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 —
A mobile home park in Vermont was transformed into a net-zero energy affordable housing neighborhood
Proving you can achieve net-zero energy on a budget, a community in Vermont transformed a neglected trailer park into an affordable housing community.
McKnight Lane in Waltham, Virginia features 14 modular homes equipped with solar panel systems and a battery — alongside extra insulation, efficient appliances, heat pumps, and triple-pane windows to minimize electricity consumption overall.
Not only do residents not have to worry about high electric bills, especially in the winter, but they were also built as affordable housing units — made available to “households earning at or below 50% and 60% of the area median income.”
Why is this good news? This project, a model for others like it, addressed multiple problems in the area all at once: it increased the amount of affordable housing available, restored a neglected neighborhood, and achieved net-zero emissions.
A TikToker is using the internet fame of Moo Deng the hippo and Pesto the penguin to raise money for wildlife charities
If you’ve been on the internet at all in the last few weeks, you’ve likely met Moo Deng — a feisty pygmy hippopotamus at a Thai zoo — and Pesto — a massive King penguin chick at an Australia zoo.
One TikTok user saw an opportunity to use their overnight internet fame to make a difference.
Joining a third viral baby animal, the giant panda Hua Hua born at a research base in China, the trio are the first members of what TikTok creator @indipine has dubbed the “Knights of the Rotund Table.” Others have since joined, nominated, and voted on by Indy’s followers.
So far, all of the baby animals that have joined the “Rotund Table” are endangered, threatened, or vulnerable species on the decline. That’s why Indy started featuring wildlife sanctuaries, rescues, and nonprofits in her daily poll.
With votes topping 250,000 each day, Indy is using the opportunity to fundraise for wildlife sanctuaries like the KSTR Wildlife Rescue, and Alaska Sealife Center.
→ Meet the rest of the knights
Ahead of Hurricane Milton, animal shelters are rescuing cats and dogs in the storm’s path across Florida
With evacuation orders in place for counties across Southwest Florida ahead of Milton, staff from the Humane Society of Broward County jumped in to help their sister branch in Manatee County, which is preparing for a “direct hit.”
And this is all just days after Hurricane Helene brought devastation across northern Florida, and especially in east Tennessee and Western North Carolina.
The collaboration to help animals impacted by Helene and Milton has brought together rescues, shelters, and boarding kennels across the country — one nonprofit and a kennel in D.C. and Northern Virginia teamed up to take in 100 animals alone.
→ Read more
More good news for disaster relief:
- FEMA and the NFL teamed up to designate a number of football stadiums as official shelters for future emergencies.
- A local candle shop is providing light for people without power in the aftermath of Helene.
- Even before this year’s record-breaking hurricane season, climate scientists were helping Caribbean families get prepared.
The Arctic ozone reached a record high in March 2024
New research shows that, since the 1970s, March 2024 was a record-high month for Arctic ozone levels — and there was an overall increase from winter 2023 to 2024.
Following this record-high month, ozone levels persisted at an above-average level through September 2024.
Those findings are particularly significant since springtime has been historically associated with ozone depletion due to higher CFC levels coinciding with low-pressure polar vortices.
The researchers said it’s early evidence that CFC levels are indeed declining in the atmosphere, helping the “Earth’s sunscreen” begin to recover over the long term.
MIT researchers developed a “revolutionary” solar-powered desalination system to help bring clean water to millions
Without the use of any external power or batteries, MIT researchers say they’ve created a desalination system that’s powered directly from sunlight.
The “revolutionary” technology adjusts with the amount of sunlight available — producing more desalinated water as sunlight increases, and less as it decreases. This helps maximize output and waste less available energy.
This system is expected to significantly reduce the cost of desalination compared to other technologies, primarily because conventional methods rely on grid power — MIT’s new invention is completely solar-powered.
Why is this good news? Parts of the world like India, North Africa, and the Middle East experience high levels of water scarcity, and technologies like this could help provide low-cost efficient ways to bring clean water to those communities.
New data shows pollution at the Port of Los Angeles is at its lowest levels since 2005
Pollution levels at the two largest ports in the U.S. — the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach — are at their lowest levels since records began in 2005.
Newly released data found that in 2023, cancer-causing diesel particulate matter was down 91%, carbon emissions were down 24%, and smog-forming pollutants were down 74% from 2005 levels.
Remarkably, despite a return to normal operating levels, overall emissions are now lower than in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A variety of factors helped contribute to the lower pollution levels, but it’s primarily due to more efficient diesel trucks, more electric trucks, and more electric cargo-handling equipment.
The two ports are among the largest sources of carbon pollution and smog in Southern California — so this progress is great news both for human health and the health of the environment.
Australia just announced it will protect 52% of its ocean territory — more than any other country in the world
Australia’s government is finalizing protections for a 300,000-square-kilometer expansion of a sub-Antarctic marine park, and once it does, it will officially have protected more ocean territory than any other country in the world.
Quadrupling the size of an existing marine reserve, it will add habitat protection zones and national park areas, and bring the country’s total protected ocean territory to 52% — far exceeding the agreed-upon global target of protecting 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030.
Experts are calling this a “huge environmental win,” as the protected areas are “wildlife havens” and the sanctuary-level status affords them the highest level of conservation.
What’s the nuance? A major government report found that Australia was not doing enough to adequately protect its environment, which was in “poor and deteriorating health.” While this is an incredible step in the right direction, scientists are still concerned about critical marine ecosystems not having the recommended sanctuary-level protection.
Interrupting their live report, a Florida news crew rescued a family from Hurricane Milton waters
When Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida, Amber Henry had already evacuated further inland with her four children, but still didn’t escape rising waters from the storm — she called emergency services, but with the increasingly hazardous conditions, first responders could not reach them.
However, the WFLA News crew had been driving to an address with reported flooding and got to a road they could not pass. Stopping to do a live report, they heard Henry calling for help.
The news team quickly jumped into action to help, alongside a local samaritan and their car’s headlights, and the family found a path out, wading through the water to safety.
Why is this good news? Stories like this are an important reminder that opportunities to help are all around us — they may not come in the most dire, treacherous circumstances, but often we have all we need to help make a difference, and even save a life.
After seeing the consequences of fast fashion firsthand, an Irish woman started a campaign to prevent waste
When Mary Fleming went on a trip to Kenya, she saw a mound of secondhand clothing next to and spilling into a river — and it opened her eyes to the consequences of fast fashion and overconsumption.
Once a fervent shopper, Fleming was inspired to lead a campaign all about preventing waste by swapping, reusing, repairing, and repurposing clothes.
She founded Change Clothes, a non-profit that helps people rent, exchange, and buy used clothes as well as gives tutorials in mending and upcycling garments.
In addition to teaching people about how to mend their clothes to extend their lifespan, Change Clothes is also out to reach communities where secondhand clothes are stigmatized, “We’re trying to change perceptions.”
The swap shop can be a “great gateway drug” in introducing people to the possibilities of secondhand clothing. And her efforts are working: Change Clothes’ swap shop, pop-ups, and classes have been so popular, they outgrew their original space and moved into a larger space in the city center.
More good news of the week —
Greece has seen a record number of sea turtle nests and surviving hatchlings as the species makes an extraordinary resurgence. Conservationists have been working for more than two decades to save the Caretta caretta sea turtle, which has existed for 100 million years.
For the first time in decades, the FDA is considering approval for a new, safe sunscreen ingredient. Other countries have been using bemotrizinol for decades, and experts hope its approval will bring new, popular sunscreens on the market and help reduce skin cancer.
After a successful trial, more women in Australia will now be able to access oral contraceptive pills over the counter. People can get a resupply of their pill from a certified pharmacist without needing to go back to the doctor for a new prescription – as long as they have been taking the medication for two years.
Scientists mapped 50 million neural connections in a fly brain, a “huge leap” in understanding human brains, too. The most detailed analysis of the brain of an adult animal ever produced, the new research sheds new light into “the mechanism of thought.”
Cheaper versions of a “game-changing” HIV prevention drug will now be made available to over 120 countries. The twice-yearly injection showed strong results for complete HIV prevention in women, and similar results in men.
A “landmark victory” for trans rights, a top EU court just ruled that gender identity changes must be recognized in all member states. The decision impacts millions of transgender people, ensuring their identities are respected and recognized, regardless of where they live or travel within the EU.
A group of evangelical environmentalists are ramping up their faith-based climate activism in the weeks before Election Day. Leaders at Evangelical Environmental Network have seen an uptick in interest from their evangelical peers, especially those who have experienced extreme weather events themselves.
Part of a series of holiday dolls, Mattel’s first-ever Diwali Barbie doll sold out online in one day. The company collaborated with Indian fashion designer Anita Dongre to release the doll before the Hindu holiday, celebrated between October 31 and November 1.
Making rail travel more accessible and affordable, Portugal introduced a €20 monthly pass for all train services. The initiative is intended to help the country reach its environmental goals and offer citizens an affordable way to commute and explore.
Vertical solar panels are a new solution for colder, less sunny regions, yielding 20% more energy than traditional panels. Earlier this year, Ullevaal Stadium in Oslo became home to the world’s largest vertical solar panel installation on a roof, placing the stadium at the forefront of renewable energy innovation.
Adobe is working to make it easier for artists to protect their work from AI scraping. The software company’s new tool helps creators watermark their artwork and opt out of having it used to train generative AI models.
Scientists in the UK are developing the world’s first vaccine to prevent ovarian cancer. One of the most common forms of cancer in women, the disease kills nearly 26,000 women in the European Union every year.
A new drug combination stopped lung cancer from advancing for more than 40% longer than standard treatment. Doctors are celebrating the “amazing” trial results in treating the world’s leading cause of cancer death, which accounts for about 1.8 million deaths every year.
Atlantic sturgeon fish were just reintroduced in a Swedish river for the first time ever. The keystone species was driven to functional extinction in Europe in the mid-twentieth century and a 42,000-euro grant is supporting their historic reintroduction in Sweden’s largest river.
Drones are helping bring HIV prevention medicine and test kits to young people in Kenya. Drones are dropping the supplies at concerts and football matches in the country, where young people are less exposed to messaging about HIV.
