• Deaths from tuberculosis in Africa fell by 26% between 2015 and 2021, saving an estimated half a million lives. WHO.
• Nigeria has made substantial progress in its fight against AIDS, with annual deaths declining from 264,463 in 2015 to 51,000 in 2022. Punch.
• Deaths from terrorism have fallen by over a third since their peak in 2015. Vision of Humanity (PDF link).
• Mother, child mortality rates decline in Laos. The Laotian Times.
• Oregon has approved $200 million for the state’s homeless. Oregon Capital Chronicle.
• World’s first mRNA vaccine against deadly plague bacteria is 100% effective in mice. Interesting Engineering.
• Suicide rates have fallen worldwide since 2000. Our World in Data.
• Global renewables capacity grew by 10% last year. Reuters.

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• There has been a 50 percent reduction in teenage pregnancy in Liberia since 2017. Liberian Observer.
• Minnesota has become the fourth state to provide free meals to all schoolchildren. MPR News.
• Cyclists now outnumber motorists in city of London. Forbes.
• AI develops cancer treatment in 30 days, predicts survival rate. New York Post.

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• Between 1989 and 2023, more than 5.8 million cancer deaths have been avoided in the EU. Annals of Oncology.
• India’s COVID-19 vaccination campaign saved 3.4 million lives and prevented $18.3 billion of economic losses. The Times of India.
• Child mortality in Kenya declined by 22% between 2014 and 2022. Down To Earth.
• Child mortality rates in Tanzania have dropped to 43 per 1,000 live births in 2022 from 147 per 1,000 births in 1999. The Citizen.
• Uganda has registered a 37 percent decline in annual HIV/Aids deaths. The East African.
• The majority of countries now guarantee paid paternity leave. Axios.
• Between 1970 and 2023, the occupational death rate in construction declined by almost 80%, and during the same period the injury rate declined seven-fold. Construction Physics.
• Major crimes in the New York City subway system dropped by 9.1% in February, part of a larger 19.4% decline so far in 2023. Pix 11.
• A single injection of stem cells slashes risk of heart attack or stroke by 58%. Freethink.
• Scientists breed flame-resistant cotton. Freethink.
• Tirzepatide: a diabetes medication that also reduces obesity better than any other weight loss drug. Big Think.
• In 2022, benevolent acts like donating, volunteering, and helping a stranger were up about a quarter over pre-pandemic times. World Happiness Report.
• FCC orders phone companies to block scam text messages. Ars Technica.
• New Mexico governor signs bill ending juvenile life sentences without parole. CNN.
• Smoking rates declined by around one-fifth in Cambodia. Modern Ghana.
• 25 years after routine vaccination in the United States, rates of chickenpox have declined by over 97%. Chickenpox has been eliminated as a cause of death for people under 20. Scientific Discovery.
• Free childcare expanded in England. BBC.

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• Six ways the lives of girls are improving. Unicef.
• Lasers can help prevent surgical site infections in hospitals. Freethink.
• Using A.I. to detect breast cancer that doctors miss. The New York Times.
• Between 2000 and 2020, the annual number of women dying while pregnant or within 42 days of giving birth fell from 447,000 to 287,000. WHO.
• Child marriage banned in England and Wales. Independent.
• Australian unions celebrate 10 wins for women on International Women’s Day. ACTU.
• Child poverty in Canada reduced by 40% in 2020. National Union.
• Conservation efforts celebrated as 26 Australian species no longer need threatened listing. The Guardian.
• Texas Senate passes a bipartisan effort to close teen gun loophole. The Texas Tribune.
• Clean energy to make up 84% of new US power capacity in 2023. Canary Media.

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• Once thought to be extinct, the “dinosaur tree” which traces back to the Cretaceous period has made a comeback as an ornamental backyard tree. Reasons to be Cheerful.
• New studies show that four-day work weeks lead to fewer cars on the road and a decrease in carbon emissions. BBC.
• Low-wage jobs are becoming middle-class jobs. The Atlantic.
• US got a record-breaking 40% of its energy from carbon-free sources in 2022, report reveals. Euronews.
• Around 93 million women aged 15–64 have gained the same legal rights as men since 2010, when “no woman in the world” had the same legal rights in the areas measured: mobility, workplace, pay, marriage, parenthood, entrepreneurship, assets, and pension. Women, Business and the Law (PDF link).
• UK renewables generated more electricity than gas this winter. Belfast Telegraph.
• USPS to purchase 9,000 electric vehicles, install 14,000 charging stations. The Hill.
• The world’s largest 3D-printed neighborhood is here. Bloomberg.

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• Türkiye’s massive fundraising campaign for quake survivors tops $6B. Daily Sabah.
• Between 2018 and 2021, the malnutrition-related stunting rate in Indonesia saw an unprecedented decline, from 30.8% to 24.4%. World Bank.
• Poverty in Uganda is on a long-running decrease, having fallen from 56% in 1993 to 20.3% in 2021. UNDP.
• In the past six years Ghana has reforested over 628,000 hectares of land, putting the country seven years ahead of its target to restore 2 million hectares of degraded land by 2030. Afrik21.
• Conservation efforts celebrated as 26 Australian species no longer need threatened listing. The Guardian.
• Illinois is set to mandate paid leave for nearly all workers. CBS News.
• Millennials are just as wealthy as their parents. Quartz.

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• Record number of new arctic foxes in 2022. Warp News.
• India reports 98.7% decline in Kala-azar cases, the second deadliest parasitic killer globally after malaria. Times Now.
• The U.S. prison population had declined 25% since reaching its peak in 2009. New Jersey and New York have reduced their prison populations over 50% since their peak. The Sentencing Project.
• Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest fell by 61% in January compared to a year earlier. Reuters.

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• The United States’ PEPFAR program, which has provided over $100 billion in funding to fight AIDS in Africa has saved 25 million lives in the last two decades. The Washington Post.
• In India, almost 79 million households have been provided with access to a tap water connection since August 2019. Financial Express.
• In 2006, India’s maternal mortality rate was 254 deaths per 100,000 live births, one of the highest in the world. By 2020, ASHAs (accredited social health activists) had helped slash the maternal mortality rate by over 60%, to 96 per 100,000 live births. MIT Technology Review.
• In the Philippines, pregnancy amongst women aged 15 to 19 declined from 8.6% in 2017 to 5.4% in 2022. Asia News Network.
• Madagascar to expand access to social protection for extremely poor households. In total, at least 3 million people, or 13% of extremely poor households, will benefit from the project. The World Bank.
• The number of mothers in the United States who smoke cigarettes during their pregnancy has declined by 36% in the last five years. US News.
• A recent Gallup poll found 80% of Americans believe crime has risen. That’s the highest opinion in three decades. However, according to FBI and Justice Department statistics, the violent crime rate today is about half of what it was 30 years ago. CBS Austin.
• It’s the 50th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act which has saved at least 227 species from extinction and helped 110 species to recover including American alligators, bald eagles, peregrine falcons, and humpback whales. E Magazine.
• A bold initiative to regrow 73 million trees in the Brazilian Amazon has delivered almost 20% of its target despite the pandemic and an increase in fires. Conservation.
• Now is the best time in history to love and be loved. The Progress Network.
• Renewables will be world’s top electricity source within three years, IEA data reveals. Carbon Brief.
• More people are living to be 100. Changing America.

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

• Ten good news stories for kids in 2022 including bans to child marriage and corporal punishment. Human Rights Watch.
• A new law protecting women against discrimination and sexual harassment has come into effect in China, the most significant reform to women’s rights in 30 years. China Business Law Journal.
• Simple tweak to colon cancer treatment reduces relapse risk by 28%. Freethink.
• Several products that can analyze your urine every time you pee will be launched during the year. Warp News.
• The unemployment rate hit an ultra-low 3.4%. To find a water mark lower than that, you’d have to go all the way back to 1953. Axios.

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

• Nineteen countries including Eritrea, Ethiopia, Malawi, and Uganda, have reduced child mortality by more than 75% since 1990. Unicef.
• Average net primary school enrollment in Western and Central Africa is close to universal, rising from 50% in the 1990s to nearly 90% today. The World Bank.
• Unemployment rate is the lowest in 50 years. The New Republic.
• Median weekly earnings rose 7.4% last year, outpacing inflation. Biggest pay raises went to Black workers, young people and low-wage earners. The Wall Street Journal.
• Over the first two decades of the 21st century, the disparity between Black and White state imprisonment rates fell by 40%; in 2020, Black adults were imprisoned at 4.9 times the rate of White adults, down from 8.2 times in 2000. Council on Criminal Justice.
• 2022 saw one of the lowest ever death rates from natural disasters. Our World in Data.
• For more sustainable affordable housing, just add mushrooms. Architect David Benjamin is bringing his biology-inspired recipe for construction materials to an affordable housing project in Oakland, California. Reasons to be Cheerful.
• Women in Sierra Leone can finally own land. Quartz.
• Wind farms deliver economic jolt to rural middle America. Pew.
• Wind and solar were EU’s top electricity source in 2022 for first time ever. Carbon Brief.
• Maryland lawmakers eye four-day workweek. Changing America.

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