GW of solar manufacturing capacity, led by factories in Texas, Ohio, and Arizona. Wood Mackenzie.
  • Once thought extinct, Attenborough’s long-beaked echidna has been rediscovered. Nature.

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

Good News Friday

  • India’s extreme poverty rate has dropped from 27.1% in 2011-12 to 5.3% in 2022-23, lifting nearly 270 million people out of extreme poverty. Times of India.
  • In 2001, an estimated 1.7 million girls were ‘missing’ from birth registries each year due to sex-selective abortions, mainly in South and East Asia. Today, that number has fallen to around 200,000. The Economist.
  • UK cancer survival rate doubles since 1970s. The Guardian.
  • Detroit, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Baltimore each reported fewer murders through May than any year since the 1960s, and New York City reported the fewest murders ever reported through May 2025. Jeff-alytics.
  • Colombia reports 33% drop in deforestation in early 2025, with major progress in Amazon parks. AP.
  • Melbourne team demonstrates way to make the HIV virus visible within white blood cells, paving the way to fully clear it from the body. The Guardian.
  • FDA clears Wildtype’s cell-cultivated salmon for US debut. AgFunder.

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

President McKinley: Architect of the American Century by Robert W. Merry

William McKinley Jr. was born in Ohio in 1843, the seventh of nine children. He grew up in a small town with only 300 inhabitants. His father produced pig iron. His Methodist mother was opposed to slavery and encouraged education.

As a small boy, Will drove the cows to and from pasture. In winter, his feet were so cold, he warmed them up by pressing his feet in the soil where the cows had lain to enjoy the “pure luxury” of their leftover warmth.

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Good News Friday

  • New mosquito nets saved an estimated 25,000 lives from 2019 to 2022. Gates Foundation.
  • Since 1979, Bangladesh has reduced under-five mortality by 85% and increased life expectancy from 47 to nearly 74 years. Gavi.
  • Poland’s GDP per capita has more than doubled since it joined the European Union in 2004. Our World in Data.
  • Jamaica’s poverty rate for 2023 was estimated at 8.2 per cent, a decline from 16.7 per cent in 2021. Magnetic Media.
  • Colorado cactus removed from endangered species list after nearly 50 years. KDVR.
  • Vatican City has joined Albania, Bhutan, Nepal, Paraguay, Iceland, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo to become one of just eight countries in the world to generate 100% of its electricity from renewable sources. Clean Technica.
  • South America sets historic benchmark: zero new coal plants planned. Clean Technica.
  • Just over a decade ago, almost half of Greece’s power came from coal. This has now fallen to 6%. Our World in Data.
  • California has nearly 50% more public EV chargers than gas nozzles. Green Car Reports.
  • Infrared contact lens lets humans see in the dark. DW.

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