• France’s 2024 power grid was 95% fossil free. Bloomberg.
• The female primary school completion rate in Sub-Saharan Africa has increased from 48.5 percent in the year 2000 to 68.5 percent in 2023. World Bank.
• The number of non-white US Congressmembers has nearly-doubled since 2005. Pew Research Center.
• Drug overdose deaths in the US decreased 22% between August 2023 and August 2024, the largest decline in a one-year period. CBS News.
• Georgia certified malaria-free, the 45th country to achieve this milestone. WHO.
• Invasive ‘murder hornets’ are wiped out in the US. AP.

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• China smashes wind and solar installation records once again in 2024. The Progress Playbook.
• Deaths from AIDS in India came down by 79 per cent while HIV infections fell by 44 per cent in 2023 when compared to 2010. abp.
• In 2021, the USDA re-evaluated the 50 year old Thrifty Food Plan, which estimates the cost of groceries, resulting in a 21% increase in food stamp benefits for more than 41 million people. Vox.
• 9 countries said goodbye to a devastating disease in 2024. NPR.
• Wage inequality has declined in two-thirds of countries worldwide since start of 21st century. International Labour Organization.
• In 1991, fewer than 15% of people in Bangladesh had access to electricity. Thirty years later, access was almost universal. Our World in Data.

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• US Congress passed multiple bills with bipartisan support that will benefit nature. The Nature Conservancy.
• In the US, we now have 10x more EVs on the road, nearly twice as many heat pumps, and 100x as much battery storage capacity as in 2016. RMI.
• Global EV sales were up 25% in 2024. The Progress Playbook.
• AI spots unreported California wildfire, proving its ’emerging’ role in fire safety. Good Good Good.
• The Great Salt Lake could disappear in 5 years. This teen is using hydrogels to save it little by little. Good Good Good.
• Indonesia kicks off first free meal program for children, pregnant women in effort to counter malnutrition. Al Jazeera.
• Norway on track to be the first country to eliminate petrol and diesel engine cars. Fast Company.
• Renewables and nuclear accounted for 82% of the electricity generated in Spain and Portugal in 2024. The Progress Playbook.
• Chile has reduced 1.03 million tons of carbon emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. World Bank Group.
• Two new methods break down forever chemicals using ordinary light. Nature.
• US airlines have transported passengers for more than two light-years since the last plane crash. Our World in Data.
• In 2023, unemployment in the European Union declined to the lowest point in over three decades. Our World in Data.
• Veteran homelessness in the US reaches record low, decreasing by 7.5% since 2023. VA.
• There’s been a 97.5% reduction in sleeping-sickness cases over the past two decades. Nature.
• Poverty in Indonesia drops by 1.84 million people since 2023. Jakarta Globe.
• Childhood cancer deaths in the United States have declined six-fold over the last seventy years. Our World in Data.

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• In the US, mass shootings dropped 24 percent in 2024 and gun deaths dropped 12 percent. The Trace.
• Florida high schooler invents accessible tech that alerts visually impaired users to oncoming obstacles. Good Good Good.
• Wind overtakes gas as the UK’s largest source of electricity in 2024. The Progress Playbook.
• All of Chicago’s city buildings now run entirely on clean power. The Progress Playbook.
• Six highlights of the global energy transition in 2024. Ember.
• Tuberculosis rates dropped by more than 50% when Brazilian families living in poverty got a monthly cash payout. NPR.
• Kazakhstan’s snow leopard population reaches near-historic levels. The Times of Central Asia.

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• All fact-based optimistic news from 2024. Warp News.
• World’s largest volunteer network offers over 39,000 places to donate your time this holiday season. Good Good Good.
• Unprecedented decline in teen drug use continues, surprising experts. Ars Technica.
• Starting next September, daycare will be free for all preschool-aged children in Tokyo, Japan. Motherly.
• The House passed the Paris Hilton-championed Stop Institutionalized Child Abuse bill after nearly three years she’s spent lobbying politicians in Washington on the issue of reform in the “troubled teen” industry. ABC News.

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• What could go right? The best news of 2024. The Progress Network.
• 86 stories of progress from 2024. Fix the News.

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• The top 10 energy transition developments of 2024. The Progress Playbook.
• How AI monitoring is cutting stillbirths and neonatal deaths in a clinic in Malawi by 82% in three years. The Guardian.
• MIT lab designs biodegradable material to replace microplastics in beauty products. Good Good Good.
• The gray seal population at a remote UK coastline has doubled in three years. BBC.
• Robots are fueling the next wave of solar farm development. Bloomberg.
• Between 2000 and 2020, access to safe water in China increased significantly from 45.7% to 91.3%, access to sanitary toilets rose from 18.7% to 78.5%, and access to hygiene bathing facilities climbed from 26.0% to 88.4%. BMC.

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• Middle schooler finds novel compound in goose poop. Scientists say it may fight cancer. Good Good Good.
• Sudan rolls out first malaria vaccines. Gavi.
• Amazon deforestation in Brazil plunges 31% to lowest level in 9 years. Mongabay.
• 2024 will be the first full year in which renewables generate more electricity than fossil fuels in the UK. The Progress Playbook.
• India now outpaces China in green investments as renewables surge. The Progress Playbook.
• Five medical breakthroughs in 2024. Scientific Discovery.
• Hawaiian crows return to wild for 1st time in more than 20 years. Axios.

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• India sees 79% drop in AIDS deaths, 44% decline in HIV infections since 2010. ABP.
• During 2000–2022, 47 priority countries achieved maternal and neonatal tetanus elimination, contributing to global declines in neonatal tetanus cases (89%) and neonatal tetanus deaths (84%). CDC.
• Vietnam’s per capita income has risen to about 4,650 USD from only 185 USD in 1993. Additionally, 10 extremely disadvantaged coastal and island communes successfully got rid of poverty. Vietnam Plus.
• Cervical cancer deaths are plummeting among young U.S. women. Science News.
• In these nine African countries, average incomes have more than doubled since 1990. As a result, the share of people living in extreme poverty and the rate of child mortality have declined in all nine countries. Our World in Data.
• Norway is on the cusp of completing a transition away from combustion cars. Bloomberg.
• China’s power firms are on track to cut coal’s share of annual electricity generation to below 60% for the first time in 2024. Reuters.
• In 10 seconds, AI model detects cancerous brain tumor often missed during surgery. Michigan Medicine.
• One genomic test can diagnose nearly any infection. UCSF.
• Robot that watched surgery videos performs with skill of human doctor. Hub.

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• Teen invents a solar-powered water purifier — made entirely of electronic waste — to help people impacted by floods. Good Good Good.
• TB deaths decline almost 80% among people living with HIV in Zambia. Longview News-Journal.
• Between 2000 and 2020, access to safe water in China increased from 45.7% to 91.3%. BMC.
• Completion of Dutch-Jordanian project brings clean water, improved sanitation to 125,000 people in Irbid. The Jordan Times.
• St. Paul to wipe out medical debt for 32,000 residents. MPR News.
• Since 2019, manufacturing jobs in 30 US states have witnessed the first full recovery after a recession since the 1970s. Stateline.
• Researchers develop crystals to harvest water from air, inspired by desert life. NYU Abu Dhabi.
• This malaria vaccine is delivered by a mosquito bite. Nature.
• Middle schooler leads $11.5 million project to build air filters for schools. NBC.
• Chile’s renewable energy surge pushes coal to new lows. The Progress Playbook.
• Türkiye increases solar generation by 40% in a single year. Ember.
• Global solar capacity hits 2 TW. It took 68 years for the world to install the first terawatt, and just two more to add the second. Global Solar Council.
• A two-year experiment found that coral reefs can endure in heated water better than expected. Anthropocene.
• Oldest known alphabet unearthed in ancient Syrian city. Phys.org.
• AI finds hundreds more Nazca Lines in Peru. New York Times.

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