Every day the Good Good Good team collects the best good news in the world and shares it with our community. Here are the highlights for this week!
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The Best Positive News We’re Celebrating This Week —
Heat pumps are decarbonizing a 17-story building in Manhattan that was built in 1931
Under a new law in New York City that goes into effect this year, buildings more than 25,000 square feet are required to meet certain emissions standards — and they get even stricter in 2030.
To meet those standards now rather than waiting until the last minute, a cutting-edge, state-backed project is underway at a 17-story office building that was built in 1931. It’s swapping its fossil-gas boiler for much more efficient electric heat pumps.
The state has invested millions in backing the project because they’re hopeful it will serve as a model in decarbonizing over 6,000 other high rises in the city.
Why is this good news? Most of America’s 125 million buildings run on fossil fuels — and the energy they use contributes significantly to the climate crisis. Investing in this project could be a key climate tipping point and serve as a model for not just New York City — but major cities with big buildings all across the country (and the world).
Eight young Alaskans are suing the state to block construction of a massive gas pipeline
A group of young Alaskans is suing the state and the state-owned Alaska Gasline Development Corp. to block construction of the corporation’s long-planned trans-Alaska natural gas pipeline.
In the suit, they argue that the corporation’s founding laws are unconstitutional because the gas pipeline would result in so much climate-altering greenhouse gas — it would endanger their constitutionally guaranteed ability to access Alaska’s fish, wildlife, and other natural resources.
Ranging in age from 11 to 22, the young people are helping set what could be a global precedent: the pipeline project they’re fighting is one of several similar projects being considered globally.
If they’re successful — it could mean more legal protections for people all over the world.
→ Read more
Thanks to successful rewilding efforts, Brazil’s most trafficked, endangered bird is making a comeback
The great-billed seed finch is thought to be the most trafficked endangered bird species in Brazil. It has long been coveted in the caged-bird trade, which has led to the local extinction of the species.
Experts estimate fewer than 2,500 mature individuals still exist in total — and no more than 250 in any given population.
Thanks to the help of a thriving community of legal breeders, conservationists are working to bring them back through research and environmental education — and ultimately, to bring the species back to the wild.
Why is this good news? Especially given a thriving market for captive breeders, there’s simply no reason for there to be an illegal trafficking market for these endangered birds. The collaborative effort of conservationists and breeders is great news to celebrate — especially because we know conservation efforts work.
Taking them from reactive to proactive, an activist mom helped change child abuse laws in the U.S.
Erin Merryn is a mother and social worker who also endured abuse as a child. As an adult, her advocacy efforts have resulted in 38 states passing legislation named Erin’s Law that aims to prevent child abuse through education of children in schools.
Prior to Erin’s Law, much of the legislative response was limited to mandatory reporting of child abuse after it had occurred, which did little to prevent or detect abuse.
But Erin’s Law aimed to prevent abuse before it starts through education, which is a proactive approach, rather than a reactive approach that focuses on abuse that has likely already happened.
Thanks to Merryn’s tireless efforts to visit, interact with, and speak to lawmakers — she was able to present a protective, preventive, and empowering approach to protect children, rather than a reactive one.
And it’s helped protect countless children since.
For the first time in history, the Olympic Village will have a nursery for athletes with children
Thanks to the advocacy of Allyson Felix — the most decorated track and field athlete in history — the Olympic Village will be home to its first-ever nursery.
Felix acknowledged “how difficult it was to compete at the top level” after having her daughter,” and sees the nursery as “a shift in the culture” for women athletes — proving they can choose to become parents and continue to compete at the highest level.
The nursery includes a designated space for childcare, as well as access to diapers, wipes, and other essentials. And it’s another way the Paris 2024 Games are making history by caring for its athletes.
Even more good: Outside of sports, Felix has long been an advocate for parents — especially moms. Most recently, she received a $20 million grant from the Melinda French Gates Foundation to put toward Black maternal health.
For the first time in history, scientists spotted the magnificent tree frog in a never-before-seen blue coloring
The magnificent tree frog just lived up to its name in a never-before-seen way: scientists spotted a bright blue-colored version of the frog, which is typically green.
The blue coloring is due to a genetic mutation that results in the frog missing the yellow pigment in its skin. And while this could potentially impact the amphibian’s survival — scientists believe the frog is at least a few years old.
The magnificent tree frog is already an incredibly rare species found exclusively in an Australian wildlife sanctuary, demonstrating the importance of these protected areas for wildlife conservation.
Why is this good news? Feats of nature like this frog are an awe-inspiring reminder of how spectacular the world around us really is — and that we should do all we can to protect, preserve, and care for it, whether the creatures that call it home are magnificent, or maybe a little less obviously so.
University students built a tiny home for a man who’d been houseless for two decades
As part of the university’s UrbanBuild program, Tulane students submitted a tiny home design that would eventually benefit someone in their community.
The winning design was chosen by a team of professional architects — and the students got to work building it. Then they learned who would eventually get to call it “home.”
The 440-square-foot tiny home’s permanent resident, Benjamin Henry had been previously experiencing homelessness for nearly two decades. Henry had at one point lived under an interstate in New Orleans and was in temporary housing for years.
It’s the smallest home the program has ever built but is already having a massive impact on Henry.
As one student said, “Good design and good architecture can be affordable and accessible to everyone. And it should be.”
→ Read more
Sweden just launched a groundbreaking new childcare law, extending paid parental leave to grandparents
Fifty years after it became the first in the world to introduce paid leave for fathers and not just mothers, Sweden just extended paid leave benefits to include grandparents.
Under a groundbreaking new law, grandparents providing child care can get paid for up to three months of a child’s first year. A two-parent household can transfer 45 days of paid leave to others, while a single parent can transfer 90 days.
This latest move adds to the country’s already generous parental leave benefits, provided to both parents, for about 16 months of a child’s life.
More good news for parents:
- A community college in Austin launched a guaranteed income pilot program for student parents to help them afford bills while completing their education.
- Around 50,000 people in 60 countries are volunteering as “stand-in parents” for LGBTQ+ people in need of support for major life events.
- Thanks to mother and track star Allyson Felix, the 2024 Olympics in Paris will be the first-ever Games to include a nursery for athletes with children.
- Libraries across the U.S. are installing “cubicles” for parents who need to study but can’t find childcare.
A marine biologist’s infectious optimism has helped fuel record growth for ocean conservation
Sylvia Earle has explored the oceans deeper and longer than any other woman on the planet.
She was the first woman to dive with scuba gear in the early 1950s, the first person to walk on the ocean floor 1250 feet under the surface in 1979, and the first female chief scientist of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in 1990.
When she returns to spots that once brimmed with fish and vibrant corals, she often only finds a gray underwater desert. And while about 12% of the land around the world is under some form of protection — less than 3% of the ocean is protected.
She’s been working to change that. In 2009, she started the nonprofit Mission Blue with 19 Hope Spots, defined as “areas critical to ocean health in that they have a significant amount of biodiversity.”
Thanks to her efforts, there are now 158 Hope Spots… and counting.
More good news of the week —
Often overlooked, even smaller-scale green spaces can help keep cities cool during heat waves. Heat waves were the “deadliest meteorological hazard” from 2015 to 2019, affecting people living on all continents, and setting new national heat records in many regions.
Both a climate mitigation and adaptation solution, removing dams provides a cooling effect on surrounding areas. Dam removal ensures that rivers flow and stay cooler, cleaner, and healthier in a climate-changed world.
A study found that white paint and more plants can hospitalization rates in half during heat waves. From 2008 to 2020, there was an increase in heat-related emergency room visits in every single region of the US.
An international maritime court just gave small island nations a massive climate victory against big polluters. The court unanimously ruled that state parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea have an obligation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Young climate activists are translating important climate change information into more than 100 languages. Climate Cardinals has 8,000 volunteers in 41 countries, translating and sharing information to “make the climate movement more accessible to those who don’t speak English.”
California just secured its largest deal ever to utilize “100% clean” geothermal energy. Geothermal power plants tap hot underground rocks and reservoirs to generate renewable electricity and have, until now, been too expensive to compete with wind, solar, and fossil fuels.
New research finds that floating solar panels could generate a substantial amount of energy worldwide. “Floatovoltaics” can simultaneously gather energy from the sun and shade the water, reducing evaporation — especially helpful where droughts are worsening.
Michigan’s clean energy industry is expanding — and the state is helping workers with the transition. New clean energy and climate legislation created a special office to facilitate a just transition by retaining and creating jobs in autos, manufacturing and energy.
“Climate grannies” are fighting for climate action to protect their grandchildren. They have generational wisdom, environmental activism experience, free time — and they're not afraid of getting arrested.
New breakthrough research found tiny ocean creatures can capture and store carbon better than direct-air capture. Zooplankton are part of the “biological pump” that keeps hundreds of billions of tonnes of carbon in the ocean and out of the atmosphere.
Once dubbed “Ocean S****y”, a popular vacation spot is on track to become the first zero-waste resort town in the U.S. An environmental nonprofit has even helped divert over 650,000 pounds of food waste through a citywide compost program.
AI is helping revolutionize closed captioning for people with disabilities. Declining error rates in transcribed captions are helping make videos accessible to the estimated 15.5% of U.S. adults with difficulty hearing.
An entrepreneur is using AI to detect motor vehicles that may hit bicyclists. The device utilizes a camera and AI algorithms to spot and gauge the speed and location of approaching vehicles, as well as the type of vehicle and its projected trajectory.
An innovative double-detection approach is using AI to both diagnose and treat tuberculosis. The method also ensures patients battling the disease receive high-quality care without suffering catastrophic costs.
Soccer clubs in Spain are helping migrants flourish and find community in their new homes. In 2023, nearly 57,000 migrants arrived in Spain, and there were more than 160,000 first-time applications for asylum, including 2,505 minors.
Chinese battery giant says it’s successfully flown a 4-ton plane using ultra-high density “condensed batteries.” CATL says it now expects to have an 8-ton electric aircraft with a range of 2,000 to 3,000 km (1,240-1,865 miles) operating in 3-4 years.
Cutting the energy needed to make it by 600%, researchers made a breakthrough in using waste and sunlight to produce clean hydrogen. Hydrogen is considered by many experts to be a clean-burning fuel, producing mostly water vapor as a byproduct.
California’s newest state park is a “rewilded ranch” that will also protect communities from floods. Until a little more than a decade ago, the area was productive farmland, used for growing crops like tomatoes, alfalfa, melons, and almonds.
A Denver nonprofit is giving $10,000 grants to help women purchase their first home. Since 2021, Project I See You has awarded 70 grants to Colorado women — but demand has skyrocketed and it’s working to continue meeting it.
A wind farm developer is using advanced floating radar technology to prevent bird collisions. Ecowende is working to reduce the number of bird collisions with turbines in its new offshore wind farm in the Netherlands.
Scientists finally pinpointed a viral fungus that’s impacted hundreds of frog and toad species. Since the 1990s, scientists estimate that the chytridiomycosis disease caused by the fungal pathogen Bd has led to the extinction of 90 amphibians.
Australia’s new national park is home to hundreds of animal species, including 13 frog species. Cameroo Station spans over 144 square miles, roughly the same size as the city of Las Vegas, is home to 158 native species, 12 of which are endangered.
Critically endangered northern corroboree frogs were spotted in an Australian national park for the first time in five years. Working to restore their population for more than a decade, ecologists have been releasing frogs and eggs into the park as part of a breeding program.
Previously hunted as pests, Australia is re-classifying dingoes as a protected species. A new DNA discovery found the “wild dogs” are a species all their own, more closely related to ancient canine species than modern dog breeds.
New thermal sensing technology is helping prevent pedestrian deaths from car collisions. It’s the same groundbreaking technology created by a group of teenage girls that’s being used to prevent wildlife deaths from car collisions.
Researchers are working to create a biodegradable bioplastic from food waste. With an estimated 30 to 40% of food produced ending up in landfills in the U.S., the researchers are looking to help address both plastic pollution and food waste.
After a wildfire devastated their numbers, 100+ rare toads were just released back into Yosemite National Park. After the Rim Fire of 2013, the Yosemite toad’s population declined by 50% in its home habitat — it’s been a protected species ever since.
A new law in Vermont will protect libraries and schools from book bans and censorship. In response to a rise in book bans nationwide, the state says books can no longer be banned or restricted for discussing politics, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, and more.
Researchers developed a water-based battery with twice the energy density of lithium batteries. The design replaces traditional, combustible components with a safer, more stable water-based electrolyte, resulting in a battery that can pack way more energy into the same space.
