• These simple green lights could save sharks and turtles from fishing nets. Science.
• How HIV elimination is within Australia’s reach. BBC.
• A Swedish company plans on using crows to pick up cigarette butts. The Hill.
• Crime is down from pre-pandemic levels in San Francisco and other cities. Reason.
• UK ovarian cancer death rate down 17% since 2017, study suggests. The Guardian.
• Chemists turn carbon emissions into a solid — instantly. Anthropocene.
• From the start of the US vaccination campaign through the end of November 2021, Covid-19 vaccines prevented about 1.1 million deaths and 10.3 million hospitalizations in the United States. Vox.
• U.S. economy grew 5.7 percent in 2021, fastest full-year clip since 1984, despite ongoing pandemic. Washington Post.
• Fur seals in New Zealand were hunted close to extinction, but in the century since the sealing industry collapsed, they have recovered to more than 200,000. The Guardian.
• As we enter the Year of the Tiger, WWF looks back on all the progress made in tiger recovery since the last Year of the Tiger in 2010. WWF.
• 2021 was a banner year for solar power in the European Union. All EU states are currently on track to reach their 2030 solar goals, with Latvia and Estonia already meeting their 2030 solar targets, and Poland, Ireland, and Sweden expected to reach them next year. Yale360.

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

• CostPlus Drug Company is selling medications at cost, plus a small markup, allowing Americans to pay a similar price for medications to Europeans. In some cases, medications cost thousands of dollars less than the retail price at pharmacies. TechCrunch.
• World records fewest guinea worm cases in history of eradication campaign. The Carter Center.
• This startup is turning nonrecyclable plastic into building blocks fit for construction. Fast Company.
• Between 1978 and 2016, the median level of lead in the blood of children in the US fell by 95%. Our World in Data.
• Federal agencies are raising minimum wages for government employees to $15 an hour. Axios.
• A Zambian park has reversed the national extinction of black rhinos. Reasons to be Cheerful.
• Conservation efforts are saving humpback whales. Good Good Good.
• UCLA researchers cure HIV in 40% of mice. The Jerusalem Post.
• Swedish startup Molecular Attraction plans to kill mosquitoes in places plagued by malaria by tricking the insects into drinking beetroot “blood” laced with toxins. Freethink.
• Giant pristine coral reef discovered off Tahiti. BBC News.
• Rains bring salmon back to California streams after 25 years. The Guardian.
• Ghostly monkey and slug snake among 224 new species found in Mekong region. The Guardian.
• GM to invest historic $7 billion in 4 facilities across Michigan, creating 4,000 jobs. Detroit Free Press.

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• The overall cancer death rate dropped by about a third from its peak in 1991 to 2019, averting about 3.5 million deaths, CNN.
• Uganda has immunized eight million children against polio in just three days. Uganda has achieved incredible results in childhood health over the past 20 years, with the mortality rate for under fives dropping by more than half. The East African.
• Child mortality rate worldwide has also dropped by half over the past 20 years. UNICEF.
• Tanzania has lifted a 20-year ban preventing adolescent mothers from attending school. The Citizen.
• Fatal police shootings in America dropped by 13% between 2020 and 2021, reaching the lowest annual number on record. ABC.
• The Philippines has banned child marriage. South China Morning Post.
• Technology, education, and community efforts have helped Bangladesh reduce cyclone-related deaths more than 100-fold since 1970. The New Humanitarian.
• Giraffe populations across Africa have rebounded by 20% since 2015. National Geographic.
• Mexico’s endangered jaguar population increased by 20% between 2010 and 2018. Mongabay.
• South Australia set an impressive new renewable energy record in the final days of 2021, with the state’s solar and wind farms and rooftop solar systems supplying an average of just over 100% of local demand every day for a period of almost one week. Renew Economy.

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

• The history of the end of poverty has just begun. Our World in Data.
• First-ever pig-to-human heart transplant offers hope for thousands in need of organs. USA Today.
• Researchers find a new target for a universal flu vaccine: the “anchor”. Freethink.
• A Texas team comes up with a COVID vaccine that could be a global game changer for low income countries. NPR.
• First female judge nominated for Pakistan’s supreme court. The Guardian.
• mRNA vaccine technology has helped repair broken hearts in mice. New Scientist.
• Grazing livestock among the trees is helping to prevent wildfires. Reasons to be Cheerful.
• Beijing meets state air quality standards for first time in 2021. Reuters.
• U.S. sees record job growth in 2021. Bloomberg.
• Spain returns to pre-pandemic employment levels thanks to creation of 776,000 jobs in 2021. El Pais.
• Thousands of seasonal farmworkers will get their much-deserved raises after all. Daily Kos.

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

• US Army creates single vaccine against all COVID & SARS variants, even future strains. Defense One.
• Many surprise medical bills are now illegal. Axios.
• Michigan’s new congressional maps undo years of gerrymandering. NY Times.
• After being declared extinct in the wild, the Tequila fish is making a comeback. BBC.

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