Good News Friday

  • 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.

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

Good News Friday

  • 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.

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

Good News Friday

  • 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.

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

Good News Friday

  • 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.

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

Good News Friday

  • 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.

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

Good News Friday

  • 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.

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

Good News Friday

  • 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.

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

Good News Friday

  • GiveDirectly’s flagship cash program is 3 to 4 times more cost-effective than previously estimated. GiveWell.
  • Veteran homelessness in the US reaches record low, decreasing by 7.5% since 2023. VA News.
  • The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex is the third most dangerous area for avian migration nationwide, and the “Lights Out” initiative has already proven to successfully reduce bird casualties. Good Good Good.
  • Since Nairobi’s school lunch program launched in 2023, test scores, attendance and enrollment have increased significantly. 17 central kitchens have created 2,000 jobs. 300,000 children now are having a meal every day. Bloomberg.
  • Australia’s emissions from generating electricity have fallen 30% since 2015 thanks to wind and solar. The Progress Playbook.
  • Global electric vehicle sales on track for another record year. The Progress Playbook.
  • Poverty rate in Latin America & Caribbean reaches lowest ever level. CEPAL.
  • Warsaw has cut road fatalities by 55% in the last decade. Bloomberg.
  • New analysis finds 99 percent of existing U.S. coal plants are more expensive to run than replacement by local wind, solar, and energy storage resources. Energy Innovation.
  • Colombia outlaws child marriage after 17-year campaign. The Guardian.
  • Cervical cancer could be the first cancer humanity eliminates. The Telegraph.

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

Good News Friday

  • Teen tobacco use falls to 25-year low. Axios.
  • Eight countries pledge to ban corporal punishment. The Guardian.
  • More women than ever will serve as U.S. governors. The 19th.
  • A cloned black-footed ferret successfully gave birth — marking the first time a U.S. clone of an endangered species produced offspring, and an opportunity to rebuild the black-footed ferret population. NPR.

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