A Doorbell Video of a 78-Year-Old Delivery Driver Went Viral. Strangers Sent Him Nearly $1 Million.
Richard Pulley was still working delivery shifts at 78. After a doorbell camera clip touched the internet, a fundraiser snowballed to $965,868.
Good News
Man Spends 12 Days Returning Lost Cash a Laborer Needed for His Daughter
A man in southern Brazil was surprised to find a wad of cash on the ground in a public plaza with no one around looking for it. Pedro Moro didn’t know it at the time, but he was holding a young construction worker’s enti
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Venomous Primate Believed Extinct for 100 Years Was Hiding in Plain Sight All Along
This big-eyed furball is the Bangka slow loris, a creature that in 2015 was believed to potentially be extinct. As the video demonstrates, the Bangka slow loris (N. bancanus) is still very much with us—thanks to a local
Two Teens Went for a Bike Ride and Found a Neighbor Who'd Been Down for 16 Hours
Gunner and Kohen, both 13, were just out riding when they spotted an elderly woman who had fallen in her yard the day before.
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Geothermal Utilities Power Wave of US Affordable Housing with 40% Energy Savings
A natural gas utility in Vermont struck a first-in-the-nation deal that will soon be saving customers money by turning to geothermal energy. Vermont Gas launched the state’s “first community-scale geothermal project,” so
Five Strangers Met a Man Living Under an Overpass With His Dog. A Year Later, He Has a Home and a Job.
Dan Cuthern had been under a Missouri overpass with his dog Bentley for more than a decade — until five women decided to change that.
Community
The Spark: When Communities Own the Land, Housing Stays Affordable
Welcome back to The Spark, our monthly celebration of how people just like you are creating positive change, one meaningful step at a time. The Spark is generously supported by Laura Rice. Sign up to Reasons to be Cheerf
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Good News in History, November 6
809 years ago today, the Charter of the Forest was signed in England by King Henry III. This law document is sometimes described as the sister of the Magna Carta, and granted rights of free men to use the forests of Engl
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
Nature was restored at ‘unprecedented scale’, Barbados halted HIV transmission in babies, and a fuel revolution picked up speed, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on
Science Wins
Solar kits are changing what disaster relief looks like
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Every morning in the camp at Teknaf, Bangladesh, Mohammed Saber climbs to the roof of his family’s bamboo-and-tarpaulin home and sets out a single rectangular solar panel. He has done
Science Wins
The best places to volunteer this Thanksgiving: 17 options for every schedule
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There’s a particular kind of motivation that kicks in around the holidays. You think: this year, I’m going to do something. You picture yourself in an apron at a soup kitchen, and it
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Got Bad Breath? Get Free Dental Care at This Store
At a small store in Stockholm, there’s a discount if you pay with bad breath. In fact, they’ll give you everything you need: toothpaste, a toothbrush, flossers, and more all for free—provided your breath is sufficiently
The Planet
The butterfly effect: a brighter way to make paint?
Researchers are looking to butterflies in the search for coatings without harmful, chemical-based pigments The post The butterfly effect: a brighter way to make paint? appeared first on Positive News .
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400-yo Shipwreck Puzzle Finally Cracked After More Than 20 Years of Mystery
With the help of a hospital CT scanner, scientists have cracked the code to a 400-year-old padlock discovered in a treasure-laden shipwreck on a beach in Wales. A metal detector found the padlock buried in the sand, but
Community
The Montana Ranch Where Autistic People Are Wranglers and Guides
The staff at Erik’s Ranch & Retreats has a saying: Sheets, towels and lives changed daily. Erik’s Ranch is a guest retreat where autistic people are concierges, guides, wranglers, cooks and more. Located on 230 acres of
A Social Experiment Is Handing 1,000 People $500 — to Spend on Someone Else
Drop Dead Generous gives ordinary people real money with one rule: use it creatively to help others.
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Seabird Sees Miracle Recovery After Avian Flu Wiped Them Out
Thanks to dedicated conservation efforts, sandwich terns have reclaimed a colony England’s south coast 3 years after they were wiped out by avian flu. Today, in what seems like a miracle, the birds have multiplied from 0
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Next Week’s New Moon Is Perfect Backdrop to the Blazing Tails of the Taurid Meteor Shower
A meteor shower famous for its fireballs will be visible around the world next week. Though the Northern Taurid Meteor Shower doesn’t peak until 3 days later, the best chance to catch its renowned shooting stars is Monda
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Good News in History, November 5
71 years ago, the Vienna State Opera reopened having been destroyed during World War II. Few cities have contributed more to classical music than the capital of Austria, and the State Opera hall has sourced many musician
Science Wins
Personalized brain therapy hits 68 percent remission for PTSD
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A newly FDA-cleared treatment for PTSD reported 68 percent remission in clinical trials. The best-performing approved medications for the condition top out at around 10.9 percent. The
Science Wins
8 surprising household uses for toothpaste, from a pro cleaner
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Chances are, you’ve got a tube of toothpaste in your bathroom right now. If it’s only going on your teeth, you’re leaving a surprisingly useful cleaning tool sitting on your bathroom
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The Grandfather Puzzle Pieces Together a Family History One Man Wouldn’t Talk About
JoyDrops champions awards-eligible documentary shorts about joy, a counterweight to a category often dominated by tragedy. Good News Network has partnered with JoyDrops to spotlight these films and talk with the filmmake
Good News
Brazil Expands Protected Area for ‘One of the Richest and Most Sensitive Biomes on the Planet’
Brazilian environmental authorities have increased the size of a key national park by more than 25% of its original size. That might not sound like much on paper, but Pantanal Matogrossense National Park was 523 square m
Community
The Election That Transcended Tribalism
Pundits are describing last night as a romp for Democrats, a rebuke of Republicans, a blue tsunami, a rout in the red states. But underneath these headlines is a quieter, parallel story about voters choosing to abandon t
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Student-run Automotive Shop Opens to the Public in Houston Where Every Oil Change Helps the Next Generation
From the Houston Chronicle comes the story of high schoolers getting down and dirty with their education. Having lately opened an auto shop in the city’s Fifth Ward, students in automotive engineering are ready to change
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Italy Sees Collapse in its Homicide Rate to 3rd Lowest in the EU
2023 saw Italy register the lowest homicide rate in the EU, and the 3rd lowest age-standardized homicide rate. These milestones in the dual quest of combatting organized crime and improving internal security mark an incr
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Woman Becomes First Person to Swim the Entire California Coastline
Long-distance swimmer Catherine Breed has become the first person to swim the length of the entire Californian coastline after cross 900 miles in 111 days. Her journey took her through extreme weather events, 8 separate
Who needs a golden ticket? The race to future-proof chocolate
A student has made six bars from cocoa grown in Reading, where varieties are being developed that could help with climate change The post Who needs a golden ticket? The race to future-proof chocolate appeared first on Po
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Good News in History, November 4
102 years ago today, “Silent” Calvin Coolidge was elected to serve as the 30th President of the United States. Undoubtedly the greatest domestic/peacetime President in the 20th century, Coolidge embodied not only the Fou
Science Wins
Maya Higa built a wildlife sanctuary on Twitch, funded by the people who watch it
This article is part of The Optimist Daily’s Local Changemakers 2026 series, spotlighting changemakers 30 and under. Earlier this year, on a trip to Dominica to learn about the sperm whales that live in those Caribbean w
Science Wins
Stanford scientists discovered bleached coral can heal through touch
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Two coral fragments fell over in a Stanford lab tank. When they touched, one healed the other. The bleached fragment, starved of the symbiotic algae that give coral both its color and
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Loch Ness Is About to Welcome a New Monster Not Seen There in 500 Years–the Beaver!
Loch Ness is about to welcome a new monster. This beastie is not to be trifled with: it has razor-sharp teeth and can easily knock down a fully-grown tree. Beavers were last sighted in the area around Scotland’s most fam
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He Donated His Ultra-rare Blood 545 Times While Visiting Every Blood Bank in Australia
Pictured here enjoying jokes and a juice box, Trevor Bergman has now successfully donated his ultra-rare blood at all 85 Australian donation centers. While on his journey, Bergman donated blood 545 times, helping patient
Community
The Counter-Extremism Expert Building Our Capacity for Compassion
A former Los Angeles gang member, a former skinhead and a former radical Islamist walk into a youth center. What sounds like the setup for an uneasy joke is at the core of Farah Pandith’s work: Put people who might other
The Planet
What if we stop treating social care like a service? This village shows the way
A village in England has created a social care community based on communal living and shared responsibility. Could it catch on? The post What if we stop treating social care like a service? This village shows the way app
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This Wheelchair Skateboarding Teacher Already Conquered Mountains and Marathons
This rolling inspiration is Xie Junwu, an iron-willed wheelchair-bound althlete who’s climbed mountains, completed marathons, and now spends his days skateboarding. Xie has been breaking records and barriers for years wi
Good News
Rebuilding Mosques Brings Sikhs, Hindus and Muslims Together After Punjab Violence
In the Indian state of Punjab, Muslims are watching Sikhs and Hindus organize the rebuilding of old mosques destroyed following Partition. Emotional to say the least, the inter-faith community building is being led by ma
Good News
Good News in History, November 3
70 years ago today, The Wizard of Oz was televised for the first time, and was so successful—with 53% of US television viewers tuning in—that it was destined to become an annual event in American homes. CBS ran it again
Science Wins
How carbon credits helped unlock the Great Koala National Park in NSW
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The Great Koala National Park might sound like a place that’s too good to be true, but it is real. After more than a decade of campaigning, three state elections, and over 14 hours of
Science Wins
Astronomers discovered first green star ever. And it’s powered by a dead planet’s chemistry.
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For most of human history, the night sky came in a limited palette. Orange for the cooler stars, white for something like our sun, pale blue for the hottest ones. The color of a star
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Whale Festival to Kick Off Amelia Island in Florida to Celebrate the Return of the Right Whale
Have you ever heard of Amelia Island? Northeast Florida’s barrier island describes itself as a natural gem, and a great excuse to visit is happening this weekend in the form of the annual Right Whale Festival. Held every
Community
The Student Movement Addressing Campus Polarization Head On
Just weeks after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was assassinated while speaking at a college last September, students gathered in a University of Michigan classroom to discuss freedom of speech. Sitting in a semicirc
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Over 750 Ukraine Civilians Evacuated from Famine Conditions in Most Substantial Truce of the War
Thousands of Ukrainian residents stranded in a Russian-occupied city have been evacuated through a humanitarian escort corridor. In what has been the most significant measure of cooperation between the belligerents since
Good News
Weather.pet App Generates Forecasts for Dogs’ Head and Paws Based on Ground Temps and More
A dog lover and entrepreneur has created a weather service tailored specifically to dogs. It broadcasts tens of thousands of reports to users every month with the weather at the level of a dog’s head and paws. It also in
Good News
Strangers Ran Towards the Fire to Save Teen–Her Mom Now Funds Scholarships for Heroes Like Them
5 years ago, 18-year-old Kenli Riney suffered a head-on collision on a Texas highway. Her car spun into a ditch and caught fire. Behind her, the Argote family was driving along and saw the whole thing. Mike Argote and 3
The Planet
The women’s boxing nights helping abuse survivors
A new series of all-female fight nights aims to fund free boxing classes that help women rebuild their confidence after abusive relationships The post The women’s boxing nights helping abuse survivors appeared first on P
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Good News in History, November 2
This daily column features all the good news, anniversaries and birthdays from this day in history—November 2. The post Good News in History, November 2 appeared first on Good News Network .
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Islands Near Portugal Turn Off Lights to Protect Seabird Fledglings Every October – 30k Already Saved
Each autumn, during the last five nights in October, there is a blackout on Corvo island—but it’s not by accident. On the small island in the Portuguese Azores, more than 400 residents are protecting some of the world’s
Science Wins
California legalizes balcony solar for renters and beyond
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM California just gave apartment renters a shot at solar. Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill legalizing plug-in solar panels, also called balcony solar, clearing the way for a technolo
Science Wins
Sardinian restaurants are banning phones for families at meals
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The Italian federation of pediatricians designed a box of games to help parents ask their kids how their day went. Let’s think about this for a minute. A medical organization had to b
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Housing Nonprofit Funds $16.5 Million in Eviction Relief to Assist Renters
The Atlanta-based nonprofit that launched an Eviction Relief Fund during the COVID pandemic has now assisted over 5,500 families so they could stay in their apartments. Marjy Stagmeier, a landlord of affordable housing i
Good News
High School Fills Entire Football Field With Groceries to Replenish New Jersey Food Banks
Hundreds of New Jersey students collected over a quarter million pounds of food during the second annual 100-Yard Food Drive Challenge last week. Thousands of bright yellow donation bags covered Howell High School’s foot
Good News
Hero Support Dog Saves Husband’s Life After Alerting Deaf Owner to His Deadly Midnight Fall Down Stairs
A deaf woman says her support dog saved her husband’s life after he fell down the stairs—by waking her from a dead sleep to insist something was wrong. Sandra Donally was alerted by her clever pup after husband Gary tumb
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Good News in History, November 1
69 years ago today, the Mackinac Bridge opened to connect the Upper and Lower peninsulas of Michigan over the Straits of Mackinac. Nicknamed the “Mighty Mac” when it was built, it’s still the longest suspension bridge “b
Good News
Girl Sitting in Dirt at Bus Stop Gets Surprise Bench From Homeowner–Camera Catches her Jig (WATCH)
Florida teachers Maren and David Douglass went viral for some heartwarming acts of kindness shown to a young schoolgirl whose bus stop was assigned to the end of their driveway. (See her sitting in the top-left of the ph
Good News
B-Vitamin Supplement Can Treat Psoriasis, a Skin Condition with No Cure
New research suggests a common skin disease with no cure could be treated with nutritional supplements. The B vitamin derivative showed “encouraging” results for reducing psoriasis symptoms in studies with both humans an
Good News
Retirees Who Lost Spouses Fall in Love Again at 88, After Meeting in the Gym
A pair of retirees who both lost their partners have fallen in love again at age 88—after meeting among the barbells at the gym. Now widowed, Barbara Thompson and Fred Jenkins said they’d never expected to find love agai
Good News
Your Halloween Horoscope Advice: ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Enlightenment for Rebels: Celebrating Our Wild and Sacred Earthly Selves, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrolog
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Good News in History, October 31
On this day, 76 years ago, the British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid was born. Described as the “Queen of Curves,” who “liberated architectural geometry, giving it a whole new expressive identity,” Hadid was knighted by Que
Good News
Best Spud Harvest in a Decade Clears the Gloom of Crops Failing from Scorching Summer
Amid a summer of crop failures, a spud-tacular potato harvest in Japan showed that banner years are still in the almanac even as climate uncertainty continues to make farming more challenging. A potato industry outlet re
Science Wins
Podcast Transcript October 30th, 2026— Kenya’s wildlife deal, Halloween tips across the ages, and EV energy security
Episode Description: A teenager built a supply distribution network where families request what they need without filling out any forms or declaring themselves as someone in need. She also added a program that researches
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New Texas School Is Named For Longtime Janitor ‘Miss Marilyn’ (Watch Her Reaction)
Unlike beauty, honor manifests in the eye of the honored. And though it isn’t a Super Bowl ring or an Academy Award, for one career custodian at a Texas school district, the honor she lately received is greater than anyt
Good News
A Farmer Didn’t Know His Cell Number Was on an Exam Question, Now Uses the Calls He Gets as Opportunities to Inspire
A young student has been accepted into a prestigious university thanks in part to an unusual source of inspiration: a strawberry farmer he met because of a question on an English exam. Now a postgraduate student in artif
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In Lieu of Flowers or Tributes, Patrick Stewart’s Family Suggests a Donation to Alzheimer’s Research
Legendary actor Sir Patrick Stewart passed away yesterday at the age of 86 following a brief struggle with Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy Body Dementia. A titan of the silver screen, theater, and television, Stewart passed
Community
Truth, Elections and the Questionable History of the Club Sandwich
In the early-ish days of Wikipedia, my college friends and I had an ongoing contest to see who could introduce a lie into an entry that would stick the longest. If your goal is to smuggle mistruth into the internet’s enc
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Good News in History, October 30
53 years ago today, the Bosporus Bridge was completed, linking mainland Europe with Anatolia over the Bosporus Straits for the first time. It’s a gravity-anchored suspension bridge with steel towers and inclined hangers,
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
There was renewed hope for the Amazon rainforest, a skin cancer vaccine showed promise, and a nicotine loophole was closed in the UK, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared firs
Science Wins
How EV fleets are shielding Europe from oil price volatility
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A new analysis by energy think tank Ember finds that six European countries collectively avoided close to $2.2 billion (approximately €2 billion) in oil import costs between March and
Science Wins
The 7 best vegetables to plant if you want to offset rising grocery costs
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Not every vegetable belongs in a backyard garden. Some take up space, demand attention, and still cost more to grow than to buy once you factor in seeds, soil, and the time it takes.
Good News
‘Panther Pat’ Shines a Light on the Nearly Forgotten First Woman to Play Pro Football
JoyDrops champions awards-eligible documentary shorts about joy, a counterweight to a category often dominated by tragedy. Good News Network has partnered with JoyDrops to spotlight these films and talk with the filmmake
Good News
JoyDrops: Short Films Big on Inspiration and Bigger Awards Aspirations
JoyDrops: Short Films With Big Hearts and Even Bigger Ambitions Good News Network and Switchboard Magazine have joined forces on JoyDrops, a curated slate of awards-season documentary short films that offer positive pers
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Disabled Veteran Receives Donated Car Beautifully Refurbished by Auto Collision Students
After spending years without wheels but with no shortage of errands, a Minneapolis veteran recently received a transformational gift. Students at a Minnesota engineering school beautifully refurbished a 2020 Hyundai Elan
Good News
Birdwatching Rewires the Brain and Slows Cognitive Decline
A famous poet once wrote that hope is a thing with feathers. Well, new research may suggest that healthy aging is too. Specifically, the research examined how expertise required for identifying birds aided in maintaining
Good News
Romans Made Color-Changing Glass–and We’ve Just Replicated After 1,600 Years
The Romans were incredible materials scientists, having famously invented self-healing concrete that allowed their structures to stand for millennia. Yet for some, it’s the glass that forms this one—yes, one—goblet that
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Bereaved Parents Ask Court to Consider ‘Lightest Possible Sentence’ for Driver Who Killed Their Son
“If the court is able to consider it, we respectfully request that she receive the lightest possible sentence.” These unspeakably brave words come from a court statement penned by the bereaved parents of a 4-year-old boy
Community
The Student Exchange Program That Never Leaves the U.S.
In 1991, Saskia Sassen published The Global City in which she asserted that London had more in common with New York and Tokyo than it did with other parts of the U.K. The geography of culture wasn’t delineated by nationa
The Planet
Smartphones, ancient tracking skills and a future for desert lions
In Namibia, rangers are using real-time data and traditional knowledge to support farmers and safeguard a recovering lion population The post Smartphones, ancient tracking skills and a future for desert lions appeared fi
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Good News in History, October 29
61 years ago, The Who released their iconic single “My Generation.” The hit was ranked #11 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Pete Townshend reportedly wrote the song on a train but c
Science Wins
Will vinegar actually keep bugs out this fall? Pest experts explain what works
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM As temperatures drop, bugs start looking for the same thing you do: somewhere warmer. If you’ve been reaching for the vinegar bottle as a first line of defense, you’re not alone. It’s
Science Wins
Kenya unlocks $160 million to protect the Maasai Mara and Tsavo ecosystems
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Kenya committed $160 million over ten years to protect 173,000 square kilometers (roughly 67,000 square miles, or 17.3 million hectares) across some of the least-disturbed land in Afr
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Nature-Inspired Tech Prevents Microplastics Entering Atlantic Ocean Through Wastewater
Princeton alumni have designed what’s called a first-in-the-world device to filter microplastics out of wastewater at scale, and it’s already been deployed in Atlantic City. The large implant mimics hydrophobic plants fo
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Bizarre Rescue Sees Divers Save Kangaroo That Found Itself Over a Mile from Dry Land
In a story too ‘Australiana’ to believe, a scuba diver and his crew rescued a kangaroo over one and a half miles out to sea. Spotted at first by the captain in the waters of Boston Bay in the state of South Australia, it
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Etsy Cracks Down on AI-Generated Content to Protect Buyers from Barrage of Slop
For the world’s largest online e-commerce market for handicrafts, the impact of AI generated media was always going to loom large. That’s why Etsy has taken definite steps to protect the almost 6 million artisan-entrepre
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Stranger Anonymously Pays $420 Lunch Tab for 27 Disabled Residents and Caregivers
Members of a South Korean disabled community group were shocked to hear that a total stranger had paid for their barbecue lunch worth $420. The story begins when the party of 27 community center staff and disabled reside
The Planet
Positive News launches new video podcast exploring what’s going right in the world
The What Went Right series is expanding to YouTube and other podcast platforms, bringing its weekly roundup of progress to new audiences The post Positive News launches new video podcast exploring what’s going right in t
Community
What We’re Reading: A Quiz That Reveals Americans’ Surprising Common Ground
Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Tell us what you’ve been reading at info@reasonstobecheerful.world and we just might feature it here. To the polls If you’ve been f
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Good News in History, October 28
61 years ago today, the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri was completed. Clad in stainless steel and standing 630 feet high, it is the tallest monument in the Western Hemisphere. The arch sits on the west bank of the M
Science Wins
Student Makers, a deeper dive: bringing free STEM to students on three continents
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM This article kicks off The Optimist Daily’s Local Changemakers 2026 series, spotlighting changemakers 30 and under. It was winter break, and Dilan Mehta had time on his hands. His dad
Science Wins
Meet Vivian Ho: the 17-year-old who built a supply network around dignity, not charity
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM This article is part of The Optimist Daily’s Local Changemakers 2026 series, spotlighting changemakers 30 and under. Most social programs ask you to declare yourself before they’ll gi
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FDA-Approval for Drill-Free Cavity Care May Be Imminent After Great Phase 3 Treatment Trial
FDA approval may be imminent for a key innovation in dentistry that could spare thousands of children from painful pulling, drilling, and infections with a simple fluid coating. Every year, untreated tooth decay sends th
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High School Baseball Team Has All the Vibes of Success But Never Won a Game: Kids Don’t Mind
One might say it’s a very Canadian story: that the Dartmouth High School Spartans haven’t won a game of baseball in 6 years, yet still feel like winners. Watching them during training, fielding grounders and pop flies, t
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NGO Celebrates 70 Million Amazon Acres Conserved After Protecting Are Called a ‘Link of Life’
American NGO the Rainforest Trust recently aided in the creation of a 715,000-acre wildlife reserve in Bolivia along the Iténez River, considered by scientists to be a “link of life.” This 780-mile-long watery artery, th
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Family That’s Fostered 500 Children Saved from Housefire Thanks to Stranger’s Wrong Turn
A complete stranger named Casey knew he was in the wrong place, yet at the right time—when he saw the smoke from a burning house in the distance. His GPS having turned him off the correct route and down state Highway 114
Community
Finally, Something Americans Agree On!
Patty Spillman and her husband farm over 400 acres of corn, soybeans and wheat in central Ohio. Both have lived in the area all their lives; his family has been on the land since 1861. In 2023, a developer proposed a dat
The Planet
Cream of the crop: one brand’s quiet quest to reinvent the dairy industry
Regenerative agriculture is being explored as a way to make dairy farming more resilient. But what does it mean? Here is our demystifying guide The post Cream of the crop: one brand’s quiet quest to reinvent the dairy in
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Good News in History, October 27
64 years ago today, one man in the right place, at the right time, did the right thing, saving the world from probably nuclear war. Vasily Arkhipov is known as the “man who saved the world,” during the 1962 Cuban Missile
Science Wins
New Jersey Transit is turning commuter stations into art galleries
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Most people moving through a train station aren’t really paying attention. They’re somewhere between where they left and where they’re going, phone out, eyes on the platform. Putting
Science Wins
5 research-backed ways to banish aches and feel better at your desk
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Researchers at Columbia University Medical Center wanted to answer a specific question: what is the least amount of movement needed to offset the effects of prolonged sitting? In 2023
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Stunning New Opera House Opens With a Gravity-Defying Grand Staircase (LOOK)
Despite its curtain raising rather late in the year, Shanghai’s new opera house has elbowed its way to the front row of international architectural debuts—thanks to a gravity-defying grand staircase. Rising above the ban
Good News
Tiny Scottish Island’s Little Historical Society Makes Massive Discovery
A Scottish island is now confirmed to have been one of earliest centers of Christian evangelism in the British Isles thanks to a small-town historical society. The massive discovery puts the tiny island on the historical
Community
Want the News to Unite People? Let Them Report It
Every few weeks, Jackie Jantzi sits in on school board meetings in Akron, Ohio, taking notes on her laptop. Afterward, she polishes a summary of what happened, to be published online, free for anyone to read. Jantzi is t
Good News
Numbers of Endangered and Sacred River Dolphin Grow by 6 After Successful Breeding Season
River dolphins are among the world’s most endangered species, whether found in the New World, or the Old. Yet at least for now, things are looking up for these animals considered sacred by the people living along a stret
The Planet
Free tool helps young men to take responsibility for sexual harm
Young men are using a free tool designed to help them reflect on their sexual behaviour – offering an alternative to the manosphere The post Free tool helps young men to take responsibility for sexual harm appeared first
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Man Named ‘Service’ Cleans Up NYC Dumping Site on His Own Initiative
It’s not uncommon to walk past litter in a major city: what’s uncommon is stopping to do something about it. Yet it wasn’t just litter that Queens resident Joshua Service walked past on a recent rail commute, but a spont
Good News
Good News in History, October 26
201 years ago today, the Erie Canal opened a passageway from New York to the Great Lakes. The canal was built to create a navigable water route from the Atlantic Ocean to the Midwestern US and took 8 years to construct t
Science Wins
NYC food pantries are now stocking pet food for struggling households
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM If you’ve ever moved a bit of food off your own plate just so your dog could eat, too, then you know the feeling this program is trying to address. It’s a pretty common one in New Yor
Science Wins
Age-by-age Halloween tips from a board-certified pediatrician
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Halloween might be the one night a year when the whole family ends up outside together, moving through the neighborhood in the dark. Whether that ends in magic or meltdown depends alm
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LIVE Webcam Brings You Inside Cheetah Den With 5 Tiny Cubs Tended By Mom (The Meows are Mesmerizing)
On October 5, a cheetah named Zura gave birth to five adorable cubs at the Smithsonian’s Conservation Institute in Virginia—and you can spy on them night and day. The camera offers a rare opportunity to see a mama cheeta
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53 Orangutans Rescued from Fires in Borneo, With Many Rewilded to Forest Preserves Across the Island
Forest and peatland wildfires continue to burn across the island of Borneo, endangering the air quality for both humans and wildlife—and torching the food supply for critically endangered orangutans. Fortunately, thanks
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Flood Worries? Tape Can Block 99% of Water Compared to Expensive Sandbags That Break Your Back
Homes at risk of flooding could be better protected in an emergency using widely available and affordable tape rather than traditional sandbags, shows new research from the UK’s University of Hull. Tests conducted at the
Good News
A Chance Meeting in a Chinese Restaurant Saved a Man’s Life – As Everything Happens for a Reason
Everything happens for a reason. Every small choice can create lasting change—and even save a life. That’s what David Couture was reminiscing about, recently, when he shared with GNN a miraculous story from more than a d
Good News
Good News in History, October 25
145 years ago, the visionary artist Pablo Picasso was born. A Spanish painter and sculptor, he had trouble getting out of bed in the morning, and usually spent the afternoon conversing and drinking with friends. But in t
Good News
Star Clusters in Van Gogh’s Starry Night Matches Taurus Sky From July 1889, Shows Study
The sky painted by Vincent Van Gogh in The Starry Night matches the sky in July of 1889, the year he immortalized the French horizon. The iconic painting has conventionally been dated from a letter the artist wrote to hi
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Minnesota Youth Jumps Onto Runaway School Bus and Saves 18 Kids After Driver has Seizure
Luckily, this 27-year-old was taking a break at work on a slow Monday in Minnesota—because his actions, jumping on a moving school bus, saved 18 students and their bus driver. Ebro Ahmed, an Eritrean-American, had steppe
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New U.S. National Park Preserves ‘Land of Standing-Up Rocks’ and its Apache Culture in Arizona
The U.S. has designated a new National Park in Arizona, preserving the distinctive landscape known as Chiricahua, the land of ‘Standing-Up Rocks’. Previously a national monument, the new Chiricahua National Park recogniz
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Your Positive Weekly Horoscope: ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Enlightenment for Rebels: Celebrating Our Wild and Sacred Earthly Selves, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrolog
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Good News in History, October 24
Happy 41st Birthday to Wayne Rooney, former Manchester United talisman and captain of the England national team. Part of a golden generation that helped to cement the English Premier League as the best in the world, Roon
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Rescuers Ensure Orphaned Baby Walrus Gets a Second Chance (LOOK)
Found alone and oppressed by scavengers on a remote northern Alaska beach, an orphaned Pacific walrus calf now has a new home at SeaWorld Orlando. Weighing approximately 220 pounds, the 5-month-old male calf, named Annau
Science Wins
Podcast Transcript October 23rd, 2026— Hungary repeals anti-LGBTQ law, world’s tallest wind turbine, and why fall makes you reach for reruns
Episode Description: Germany just finished building the world’s tallest wind turbine: 1,197 feet tall, and built without a crane. They had to invent an entirely new construction method, because cranes don’t go that high.
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One Teacher’s Idea for Daily Positivity Practice Sweeps Through His Elementary School
A Kansas Elementary School teacher is earning the praise of his community for sending children home full of positive affirmations. “I am kind!” “I can do hard things.” The cherubic chorus of voices coming out of Tyler Ri
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3 Italian ‘Hobbits’ Searched for Irishman’s ‘Precious’ Wedding Ring for Days Before Bringing it to His Home
A man’s misfortunate on vacation turned into a story fit for a fantasy novel, as complete strangers came to his rescue inspired by The Lord of the Rings. Losing his wedding ring in a mountain stream, 3 young men summoned
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Vines Produce Bigger, Healthier Wine Grapes When Grown Under Solar Panels
Solar panels grown above grapevines substantially increased the development and fruit production of the crop—all while generating clean energy. The technique, known as agrivoltaics, has been well-studied in other setting
Community
How ‘Artivism’ Is Driving the Resistance in Paris
Suddenly Darth Vader climbs up onto a chair in front of the Hôtel de Ville in Paris. Clad in all black, he swings his sword like a conductor’s baton while 200 musicians and volunteers, most in their early twenties, get r
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Good News in History, October 23
Happy 50th Birthday to Ryan Reynolds, the always-handsome and hilarious Canadian actor who first starred in the sitcom Two Guys and a Girl in 1998, then rose to fame in a range of films like The Proposal and Green Lanter
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
Rewilding gave low-lying islands hope, a basic income trial showed promise, and a Bangladeshi factory won an award, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on Positive News
Science Wins
New research identifies the exact spot where Alzheimer’s protein tangles lock in
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Researchers at Northwestern University and UC Santa Barbara identified a specific contact point on tau proteins where the misfolding that drives Alzheimer’s disease begins. The findin
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The Giving Grove: how Kansas City’s free community orchards became a national model
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM It is harvest time in Kansas City, and at Kansas City Academy, students are stepping outside during lunch to pick jujubes straight off the trees. “I feel like a fairy tale princess ev
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A Towering Figure of Tolerance From 2,500 Years Ago Has Found a New Home in Atlanta
This week, crews installed a 29-foot bronze statue of Cyrus the Great in Atlanta, an ancient Persian king might seem like an unlikely addition to the city To the people who spent years bringing him here, however, there’s
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‘World’s Largest Deforestation Project’ Halted Early, Saving Potentially 4 Million Acres
Indonesian authorities have paused, and perhaps ended, the “world’s largest deforestation project.” Having achieved self-sufficiency in rice cultivation some 3 years ahead of a government schedule, around 4 million acres
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Major Supermarket Begins Wide-Scale Tests to Bring Heritage Apple Varieties to Market
See these apples here? They rank among the most consumed worldwide—and one of Europe’s largest supermarkets would like to see that changed. The Spar Group is embarking on a project to bring heritage and heirloom cultivar
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Coconut Oil Could Make Great Sustainable Jet Fuel, Pioneering Experiments Demonstrate
Great for frying, perfect for your skin, and irreplicable in a ketogenic diet, coconut oil is a wonderful product. In the future it may even power our passenger aircraft. Chemists in Japan recently conducted extensive ex
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Samoan Island Witnesses Explosion of Native Wildlife Following Removal of Invasive Rats and Pigs
Just one year after ecological restoration efforts on Samoa, forests, wildlife, and food resources are showing remarkable signs of recovery. Nu’utele Island is considered a Key Biodiversity Area for Samoa, and is home to
The Planet
The farmer growing a future under Ghana’s trees
Cocoa farmer Susana Afrifa Ankrah is helping show how protecting forests can sustain livelihoods and build resilience to a changing climate The post The farmer growing a future under Ghana’s trees appeared first on Posit
Community
The Door-to-Door Technique That Actually Changes Minds
One weekend, a canvasser — let’s call her Cindy — was out door-knocking and found a gentleman at home. After establishing that he’d heard of gender transition surgeries for minors, a topic that’s become a major focal poi
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Good News in History, October 22
51 years ago today, Venera 9, the Soviet Union orbiter-lander spacecraft, became the first mission to enter orbit around Venus, and to return images from the surface of another planet. The key design feature of the lande
Science Wins
How kites and ancient design are replacing fuel in Antarctic exploration
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The last time a team completed a comparable crossing of Antarctica’s interior, they burned through roughly 170,000 liters (about 45,000 gallons) of fuel to do it. The Wind Sled expedi
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Is this nut the most underrated sleepy-time snack? Here’s what the sleep research says
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM You’re doing everything right at bedtime: you stay away from screens after nine, take a soothing dark shower, sip on that herbal tea cooling on the nightstand, and maintain a reasonab
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Strangers Help 86-Year-Old Who’s Been Building a 62-foot Boat in his Yard Since 1987 (WATCH)
An 86-year-old man named Dale has spent nearly four decades welding a 62-foot steel boat in his front yard. Now, a wave of kindness is bringing his long-held dream within reach—just when it seemed to be beyond his reach.
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Japan Successfully Launches Mission to Bring Home the First-Ever Martian Moon Samples
In a galactic step forward for planetary science, Japan successfully launched a spacecraft on October 19th, headed for the mysterious moons of Mars. The mission aims to collect soil samples and bring them back to Earth f
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Scientists Discover a Simple, Low-Energy Way to Recycle Acrylic Glass into Brand-New Material
Researchers at ETH Zurich have found a practical new method that breaks down acrylic glass—known by the brand name Plexiglas—almost entirely into its original building blocks, making high-quality recycling realistic and
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10-Year-Old Dog Found After a Month Lost in Yellowstone
A 10-year-old Jack Russell terrier named Luna was happily reunited with her owners after surviving more than a month on her own in Yellowstone National Park. Luna escaped on Sept. 10 from a locked cabin in the Canyon Vi
The Planet
‘Writing is a way of dealing with things’
Scottish author Ian Rankin talks about making sense of difficult experiences through fiction, and giving away a share of his success The post ‘Writing is a way of dealing with things’ appeared first on Positive News .
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Good News in History, October 21
86 years ago today, Ernest Hemingway’s novel For Whom the Bell Tolls was first published. A story about a young American volunteer who joined the government of Spain as a guerrilla fighter during the Spanish Civil War, a
Science Wins
Fall nostalgia: why your nervous system reaches for reruns when autumn arrives
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Every fall, something happens in the body before it happens in the mind. The smell of wood smoke drifting through a cracked window, the particular weight of October light slanting acr
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World’s tallest wind turbine reaches 1,197 feet in Germany
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The world’s tallest wind turbine just reached full height in Germany. GICON‘s pilot turbine in Schipkau, eastern Germany, now stands 365 meters (1,197 feet) tall from base to blade ti
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Student Plays Truly Epic Birthday Prank on High School Principal Who Changed His Life (WATCH)
There’s viral—and then there’s the video that recently dropped on social media platforms of Georgia high schoolers playing the prank of a lifetime on their principal. 51-year-old Bobby Davis of Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe H
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Isle of Jersey Expands Marine Protections to Cover 21% of Territorial Waters
The self-governing British Isle of Jersey announced in late August it would increase its percentage of protected waters by 15%. Now, 21.7% of Jersey’s seas will be protected from trawling and other damaging fishing pract
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Texas Man Finds More Than $128,000 on Top of a Bank’s ATM–and Returns Every Dollar
A man and a woman stopping at a Texas ATM noticed a bag lying atop the machine. Every inch of the bag was stuffed with money, yet the anonymous Samaritan immediately called the Lewisville Police Department. Information o
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Man Proposes to His Girlfriend After They Were Struck by Lightning–She Restarted His Heart Twice
Nick Broderick describes the moment he decided to marry his girlfriend Eva as electric: it was as if he were struck by lightning. Love language aside, that’s actually exactly what happened. While enjoying a hike in the K
Community
There Are Ways to Reduce Campus Sexual Assaults. Will More Colleges Use Them?
This story was originally published by The Understory. When I was a student at Cornell University, I read the book “Fraternity Gang Rape” by Peggy Reeves Sanday for one of my classes. That book was written in 1990, which
The Planet
The new certification scheme helping solar farms become havens for wildlife
A new solar certification scheme encourages developers to create better habitats for wildlife alongside clean electricity generation The post The new certification scheme helping solar farms become havens for wildlife ap
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Good News in History, October 20
76 years ago today, Tom Petty, was born in Gainesville, Florida. As an 11-year-old he met Elvis Presley, which sparked his love of rock and roll. As a guitar-playing singer-songwriter, he was one of the best-selling musi
Science Wins
A Dutch startup is making concrete that grows its own moss
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Most building materials are designed to resist the elements, to stay sealed and unchanged for as long as possible. Respyre, a Dutch startup, is working from the opposite premise. The
Science Wins
The surprising history of pumpkins: from ancient staple to autumn icon
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Pumpkin spice lattes, jack-o’-lanterns, and Thanksgiving pies: pumpkins are the unofficial mascots of fall. But behind their seasonal charm lies a deeper, more complicated story that
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Mozambique Protects the ‘Butterfly Forest’ of Mount Mabu, Home to 200 Species
A government decree published on August 24th set aside 23,000 acres as the Mount Mabu Community Conservation Area in Mozambique. This means that one of the wettest areas in southern Africa, known as the “butterfly forest
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Unprecedented Collab Between China and The Met Uncovers Secrets of Huge Chinese Mural in NYC
A major arts and heritage conservation project in China has born unexpected fruit thousands of miles away in New York City. In the Chinese arts and antiquities gallery of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a 50-foot-long mu
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Brazil Ends Long Tradition of 6-Day Workweek via Constitutional Amendment
With Brazil’s senate voting 75 to 1 in favor, one wonders what took them so long? The nation was one of the richest in the world that still had a customary 6-day workweek, with fulltime employment considered 44 hours, ra
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Simple ‘Soil Steaming’ Found as Effective Replacement for Chemicals in Organic Strawberry Farming
A mere puff of steam could be the ticket to much larger and reliable strawberry yields in California, the LA Times reported. University of California Santa Cruz (UCSC) researchers have been developing boiling water vapor
Community
A Wall Meant to Divide Is Uniting Left and Right in Texas
In August, videos of bulldozers ripping up the mouth of the iconic Santa Elena Canyon in Texas’ Big Bend went viral, propelling one of the country’s most remote national parks into the national spotlight. Construction cr
The Planet
Volunteers became salmon, deer and earthworms. Then they set out to save their river
An experiment is helping a Somerset community see its landscape through the eyes of wildlife – and plot a 30-year route to change it The post Volunteers became salmon, deer and earthworms. Then they set out to save their
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Good News in History, October 19
6 years ago today, the high-profile sale of a Ming Dynasty artwork brought the world not only into contact with the most remarkable painting of a stone ever made, but also the depth of the Chinese relationship with the n
Science Wins
How one small device is solving the apartment solar access problem
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM An Australian device that splits rooftop solar power across an entire apartment building just won the country’s top design honor. Melbourne-based Allume Energy took the 2026 Australia
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Hungary repeals anti-LGBTQ law, unlocking billions in EU funds
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Hungary’s parliament voted last Tuesday to repeal the 2021 Child Protection Law that banned the portrayal or promotion of homosexuality and transgender identities in schools and media
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Contact With Nature is Linked to Healthy Eating, Shows Encouraging New Study
A new study has discovered that contact with nature may help people develop healthier eating habits. The research from Anglia Ruskin University in the UK is reportedly the first to provide evidence that exposure to natur
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Tiny Black Cat Stuck in Car Engine Brings Unexpected Joy to Couple With Halloween Wedding Anniversary
A high school teacher in Sandy Springs, Georgia, got an unexpected surprise on her way to work earlier this month. “It was a pretty wild story,” she told GNN—and it happened just in time to celebrate her Halloween weddin
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Retired Couple Surprised With New HVAC System Worth $16k in a ‘Feel the Love’ Program That’s Aided 3100 Folks
An Oregon couple facing financial hardship can now endure the winter in comfort and with ‘peace of mind’ since a new HVAC system was installed in their home at no cost. Diane and Brian Johnsen of Beaverton received a com
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Village Installs Knitted Traffic Cops to Slow Down Speeding Drivers
Villagers have knitted speed cameras and life-sized traffic cops to fake-out reckless motorists, in a bid to slow down drivers. The locals in Fillongley, Warwickshire, dressed the mannequins in high-visibility vests to l
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Good News in History, October 18
896 years ago today, Zhu Xi, a revolutionary Confucian scholar of the Song Dynasty, was born. His shifting of the emphasis from the I Ching to the Four Books reshaped the Chinese view of the world, which is not an easy t
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99-yo Woman Snags ‘World’s Oldest Wing-Walker’ Title – 3 Months After Another Gran Did It (LOOK)
A 99-year-old has become the world’s oldest wing-walker—just three months after her niece saw another elderly woman do it, and the staff at her assisted-living facility urged her to try. This week, Guinness World Records
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Coral Bleaching Reversed at Record Speed Using New Stanford Method: ‘Not a Lost Cause, at All’
Coral bleaching has been reversed at record speed using a new method developed at Stanford University. Corals that were ghostly white returned to full health in their lab in a mere seven weeks—the fastest documented reco
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Massive 70lb Dog the Size of Baby Hippo Sheds Pounds and Gets New Home
A massive shelter dog that weighed the same as a baby hippo has shed the pounds—and found a new home. The huge bulldog named Peggy Sue swelled to 70 pounds (32.5kg) before she was taken to the RSPCA’s West Hatch Animal C
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Your Positive Weekly Horoscope: ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Enlightenment for Rebels: Celebrating Our Wild and Sacred Earthly Selves, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrolog
Good News
Good News in History, October 17
166 years ago today, the Open Championship, also known as the British Open, was first played in Scotland, at the Prestwick Golf Club in Ayrshire. The oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the four prestigious m
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North America’s Largest Wildlife Overpass Is Working: Animal Collisions on I-25 Down 91%
In March, GNN reported that North America’s largest wildlife overpass had opened in December over Interstate 25 near Larkspur, in Colorado. Now, 10 months on from its opening, data has demonstrated that the 6-lane lifeli
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Podcast Transcript October 16th, 2026— Flu is already spreading: why October is the window to get vaccinated, plus nine more solutions
Episode Description: Arielle and Karissa cover ten solutions this week, including 20,000 octopuses hiding in well-studied waters off the California coast, what Indonesian mosque loudspeakers have to do with earthquake su
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Drape Some of This ‘Plant Armor’ Fabric Over a Strawberry Patch to Triple Yields with Less Pesticides
A new textile used to cover strawberry plants more than tripled fruit yields in field tests, without negatively impacting plant health. Importantly, the technology could also significantly reduce water and pesticide usag
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Teen’s Disaster Messaging App Can ‘Hop’ Across Bluetooth When Cellular Networks Collapse
It’s not just homes that collapse during an earthquake, but cell towers and the networks they maintain. On February 6th, 2023, earthquakes devastated southern Türkiye and northern Syria. When they were needed most, the m
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Largest Private Conservation Project in the US Hits Major Milestone as Free-Roaming Bison Pass 1,000
As autumn descends upon the Great Plains of North America, the largest private land conservation project in the country is ringing in an inspirational milestone. The resident herd of relatively free-roaming bison now num
Community
What Dementia Taught Me About Living Through a Callous Time
Just as President Joe Biden was showing signs of cognitive decline so conspicuous that he was compelled to drop out of the presidential race in 2024, my own father’s dementia was worsening. He lived with us, and yet he l
Community
Welcome to the Depolarization Project
If you’re anything like us, you’re not exactly in a congenial mood right now. With the U.S. midterm elections fewer than three weeks away, you might be feeling combat-ready. And who could blame you? Seemingly on the ball
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Good News in History, October 16
57 years ago today, New York’s underdog baseball crew ‘The Miracle Mets’ won the World Series in just 5 games, a romantic triumph over a heavily-favored Orioles team. In the seven previous seasons, the Mets had never fin
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
Indonesia’s plummeting poverty rate, America’s largest wildlife bridge, and ‘a new era’ for the River Thames, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on Positive News .
Science Wins
What to leave alone in your garden this October to help overwintering bees
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Every fall there’s a pull to tidy things up. Cut back the perennials, rake the leaves, clear the beds, put the garden to rest. It feels satisfying, honestly, and spring does seem to s
Science Wins
What sets Japanese sweet potatoes apart, nutritionally speaking
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM If you’ve bought a Japanese sweet potato, cut into it expecting orange, and found creamy white instead, you’ve already spotted the first thing that sets it apart. The skin is reddish-
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An Extinct Crocodilian’s Skull Was Found in the Rocks That Built the Sphinx, and it’s Also Missing its Nose
A new crocodilian species has been identified from fossils recovered from a rock layer harvested by ancient Egyptians to build the Sphinx And funnily enough, just like the iconic Egyptian landmark, this fossilized reptil
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Tribe Just a Signature Away from Recovering 1,100 Ancestral Acres Along Undammed Elwha River
20 years after a Washington state dam was slated for demolition, 1,100 acres of ecosystem along the Lower Elwha River is recovering, having lain muddy and dormant under the dam’s engorged reservoir for more than a centur
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ESA’s New Sentinel 3C Satellite Makes its Debut with Sumptuous Images of Italy and the Arctic
Two weeks after launching, the European Space Agency’s Copernicus Sentinel 3C satellite has returned its first images of our world in sumptuous color. This first set of images includes stunning views of Italy, the Canadi
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Woman Who Lost Her Sister Invents a Child’s Car Seat Sticker That Doubles as Hospital Bracelet
A sister turned her personal tragedy into a brilliant emergency safety product. Simple yet vital, the Roth ID Tag is an adhesive designed to stick forever on the fabric of a child’s car seat. If that child needs to be ru
Community
The Library Is Closed. Feel Free to Come In.
This story was originally published in the Daily Yonder. For more rural reporting and small-town stories visit dailyyonder.com. For Michael Sayen, visiting the local library after hours is a great way to get work done, o
The Planet
In Ukraine, the repair movement is heading underground
A Ukrainian city is preparing to hold a repair festival in an underground shelter, giving new meaning to the act of fixing broken things The post In Ukraine, the repair movement is heading underground appeared first on P
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Good News in History, October 15
29 years ago today, NASA and ESA’s Cassini Mission, meant to gather data on Saturn and its moons, was launched from Cape Canaveral. The Flagship-class robotic spacecraft comprised both NASA’s Cassini space probe and ESA’
Science Wins
6 smart things to do with an empty egg carton before you toss it in the recycling bin
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There’s a half-second every time you finish a carton of eggs. The lid flops open, the last two slots are empty, and you’re already reaching for the recycling bin. Before you do: cardb
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Indonesia’s mosque loudspeakers might save lives during natural disasters
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The hardest part of any early warning system isn’t the science. It’s finding infrastructure that reaches everyone, holds up under pressure, and gets maintained over years by the peopl
Facing the Midterms With Courage
Even when discontent is near-universal and the desire for change is palpable, the way forward is not always clear.
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Teen Triathlete Raises More Than $30,000 to Donate Bikes and Riding Lessons to Low-Income Families
Continuing GNN’s coverage of youth nonprofit leaders, the Pedal Forward Foundation in Georgia has distributed hundreds of bicycles to low income families, and taught hundreds of children how to ride them. It’s founder, J
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Pittsburgh Water Launches Debt Forgiveness Program to Help Families with Rising Costs
Residents of Pittsburgh with outstanding debt on their water utilities can see it forgiven over a 24-month period. Instituted by Pittsburgh’s water authority, certain customers have already been enrolled as of September,
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Inches Below the Forest Floor, Archeologists in Germany Unearthed a Roman Temple to the War God
Along a series of Roman fortifications cutting across Germany just north of Frankfurt, archeological excavations have revealed extensive floorplans belonging to a temple, a military camp, and craft center. The discovery,
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World’s Heaviest Pumpkin Sets Incredible New Record at 2,856 lbs.
This seismic squash was just certified as the largest ever grown by a man at a recent British competition. When volunteers at the Wargrave Nursery Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off finally hoisted the specimen onto the scale, the
Community
Teenagers Worldwide Are Tackling the Plastics Crisis
When students in Singapore looked around their school cafeteria, they could see a problem shared all over the world: Single-use Styrofoam was ubiquitous. They soon learned that the school’s 2,000 students used 72,000 pie
The Planet
Wildlife photographer of the year 2026, the winning images
This year’s competition has attracted a record-breaking number of entries The post Wildlife photographer of the year 2026, the winning images appeared first on Positive News .
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Good News in History, October 14
And, 136 years ago today, Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th US President and Commander of the European Allied Forces in WWII, was born in Kansas. Nicknamed “Ike”, he was voted Gallup’s most admired man twelve times, achievi
Science Wins
Why October is the best time to get your flu shot this year
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Flu season usually builds in late fall, but this year it’s getting a jump start. During the week ending September 26, 3.4 percent of respiratory samples tested by clinical labs came b
Science Wins
Scientists discovered the world’s largest octopus nursery off the California coast
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Most of the deep seafloor is cold, dark, and barely mapped. The Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary covers more than 6,000 square miles of ocean along California’s central coast an
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Scientists Shocked to Discover ‘D-rex’, a Giant Fungus from Chinese Forests Dating Back 65 Million Years
Deep in the forests of southwest China, scientists have discovered a ‘fungal giant’ that challenges our understanding of how large fungi can become. The newly described species, Dianjunus rex, or “King of Dian,” named fo
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Italian Bio-methane Plant Comes Online, Providing Renewable Gas to Over 3,000 Homes
A European energy developer has switched on a major biomethane plant in southern Italy that will save some 9,000 tons of CO2 annually by producing a natural gas substitute with agricultural waste. Located in Grottole, in
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Barbie Honors Serena Williams with New Signature Doll to Serve Inspiration to Next Generation of Women
Barbie has released a signature edition doll of none other than tennis legend Serena Williams. The release came in tandem with news that Williams officially joined Team Barbie, a group of powerful female athletes and rol
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Elderly Theater Worker Surprised by $146,000 for Her Retirement Crowdfunded by Young Moviegoer
It’s becoming something of a trend: young people encountering elders working long past retirement age and raising thousands for them to finally take a rest. GNN has covered such stories on multiple occasions, and now ano
The Planet
The ‘in awe’ artist painting a wilder Britain
Rebecca Howard’s paintings capture a wilder Britain in the making. Her exhibition celebrates nine projects restoring nature The post The ‘in awe’ artist painting a wilder Britain appeared first on Positive News .
Community
Young Adults Are Building Safe Spaces for Unhoused Peers
In his first year at the University of California, Davis, Liam commuted three hours a day from his family’s home in the Bay Area to campus and back again. The round-trip train tickets were expensive, but not as pricey as
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Good News in History, October 13
95 years ago today, Cristo Redentor, or Christ the Redeemer, opened to the public in the hills above Rio de Janeiro. Standing 98 feet high, and with arms stretching 92 feet wide, the statue was built on top of Mount Corc
Science Wins
The common skin care mistakes dermatologists say are working against your routine
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There’s a particular kind of Sunday evening spiral that happens when you’ve spent twenty minutes reading about an ingredient you’ve never heard of, and you’re now convinced your entir
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How a floating shade can help coral survive a marine heatwave
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM When divers installed floating shade structures over 20 colonies of brain coral in the lower Florida Keys in August 2024, the corals underneath began recovering their color. The 20 co
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Montana High School Softball Player Discovered Long-Lost Sister on Opposing Team
A softball diamond in Montana was the scene of a larger-than-life family reunion. Like something out of Field of Dreams, a teen softball player had lined up against an out-of-state team for an August match—and her long-l
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‘Like Caring for a Pet’ – the App That Lets You Know if Your Neighborhood Tree Is Thirsty
An open-source app has thousands of Berliners adopting and watering city trees as if they were their pets, helping keep the city green amid repeated summer heatwaves. Gieß den Kiez translates to “water your neighborhood,
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Teen’s Wish to Return Kindness She Received Sees Her Lemonade Stand Become $5 Million Charity Engine
When summer’s heat becomes too much to bear, a glass of iced lemonade is a welcome relief, but what tens of thousands across Ohio have learned is that lemonade can provide a different sort of relief as well. For 8 years,
The Planet
Putting a ring on it: the plan to green London’s beloved edges
Ten million people will benefit from a more biodiverse capital, say the organisers of an ambitious project to reconnect its wilder spaces The post Putting a ring on it: the plan to green London’s beloved edges appeared f
Community
Can Students and Teachers Learn to Trust Each Other in the Age of A.I.?
“I’m worried if I use an em dash they’ll think it’s A.I.,” I told my mom from where I sat at the kitchen counter, trying to work on one of my college essays. Despite her reassurances to the contrary, I wasn’t convinced.
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Good News in History, October 12
81 years ago today, Desmond Doss became the only conscientious objector to win the Medal of Honor after saving an estimated 75 men during the Battle of Hacksaw Ridge in the invasion of Okinawa. Doss refused to carry a we
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Family Sells 650 Acres on East Texas Lake to Become State Park, Saying Land is ‘Part of my soul’
A “gem” of a landscape in eastern Texas has been sold by its multigenerational owners for the purpose of becoming a state park. The property is the longest remaining, contiguous piece of land on Lake Palestine’s shore, a
Science Wins
How to quiet performance anxiety, according to sport psychology
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM You know that moment. The job interview is starting in 30 seconds, and your brain decides now is the perfect time to replay every mistake you’ve ever made. Or you’re halfway through a
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Australia sets a new renewable energy record, with rooftop solar leading the way
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM On Saturday, September 22, solar and wind met 80.4 percent of demand on Australia’s national electricity market, with the grid covering the eastern states, South Australia, and the Au
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New Way to Relieve Arthritic Knees Without Drugs or Surgery by Changing Your Gait
Scientists are reporting that a simple adjustment to how people walk can relieve knee arthritis pain as effectively as prescription drugs—while also slowing the deterioration of cartilage. Nearly a quarter of people over
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Giant Tortoise Population is Thriving–Survey Finds 180,000 on One Island Chain
A landmark survey of the world’s largest free-roaming giant tortoise population has revealed the once-endangered species is now thriving. The latest count of tortoises on the Seychelles atoll of Aldabra revealed that the
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Statins May Protect People From Glaucoma or Blindness By Preventing or Slowing Nerve Cell Death
Statins may be protecting people from more than just cholesterol, suggests new research from the University of California in San Diego. Patients with glaucoma who take the cholesterol-busting pills appear less likely to
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Good News in History, October 11
51 years ago today, Saturday Night Live premiered on NBC with George Carlin as host. The seminal comedy television program in American history, SNL has launched the careers of dozens of talented writers, comics, and acto
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Sloth Bear Named By Julia Roberts is Flourishing After Rescue From Dancing Trade in India
A sloth bear that made headlines when it was given a name by Julia Roberts after being saved from abuse is now flourishing, according to a rescue charity. The Hollywood star was filming Eat, Pray, Love in India in 2009 w
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Daughter Gets to Join Dad as Co-Pilot, With Mom Serving on Flight’s Cabin Crew: A Surprise Full Circle Moment
A young pilot flew a commercial jet alongside her father as captain for the first time—while her mother worked in the cabin crew on the same flight. 22-year-old Zoë took to the skies with both her parents aboard the Dutc
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Lost Italian Statue by Trevi Fountain Artist Discovered in Salvage Yard Among the Garden Ornaments
A Roman artifact from the Italian sculptor responsible for the Trevi Fountain was discovered in a reclamation yard for a mere 300 British pounds ($400). The 27-inch-tall (68cm) model was fashioned by Pietro Bracci as a p
Good News
Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Enlightenment for Rebels: Celebrating Our Wild and Sacred Earthly Selves, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrolog
Good News
Good News in History, October 10
63 years ago today, the second, and often considered best film starring James Bond, was released as From Russia With Love. In the film, Bond, played by Sean Connery, is sent to assist in the defection of Soviet consulate
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NPR-Inspired Homework Leads Teen to Find Hidden Message a Decade After a Stranger’s Kindness
From Seattle’s chapter of National Public Radio comes the remarkable story of the kindness of strangers immortalized in an origami crane. Published through KUOW’s “My Unsung Hero” series, the story begins with a 7-year-o
Science Wins
Podcast Transcript October 9th, 2026— (Guest Interview) A place to breathe: inside #CreateConnectCare, the youth mental health program giving young people a voice | World Mental Health Day 2026
Episode Description: If you have a teenager in your life and you’ve felt them pull away from conversations you used to have easily, this episode is for you. Kathy Saulitis has spent three years going through what young p
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Australia Announces 3 New National Parks to Protect Gliders, Owls, and Other Victoria Wildlife
More than 250 square miles of forests at the center of Victoria state in Australia have become new national parks. Parliament passed the law to create the parks back in November 2025, and this week they take effect, crea
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Local Opinion and Involvement Found as Key Determinant in World’s Conservation Success Stories
Scientists seeking out why some endangered animals or ecosystems are thriving while others are in decline have made an encouraging determination. Across a worldwide, cross-section of conservation success stories, they fo
The Planet
‘I can breathe again’. Readers share their experiences of a more balanced media diet
We often talk about the impact journalism has on democracy and how we understand the world. But what about its impact on how we feel? The post ‘I can breathe again’. Readers share their experiences of a more balanced med
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World’s Largest ‘Glacial Archeology’ Expedition Recovers 48 Stone Age Arrowheads and Shafts
In a mountainous region of southern Norway, scientists are in their 20th year of surveying glaciers for ancient artifacts entombed therein. The most recent chapter of this long-running saga was the recovery of 48 arrow h
Community
Gen Z Is Rescuing Millions in Medical Supplies
In early August, a freight truck pulled up to an OhioHealth facility in Columbus and took roughly 30,000 pounds of N95 masks and hot-and-cold packs, all boxed, sealed and stamped with expiration dates still a year or two
The Planet
Three surprising reasons to slow down for a thoughtful, nutritious breakfast
From cognitive function to reinforcing family bonds, the benefits of making time for good, whole foods in the morning are plentiful The post Three surprising reasons to slow down for a thoughtful, nutritious breakfast ap
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Good News in History, October 9
On this day, in Game 2 of the 1909 World Series, Ty Cobb stole home base. The details around this famous of all capers are what make it so. Losing Game 1 to the Pittsburgh Pirates, Detroit Tiger’s star and all-time great
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
A pivotal moment for climate justice in Australia, the Nobel prize winners, and a promising drug for Parkinson’s, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on Positive News .
Science Wins
The floating scarecrow saving seabirds from fishing nets
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A bird-shaped kite and a floating scarecrow with spinning eyes reduced seabird deaths in Cornish fishing nets by up to 71 percent in a two-year trial. The devices cost relatively litt
Science Wins
Coffee’s memory boosting effect might have nothing to do with caffeine, study suggests
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In a small experiment, researchers found that only participants who drank decaffeinated coffee showed significant improvements on memory tests. Those who drank caffeinated coffee did
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Nearly 200-year-old Tortoise Becomes First to Contribute Extraordinary Epigenome to Aging Research
A giant tortoise called Jonathan reinforces what we know from humans about healthy aging, say scientists, only the difference is that Jon is almost 200. Researchers have been conducting genetic tests on Jonathan who, at
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NYC Parks Extends Late Night Soccer at 5 Fields for Night Workers–And Their Reactions Are Awesome (WATCH)
New York City authorities decided to leave the lights on at 5 urban soccer pitches around the city, hoping to even the playing field of recreation opportunities for those who work late. The response from the locals in ea
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Neighbors Flock to Rescue a Wounded Owl Tangled Up in Barbed Wire
From the Cowboy State Daily comes the story of a rural community flocking to the side of an injured owl and rescuing it from a dreadful fate. The story begins when Sharon and Scott Jacobs were driving past private land i
The Planet
Prince William launches kit to help communities prepare for emergencies
The free, how-to resource shows people how to build resilience in their communities The post Prince William launches kit to help communities prepare for emergencies appeared first on Positive News .
Good News
More Than 14,000 Derelict Explosives Cleared from Libyan City and Nearby Farmland
Demining operations have cleared just over 14,000 pieces of derelict explosives in a coastal Libyan city this year. A partnership between the UN’s support mission in-country (UNSMIL), Italian foreign aid, Libyan domestic
Community
How NYC Students Saved School Lunch
There were three clear reasons why Leslie Gomez Rivera avoided the cafeteria at her high school in Brooklyn: She didn’t like the food, the room felt hectic and there was a stigma attached to eating school meals. She pref
Good News
Good News in History, October 8
81 years ago toady, the microwave oven was patented by Percy Spencer. The self-taught engineer from Howland, Maine, employed by Raytheon at the time, noticed that microwaves from an active radar set he was working on sta
Science Wins
Berlin mapped 900,000 street trees. Now 12,000 people water them.
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Amanda Gläser-Bligh named her street tree Linda. Linda is a linden, eight years old, growing outside Gläser-Bligh’s apartment building in Charlottenburg, and once a week during Berlin
Science Wins
London’s Oxford Street gets fully pedestrianized this month: here’s what that means
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Oxford Street, one of the busiest shopping streets in the world, goes traffic-free on October 26. London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced the closure of the stretch from Orchard Street to G
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Strangers Showed Up to Man’s Destroyed House to Put Up a Tarp Having Seen His Televised Plea
After a storm dumped a silver maple tree down through his roof, Kansas resident Gilbert Kirk told local news that he wasn’t looking for a miracle or an insurance handout. He just wanted a tarp. Two days later, last Frida
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A Swarm of Seven Meteor Showers Will Light Up the Night Skies All October Long
October will feature nothing less than 7 separate meteor showers, but in terms of activity, one above all others merits an entry on your calendar. The Orionids will peak on the night of Wednesday, October 21st, promising
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Saudi Solar Park Proves Brilliant Breeding Ground for Threatened Sand Gazelles
In clearing two hurdles with one bound, Saudi conservationists have turned a large solar farm into a breeding shelter for a vulnerable species of native gazelle. Located near the Red Sea coastline in a massive, 24,500-sq
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‘You’re Walking!’ – Dad Surprises Children Having Recovered Ability to Walk After Serious Brain Injury
After 3 years of recovery from a brain injury sustained in a car accident, a father surprised his children by walking independently again. Lounging on the couch enjoying some TV time, children are excellent at completely
The Planet
A future worth building. What to expect in the new issue of Positive News magazine
From future-focused projects to secret schools, the people in this issue are choosing to act for a world they may never see The post A future worth building. What to expect in the new issue of Positive News magazine appe
Community
What We’re Reading: California Joins the Balcony Solar Revolution
Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Tell us what you’ve been reading at info@reasonstobecheerful.world and we just might feature it here. Sunny outlook Last year, Cont
Good News
Good News in History, October 7
Happy 71st Birthday to the brilliant cellist Yo-Yo Ma, who was born in France. The Chinese-American musician was a child prodigy, performing from the age of five, when his mother, a singer, and father, a violinist, moved
Science Wins
Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri becomes Morocco’s first woman prime minister
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM On September 29, King Mohammed VI appointed Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri as Morocco’s prime minister, making the 50-year-old urban planner and longtime mayor of Marrakesh the first woma
Science Wins
How to choose running shoes: what a physical therapists wants you to know
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The running boom shows no sign of slowing, and the shoe market has followed with thicker foams, carbon-fiber plates, and marketing claims that more technology means less injury and fa
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Oldest Man in Oregon Credits Clean Diet and “Good Mind” for Reaching 108-years Young
A man who’s believed to be the oldest individual in the state of Oregon recently rung in 108-years-young with a cake and some words of wisdom. “You don’t know what it’s like to be 100-plus. I’ve found out and I like it!”
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Nokia and NASA Team Up to Bring 4G to the Moon and Our Astronauts
Children of astronauts may soon be able to video call their parents in space, as NASA wants to bring terrestrial 4G to the Lunar surface. Ostensibly to prepare for a semi-permanent human presence there, an outer spatial
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Illinois Community Members Honored for Helping Save Woman in Submerged Vehicle (WATCH)
On a stormy afternoon in Illinois in August, an elderly driver lost control of her vehicle as it plunged into a flooded retention pond. Sinking up to its roof, multiple local community members immediately began to swim o
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Virginia Becomes Latest State to Enact ‘Clean Slate’ Law, to Help Residents Move on from Minor Offenses
Virginia’s new Clean Slate law came into effect last Thursday, meaning that thousands of misdemeanor offenses will be automatically sealed to help residents move forward with employment or loan opportunities. The law aut
The Planet
The women putting community at the heart of elephant conservation
Across Africa, women are challenging old assumptions about who conservation is for – and who gets to lead it The post The women putting community at the heart of elephant conservation appeared first on Positive News .
Good News
Good News in History, October 6
115 years ago today, Beatrix de Rijk became the first female licensed Dutch aircraft pilot. This pioneering aviator was born in Surabaya, modern-day Indonesia in the Dutch East Indies, to a Javan mother and a Dutch fathe
Science Wins
Social physiology: the hidden health cost of eating alone, according to science
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A study published in Science Advances found that eating the same meal with a close companion produces measurably better blood sugar control than eating it alone. In experiments with 1
Science Wins
6 things that will bring more birds to your backyard this autumn
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM If you’ve ever caught a flash of movement in the branches in early October – something small and unfamiliar, not the usual backyard regulars – there’s a good chance it was a migrating
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Fighting Wildfires from Prison, A New Law Gives Ex-Cons Route to California Fire Dept. Jobs on Release
Rather than being stuck on the chain gang, California prisoners are often on the bucket brigade. Roughly half of all California firefighters are incarcerated individuals. The pay is better than other prison jobs, and is
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Star Quarterback Wants to Help Gen Z Handle Money with New Video Series ‘Finance with Fernando’
As starting quarterback, Heisman Trophy winner, #1 NFL Draft pick, and aspiring philanthropist, Fernando Mendoza seems all lined up for a dynamite career in football. Yet as the holder of an MBA in Business Administratio
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Nonprofit Brings Free Music Education to More Than 20,000 Miami Students in 131 Schools
Down in Miami-Dade County, educators are seeing how school doesn’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing. Showing up, taking an interest in school and the community therein, comes that much easier for the some 21,000 s
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Orphaned, Rescued, and Rewilded, Female Gorilla Becomes a Mother in Historic Conservation Success
One of the first-ever eastern lowland gorillas to be successfully returned to the wild gave birth on May 21st in her new/old home of Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Every new gorilla
Community
The Hospital That Silenced the Machines
Beep. Beep. Beep. The heartbeat monitor chirps. Hospitals have long tried to fight acoustic chaos with passive tactics — hanging sound-absorbing ceiling tiles, laying soft rubber flooring or begging clinical staff to whi
The Planet
Meet the 14-year-old uncovering London’s lost history
Seasoned mudlark Emmylou Vaxby has spent nearly a decade searching the Thames foreshore for fragments of the city’s past The post Meet the 14-year-old uncovering London’s lost history appeared first on Positive News .
Good News
Good News in History, October 5
20 years ago today, the 60-year-old rock star Jon Bon Jovi, who’s sold 100 million records, launched a charity foundation to combat poverty issues like food and housing to ease economic despair. One of the flagship initi
Science Wins
Wisconsin’s first certified Shinrin-yoku trail is open to everyone
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Think about the last time you went for a walk in the woods. Were you listening to a podcast? Checking your step count? Moving fast enough to feel productive, already running through e
Science Wins
DeafCity Hub and the fight to build a space where sign language can live and thrive
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Sign language interpreters at rap concerts go viral for a reason. There’s something genuinely arresting about watching BSL in full flight: the expressiveness, the grammar operating in
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Pomegranates, Walnuts and Berries Could Unlock Heart Failure Treatment By Producing Urolithin A
A compound produced in the body after eating pomegranates improves heart function by up to 80%, particularly for a type of heart failure with limited treatment options. Scientists at King’s College London have discovered
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Finalists Win Big Laughs in The Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards – LOOK
It’s that time of the year again, when the cutest, most spontaneous snapshots that capture the amusing side of nature, compete in a bid to win the Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards. The Nikon sponsored awards just relea
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Rare 1-in-100M ‘Ghost Lobster’ Goes to School to Help Scientists Crack Genetic Mystery–in Time for Halloween
A ‘ghost’ lobster so rare that the odds of finding one are 1 in 100 million is going to school, and its new home is Maine’s Marine Science Center—arriving just in time for Halloween. The rare white crustacean was welcome
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AI Chatbots Will Never Replace Advice From Elders, Say Seven of 10 in New Poll
More than seven in 10 Brits believe AI will never replace advice from their elders. A study of 2,000 adults found while 21 percent use these artificial intelligence tools for help several times a week, 92 percent believe
Good News
Good News in History, October 4
22 years ago today, SpaceShipOne, funded by Microsoft’s Paul Allen, became the first private manned spacecraft to fly into sub-orbital space. That same year, its innovative design won the $10 million Ansari X Prize. Pilo
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Underwater Umbrellas Could Protect Coral Reefs From Heat Damage
Underwater umbrellas could protect coral reefs from heat—and even partly reverse the bleaching, according to a new study by Florida scientists. Temporary shades placed over particularly vulnerable Caribbean corals can mi
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Ancient Christian Complex Reopens in Syria After 14 Years, a War, and an Earthquake
A 5th-century Christian heritage site has reopened to visitors in Aleppo, Syria, after rehabilitation, restoration, and clearing the remnants of war. Syria’s Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums officially reop
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Fan ‘Storms Out’ as Team Loses on TV, Only to Become Hero for Woman Stuck in Mud Chest-high
Just after Alastair Cass stormed out of his house because his football team lost he become a hero for a woman in dire need of a win—to save her life. The 40-year-old left home in “frustration” after his beloved Arsenal t
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Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Enlightenment for Rebels: Celebrating Our Wild and Sacred Earthly Selves, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrolog
Good News
Good News in History, October 3
4,483 years ago today, or so it’s said, the sky above the Korean Peninsula opened and Hwanung, the mythical progenitor of Korean People descended from heaven. Today, it’s marked as National Foundation Day in both the Sou
Good News
Hunter-Gatherers Don’t Have Trouble Sleeping: Why? and What Can We Learn from Them?
The BBC recently spoke with a sleep scientist who’s spent much of his career studying the sleeping habits of the last remaining, contactable, hunter-gatherer societies on Earth. What he found might surprise you—it might
Science Wins
Podcast Transcript October 2nd, 2026— A wildlife overpass, a solar train, and Japan’s massive centenarian population
Episode Description: This week Arielle and Karissa cover the Colorado wildlife overpass that came in $15 million under budget and brought pronghorn back to habitat they hadn’t reached in decades, what Japan’s 107,000-plu
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UK’s National Museums to Continue 25-Year Policy of Free Entry for Foreign Visitors
After months of discussions between UK ministries, the tourism sector, and London’s museums, the government has decided that the country’s national museums will remain free to international visitors. These 14 institution
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Antarctica’s Wind Farm Saves 122,000 Gallons of Diesel Over 15 Years Powering McMurdo Station
As they near the end of their productive lives, the 3 wind turbines spinning on Antarctica’s Ross Island have made an enormous impact on the energy market of the continent. Built and commissioned over 2008-2009, the Ross
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30 Years of Clean-Up and Monitoring Work at Closed Copper Mine Wins Honors for World’s Top Miner
In British Columbia, a small award ceremony was held to commend mine operators who continue to monitor and spend on mine reclamation, years after the pickaxes are hung up. Mining has long been the backbone of Canada’s ec
Community
The Spark: The ‘Community Lighthouses’ Where Neighbors Help Neighbors
Welcome back to The Spark, our monthly celebration of how people just like you are creating positive change, one meaningful step at a time. The Spark is generously supported by Laura Rice. Sign up to Reasons to be Cheerf
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Good News in History, October 2
69 years ago today, a new island, or Ilha Novo, appeared on the edge of the westernmost island (Faial) in the Azores chain after the eruption of Capelinhos, or “little cape,” one of many submerged cone volcanoes in the a
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
The ‘alternative Nobel prize’, global progress on ageism, and a boost for gorillas, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on Positive News .
Science Wins
How a simple urine test could spare most women from invasive womb cancer procedures
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Researchers at the University of Manchester developed a non-invasive womb cancer test that correctly identified most cancers and returned a negative result for 93 percent of women who
Science Wins
Fighting dengue with sterile insects: Lisbon’s experimental approach
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Portugal has released 30,000 sterile male mosquitoes in Lisbon as part of a push to bring down populations of the Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus), a species that can carry den
Good News
‘Flourishing’ Sycamore Gap Tree Has Ring of New Shoots Already 3-Feet Tall
3 years on from the illegal felling of Britain’s famous Sycamore Gap tree, new aerial images reveal how the stump is flourishing, and the basal sprouts that emerged are growing fast. For those who didn’t read or weren’t
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Chinese Commercial Reactor Achieves Nuclear Fusion with Clean Hydrogen-Boron Fuel
In a world first, Chinese engineers have achieved brief nuclear fusion with a much cleaner and abundant fuel supply in what an international review team called a “significant and valuable” advance in the field. Using hyd
Community
Reviving L.A.’s Burned Landscapes, One Seed Bomb at a Time
If you’ve been through a wildfire, you may never forget the torrid heat, the acrid smell of smoke and the threatening sight of flames closing in. On January 7, 2025, the Goodyear family joined 200,000 other Angelenos in
Good News
Genetic Analysis All But Confirms the Most Unique of Humpback Populations Is Actually a Subspecies
This breathtaking photograph is of an Arabian Sea humpback whale—the subject of a new genetic analysis that seems to confirm beyond a shadow of a doubt that it’s a totally different subspecies compared to its cousins in
Good News
Stunning Collection of Stolen Greek Artifacts Spanning 5,000 Years Were Just Returned to Greece
Millions of dollars in ancient Greek artifacts were recently repatriated to their mother country by New York authorities after they were identified at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. They include 2 ancient bronze helmets
The Planet
Why good leaders listen
Listening is often overlooked as a leadership skill, but it can challenge assumptions and lead to better decisions, writes social innovator Ken Banks The post Why good leaders listen appeared first on Positive News .
Good News
Good News in History, October 1
102 years ago today, former President Jimmy Carter was born The 39th president of the United States from 1977–1981, is one of the few American presidents to receive the Nobel Peace Prize (for his Camp David Accords). He
Science Wins
The herbs and spices dietitians say support immune function
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Every fall, the same conversation starts about how to stay well through cold and flu season. Most of the advice points to supplements: vitamin C, zinc, elderberry. Useful, but not the
Science Wins
How Argentina’s battery-powered Tren Solar is recharging an ancient Andean route
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There are places where the land itself seems to generate energy. The Quebrada de Humahuaca in Jujuy province, in Argentina’s far northwest, is one of them. At altitude, in clear deser
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New Gobi Desert Fossil Rewrites a Chapter of Mammal Evolution
A remarkably well-preserved fossil from Mongolia’s Gobi Desert is reshaping scientists’ understanding of mammal evolution during the age of dinosaurs. The new species, described today in the journal Nature, reveals that
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Chris Evans Puts His Limelight on a Bonded Dog Pair with Cute Video, Immediately Sees Them Adopted
Hollywood A-lister Chris Evans recently went out of his way to see if he could convince someone to make room in their home for two dogs who had to be adopted together. Greg and Carley were residents of the Animal Rescue
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Coastal Golf Course Turned into Vital Wetland Habitat for Seabirds
With an eye towards making room for native wildlife, a pair of golf courses are looking an awful lot more green. Along England’s coastline, a golf course has been transformed into a wetland nature reserve that’s home to
The Planet
I stopped reading bad news for 48 hours. Here’s what happened
What changes when you swap the daily doomscroll for journalism that asks not just what’s wrong, but what’s working? Oliver Balch finds out The post I stopped reading bad news for 48 hours. Here’s what happened appeared f
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First Ever Recorded Sea Turtle Nests on America’s West Coast
A bombshell report last week from the LA Times details that a series of olive ridley sea turtles which laid their eggs on beaches in Southern California are the first of their race ever recorded buildings nests on the co
Community
What We’re Reading: Rat Rangers to the Rescue
Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Tell us what you’ve been reading at info@reasonstobecheerful.world and we just might feature it here. Rat tales With the rat popula
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Good News in History September 30
163 years ago, George Bizet’s famous opera Les Pêcheurs de Perles, The Pearl Fishermen, debuted at the Théâtre Lyrique in Paris. Set in ancient times on the Island of Sri Lanka, it tells the story of how two men’s vow of
Science Wins
Why noise is an underestimated health hazard and what to do about it
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Most of the damage noise does to your body is preventable, and the tools you need are either free or already in your pocket. The missing piece, for most people, is understanding what
Science Wins
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library doubles its London reach even after her death
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Dolly Parton launched the Imagination Library in 1995 on a premise that hasn’t changed since: send a free book to every registered child under five, once a month, for the first years
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12-yo’s Annual ‘Diaper Drive’ Delivers 30,000 Diapers Off at Arizona Food Bank
Employees at a food bank in Phoenix were left scratching their heads when they saw an entire Uhaul truck of donated diapers arrive at their location, knowing that a middle-schooler was behind the enormous load. It was th
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This Stone Wall Seems to Have Finally Settled Debate About The Town That Became Paris
Excavations in central Paris have turned up a stone wall that may have finally settled the debate regarding the true origins of the city. City officials described themselves as feeling “dizzy” looking down onto what is e
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A Strategy of Cash-for-Photos Turns Animal Hunters into Animal Protectors in Indonesia
From that magical island called Borneo comes the story of a bottom-up, pay-per-pic program that’s making a significant impact for the conservation of endangered birds and orangutans. Across the Indonesian province of Wes
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Norway’s Newest Marine Protected Area Shelters Rich Marine Habitat, Whales, and Seabirds
On September 18th, the Norwegian government established a new marine protected area covering approximately 714 square miles, equivalent to almost 260,000 football pitches. Called the Andfjorden Marine Protected Area, the
The Planet
‘The forest is life’: how Indigenous communities in Peru are preventing wildfires
Forest fires have ravaged Peru in recent years, but some Indigenous communities are actually seeing a decline. Meet the forest protectors of Paamari The post ‘The forest is life’: how Indigenous communities in Peru are p
Community
A Place to Sleep for Denver’s Homeless College Students
This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters. During her first semester at Chicago’s Malcolm X College, Nikya Harrell had had enough. It was winter, and she was c
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Good News in History September 29
30 years ago today, the Nintendo 64 video game console was released in North America. Critically acclaimed as “quite simply, the fastest, most graceful game machine on the market”, the N64 was one of the first gaming con
Science Wins
What Japan’s 107,677 centenarians reveal about diet, lifestyle, and aging
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There are 107,677 people in Japan who are currently aged 100 or older, according to recently released health ministry figures. That puts Japan ahead of every other country for centena
Science Wins
Colorado’s largest wildlife overpass cut I-25 collisions by 91 percent
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Nine months in, North America’s largest wildlife overpass has cut vehicle collisions on a stretch of Interstate 25 in Colorado by 91 percent. Before it opened, that corridor was avera
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Resilient French Farmers Use Warming Climate to Grow the Country’s Own Tropical Fruit
This is a typical image of the south of France; now the home to an assortment very a-typical European fruit: the banana, the papaya, and the mango. “I’m probably the only papaya grower in France!” says Dominique Berdin,
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Vietnam Swiftly Protects Forests Containing the Last of the World’s Most-Endangered Monkey
Some of the best forest and mountain scenery Vietnam has to offer will now include a special conservation reserve to protect one of the world’s most-endangered primates. Around 7,500 acres of karst limestone escarpments
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Researchers Unearth a Clay Tablet Inscribed With the World’s Oldest Peace Treaty
Look, the order fixed for eternity which the Sun God and the God of the Tempest have created for the country of Egypt and the country of Hatti, (that is) peace and fraternity without leaving place among them to any enmit
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18 Year-Old from the Bronx Starts Nonprofit to Sponsor School Children in Ghana
High school seniors have a lot on their plate as it is between planning for prom, studying for exams, and applying to universities. Yet for 18-year-old Max Owobu from the Bronx, his senior year has been interspersed with
The Planet
The ethical fashion brand championing change across the industry
With a focus on living wages, better fabrics and sustainability, one clothing brand is pushing to transform the fashion industry The post The ethical fashion brand championing change across the industry appeared first on
Community
Forget Recycling. What If We Could Compost or Reuse Everything?
Nora Griefahn’s office showcases her work better than words: The interior walls at the C2C LAB on a busy street in Berlin, Germany, are alive with lush, air-purifying plants; lamp shades have been grown from mycelium; in
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Good News in History September 28
39 years ago today, Star Trek: The Next Generation debuted on syndicated TV. Spanning 178 episodes over seven seasons, it starred English actor Patrick Stewart as Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the Starship Enterprise. It re
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Newly Identified Frog-like Creature Named by Student Scientists After Their Moms
A newly identified frog-like creature that lived before the dinosaurs has been named by the student scientists who discovered it—and they named it after their moms. Allison Sefcovic and Payton Kohlberg described the earl
Science Wins
Soft productivity is the smarter way to work, and here’s how to start
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There’s a kind of workday most of us know too well. You’re logged on early, you barely step away for lunch, and by 6 pm you’re not entirely sure what you have to show for it. The cale
Science Wins
Athens’ former airport is becoming Europe’s largest coastal urban park
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Two million square meters of former airport land in the southern suburbs of Athens are being converted into The Ellinikon Park. The park is designed to actively lower surrounding air
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CA Researchers Identify Odors That Repel Honeybees From Pesticides
In a win for pollinator conservation, researchers at the University of California, Riverside, have identified chemical compounds that can safely repel honey bees from pesticide-treated crops. The research offers a potent
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Archaeologists Risked Their Lives to Save 30,000 Treasures from ISIS Terrorists—New Study Shows How
A new study reveals how archaeologists risked their lives to save thousands of historic treasures from imminent destruction by Islamic State terrorists. They rescued around 30,000 “priceless” artifacts from the Deir ez-Z
Good News
New York City Collects $131 Million From DoorDash for Delivery Workers Unfairly Paid After $13 Billion Profit
The New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) announced a historic $131.5 million enforcement action against DoorDash for systematic violations of the local Delivery Worker Laws. The settlement wi
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Good News in History September 27
Happy 50th Birthday to Il Capitano—Francesco Totti. The most iconic Italian football forward of the 21st century, Totti spent a 25-year professional career in the red and orange on the AS Roma team—and is remembered as o
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Nike Founder Phil Knight Gives Away a Billion Dollars – the Largest Single Donation to a Public University
Phil Knight, who co-founded Nike alongside his former track coach at the University of Oregon (Bill Bowerman), has sprinted back to his alma mater with a huge philanthropic gift. And, when Mr. Knight called up the school
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Good News in History September 26
Happy 81st Birthday to singer-songwriter Bryan Ferry whose “elegant, seductive croon” and Mod stylings influenced a generation of glam art rock in the 70s. He was the lead singer and songwriter for Roxy Music, achieving
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Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Enlightenment for Rebels: Celebrating Our Wild and Sacred Earthly Selves, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrolog
Science Wins
Podcast Transcript September 25th, 2026— The tilcayo, cancer-sniffing dogs, and 8 more things going right
Episode Description: There’s a startup training dogs to detect cancer across seven types… and there’s over 90 percent accuracy across six hospitals. This week Arielle and Karissa also cover a wildcat species science just
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Nonprofit Puts Ex-Cons to Work with Paid Apprenticeships as Machinists
In a converted machine shop in southeastern San Diego, men who spent decades in prison are learning critical trade skills just weeks out of incarceration thanks to an inspirational nonprofit. Rise Up Industries has spent
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With $1 Billion, Nike Founder Phil Knight Makes Largest Single Donation to a Public University
Nike founder Phil Knight is no stranger to big philanthropic gifts, and the University of Oregon is no stranger to receiving them. Nonetheless, when Mr. Knight called up the school president earlier in September, it’s fa
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Africa Will Soon Have A New Tallest Building – But Probably Not Where You’d Imagine
By New Years Eve, Africa will see the completion of the continent’s newest tallest building—and probably not where you’d expect. Tour F will take the tallest tower title when its spire is installed, glowering 1,381 feet
Community
Nairobi Is Transforming Neglected Libraries Into Vibrant Civic Hubs
As Sunil Totti prepared for a job interview with an international tech firm recently, he was hit by a sudden anxiety: What if the electricity failed midway through? At home in Eastleigh, Nairobi, the power was notoriousl
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Good News in History September 25
Happy Birthday to Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars film series and turns 75 today. A prolific voice actor, he has portrayed characters in many animated TV shows, films, and video games. WATCH his p
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
Kosovo was cleared of landmines, Germany set a date for quitting oil, and a new species was discovered, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on Positive News .
Science Wins
Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Initiative is turning citizens into foresters
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For most of the past century, Ethiopia was losing its forests. From the turn of the millennium to 2025, the country shed 560,000 hectares, about 2,160 square miles, of tree cover to a
Science Wins
How book clubs and bedtime stories protect and build healthier brains
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM If the book on your nightstand has been gathering dust, here’s your reason to finally open it. A new review from Cambridge University researchers finds that reading for pleasure, whet
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Australian Biologists Livestream A Remote Desert Waterhole and All its Wild Visitors
1.2 miles from the nearest car park, down a track which few hikers ply, in a national park few will have the opportunity to visit, a lonely camera livestreams the comings and goings of a desert waterhole to the world. Fo
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Teens Set World Record for Most Sports Balls Recycled in One Day, Diverting 2,675 Pounds from Landfills
In March, GNN reported on the attempt by teens to set a Guinness World Record for the most racquet sport balls recycled in a single day, and we’re happy to tell you: they pulled it off. It took awhile, but last weekend a
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Millions Channeled to Irrigation Improvements, Leak Repairs Along Colorado River by Corporate Coalition
On Monday, e-commerce giant Amazon announced a $20 million investment to conserve water in the Colorado River Basin that’s currently stressed by a mixture of demand and historic drought. In launching the Colorado River B
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Portuguese Company Turns Cork Wood into Limitless Material, Even to Insulate Spacecraft
In Portugal, a 150-year-old business making corks is showing that it’s absolutely possible to teach an old dog new tricks. Having cultivated cork oak trees since the time of the monarchy, Corticeira Amorim have popped op
Community
How the Architecture of Sound Is Transforming Cities
Before Chris Downey lost his sight, he had a wind chime on his front porch. After he became blind, he realized that he could listen out for it to help him find his way home. But after a few years, his nextdoor neighbor a
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Good News in History September 24
72 years ago today, the London street scene was made all the more iconic with the introduction of the Routemaster 8 (RM8) from AEC—becoming the double-decker red bus so associated with the British capital. A pioneering d
Science Wins
From 2.6% to 97%: how South Korea eliminated food waste and what NYC can learn
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In Yeouido, Seoul, Seunghwan Hong spends less than a minute dropping off his food scraps. He taps a card, the lid opens, and the bin logs the weight. Whatever he throws in, he pays fo
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The tilcayo: new wildcat species discovered in Bolivia’s cloud forest
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For years, biologists cataloguing Bolivia’s Yungas cloud forest would note a small spotted cat and move on. Tiger cat, broadly speaking. The general profile fit and there was no obvio
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Bikes Outnumbered Cars on Scottish Rush Hour Route for the First Time Ever
A combination of e-bike rentals and segregated bike lanes has boosted cycling in the Scottish capital to the point that bikes outnumbered cars during a May morning rush hour for the first time in history. The data, analy
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Long-Lost Gertrude Abercrombie Painting Bought by a Bargain Hunter for $30 Could Fetch $250,000
At a Michigan estate sale in July, a “treasure hunter” noticed an undisturbed painting hanging in a hallway depicting a series of seashells on a dark grey and black field. More than the shells, it was the signature locat
The Planet
Life after… a diagnosis for panic disorder
Molly Lambert went viral discussing OCD, helping others recognise frightening experiences they’d been too scared to share The post Life after… a diagnosis for panic disorder appeared first on Positive News .
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Scientists Pioneer Chemical Bath Method to Restore Aging EV Batteries Without Breaking Them Down
What if instead of investing billions into battery recycling plants, you could simply take your aging electric vehicle battery back, give it a good scrub, and get all that lost range back? That’s near the mark of what Co
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Flagship Restoration Project in Brazil’s Cerrado Savannah Working to Restore 4.4 Million Acres
A Brazilian ecosystem-scale restoration program was honored at a recent UN conference as one of the 3 most ambitious and impactful currently underway around the world. The immediate instinct might be to assume the projec
Community
What We’re Reading: Singapore Is Paying People to Read
Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Tell us what you’ve been reading at info@reasonstobecheerful.world and we just might feature it here. Read receipts We hear it over
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Good News in History September 23
165 years ago today, Robert Bosch, founder of the corporation Robert Bosch GmbH, was born in Ulm. One of the most important German industrialists of the 19th and 20th centuries, Bosch and the engineers at his company pio
Science Wins
How Reefvive is rebuilding coral reefs from discarded oyster shells
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Most artificial reef structures are built from concrete. Concrete is smooth, and smooth surfaces give young coral little to grip. A team of students at National Taiwan Normal Universi
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Pomegranates and berries produce a gut metabolite that may improve IBD outcomes
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Gut bacteria that break down compounds in pomegranates, walnuts, and berries produce a metabolite called urolithin A. New research from the University of Louisville shows this compoun
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Exceptional Detection Rates of Bladder Cancer Recorded in Study of Simple, Yet State-of-the-Art Test
An observational study in the UK has just produced substantially positive results for a new, non-invasive, genetic urine test for bladder cancer. Demonstrating extremely high accuracy for negatively diagnosing bladder ca
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This Curious Bird Had Never Been Seen Before, and its Discovery Changed Ecuador–Perhaps Forever
In the late 1990s, a group of scientists were birdwatching in a remote forest in Ecuador when they heard a call like no other. Following the mysterious avian siren, they saw a fairly large bird colored grey, black, and b
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135,000 Shelter Pets Found Forever Homes in August Thanks to NBC’s Annual Adopt-a-thon
It’s been a banner year for the annual campaign run by NBC and its parent company Universal to encourage shelter pet adoption nationwide, with 135,000 dogs, cats, and more taken home from shelters. Running from July to S
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Prisoners Prove Unlikely Heroes to Monarch Butterflies Thanks to Wisconsin Correctional Program
Wisconsin prison inmates have been offered a unique way to give back to their community by raising monarch butterflies from the inside. Set up at Redgranite Correctional Institute (RGCI), the idea first came to the progr
The Planet
Winners of Bird Photographer of the Year announced
The winners of Bird Photographer of the Year 2026 have been revealed The post Winners of Bird Photographer of the Year announced appeared first on Positive News .
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Good News in History September 22
25 years ago today, 35 American TV networks and cable channels simultaneously aired ‘A Tribute to Heroes’, a live commercial-free benefit concert and telethon organized to raise money for victims and their families– espe
Science Wins
From fire starters to compost: what to do with dryer lint
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM If you clean your dryer’s lint trap after every load, you end up with a soft little cloud of fiber in your hand pretty regularly. Most people drop it straight in the trash, and that i
Science Wins
Mexico’s desert ecosystem is healing months after bison reintroduction
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The 200-year absence of bison from Mexico’s Chihuahuan Desert left a gap that most people stopped noticing. Grass accumulated unchecked, soil compacted, fire risk crept upward. Wildli
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New AI Model Can Detect Heart Disease Markers in Simple Electrocardiogram Readings–a Breakthrough
Artificial intelligence has brought about a revolution in medical screening practices, with the technology able to make detections across hundreds of scans in seconds which can be forwarded to trained pairs of human eyes
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Rural French Mayors Rally to Save Their Local Cafe-Bistro, and Help Reverse National Trend
With the help of the mayor and local council, a small town in Burgundy has saved its local cafe-bistro, what’s been described as the “heart” of the rural French economy and society. Au Bon Accueil, located in the commune
Community
Why Great Plains Ranchers Are Setting Fire to Their Own Land
Smoke hangs thick over southern Oklahoma’s Arbuckle Mountains as flames lick through prairie grass toward a stand of eastern red cedar trees. To many, the scene would look like a disaster in the making. But to father-son
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Korean Drone Rescue Program Helps Mozambique Achieve Zero Fatalities During Worst Flood in Decades
In January, a community in northern Mozambique experienced one of its worst floods in decades, yet the raging waters failed to claim a single life. This miracle was made possible thanks to a small squadron of drones and
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Historic Philanthropic Gift Will Expand Veterinary Care Access to Millions of Americans and Their Pets
Hoping to allow millions of pet owners to access critical veterinary care beyond their budgets, a philanthropic organization has announced a groundbreaking $250 million commitment over the next 5 years The initiative rep
The Planet
The race to get more young people in the UK into work, education or training
The UK has one of the highest NEET rates for young adults in Europe. New figures offer some encouragement The post The race to get more young people in the UK into work, education or training appeared first on Positive N
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Good News in History September 21
45 years ago today, Sandra Day O’Connor was sworn in as the first female Supreme Court Justice. She was approved in the Senate 99-0, with one Montana Senator being absent from who vote, who later sent her a copy of A Riv
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Cavemen Used Mammoth Tusk Patterns to Create Unique Art, Reveals New Research
[Stephen Beech | SWNS news] Cavemen used mammoth tusk patterns to create unique art, reveals new research. Intricate designs engraved on the surface of 18,000-year-old female figurines carved from mammoth ivory were insp
Science Wins
Can dogs sniff out cancer? New AI study shows promise
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A company in India is reporting more than 90 percent accuracy in detecting seven types of cancer from breath samples. The diagnostic engine is artificial intelligence, trained on data
Science Wins
How revisiting old memories can build real self-esteem
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Think about a memory that still makes you wince. Maybe it is the time you said something embarrassing in front of people you wanted to impress, or the moment you felt out of place whi
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Couple Fosters 59 Dogs in Retirement: ‘We love to get them out of the kennels’
Meet the British couple who spent the last 15 years fostering 59 dogs—with no plans of stopping. While working from home and designing electronics, Nicole and Gary Wordsworth have been taking in pups from the Battersea D
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165-Mile Bike Trail Through Minnesota Finally Completed After 30 years, One of the Longest in America
After more than 30 years of planning, construction, and fundraising, a paved bike trail ambling through 165 miles of Minnesota beauty has officially been completed—and now becomes one of the longest paved cycling trails
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Good News in History September 20
46 years ago today, Blizzard of Ozz, the debut solo album of the great and lately deceased metal singer Ozzy Osbourne, was released to moderate reviews and success. However it grew to become a staple of the genre, and wa
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New York City is Putting ‘The Park’ Back in Park Avenue – And Adding a Protected Bike Lane (LOOK)
Until the 1920s Park Avenue in Manhattan actually park running through it. Now, New York City has unveiled a new plan for transforming Park Avenue back into its original natural character, adding trees, benches, and a pr
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Fox Left For Dead After Being Run Over is Now Recovering Thanks to Swimming Lessons
A fox cub that was left for dead after being hit by a car is making a miracle recovery thanks to hydrotherapy swimming sessions. The young kit, aptly named Chance, was reportedly stuck for days with its back legs unable
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Chesapeake Bay Blue Crab Numbers See Encouraging Bounceback in New Survey
Conservationists working to turn the tide on declining numbers of blue crabs in the Chesapeake Bay, found some good news in their latest field surveys. After years of worryingly low numbers, the population appears to be
Good News
Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Enlightenment for Rebels: Celebrating Our Wild and Sacred Earthly Selves, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrolog
Good News
Good News in History September 19
51 years ago today, Fawlty Towers premiered on the BBC. John Cleese boldly stepped out into the situational comedy scene without the support of his legendary troupe, Monty Python, and created what the BBC considers “the
Good News
Company’s Textile Dyes Work Through Magnetism, Cutting Fashion’s Water-Use, Energy, and Pollution
Hoping to tackle the 50% of textile emissions associated with the dyeing process, a vaunted French startup has created non-toxic dyes that require substantially less water to activate and last just as long. Additionally,
Science Wins
Podcast Transcript September 18th, 2026— A 450-year map mistake gets corrected by 164 countries, plus nine more solutions
Episode Description: Most world maps show Greenland and Africa as roughly the same size… which is kind of unbelievable considering Africa is 14 times larger! This error has been built into classrooms, boardrooms, and ins
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Unsealed for the First Time, This 600-yo Tomb in Peru Was Just Declared the ‘Discovery of the Decade’
An unspoiled, undiscovered tomb containing the remains of an elite society belong to a major Andean civilization has been uncovered in Peru. Located in the UNESCO World Heritage-listed site of Chan Chan, inside a palatia
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Cataract Surgery Restores Sight for 54-Year-Old Chimpanzee–the First Such Procedure at Chimp Haven
After becoming completely blind from cataracts, a 54-year-old chimpanzee named Pierre is seeing again following a successful surgery at Chimp Haven, the world’s largest chimpanzee sanctuary. The procedure, the first cata
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New Cat Species Identified for the First Time in Over 100 Years–Meet the Tilcayo
In a story that proves ‘explorer’ is still a good answer to the question “what do you want to be when you grow up?” a whole new cat species has been identified for the first time in over 100 years. Found in Bolivia, the
Community
In Remote Alaska, the Promise and Limits of Vertical Farming
This story was originally published by Civil Eats. The town of Skagway, in southeast Alaska, is home to approximately 1,000 year-round residents and hosts more than 1.3 million summer cruise ship passengers. Isolated in
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Good News in History, September 18
188 years ago today, the Anti-Corn Law League was established in England by the economics-savvy liberals who understood that protectionism is immoral and useless in benefiting the economy. The League, led by Richard Cobd
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
EU to ban social media for kids, England approves life-extending cancer drug, and reading linked to better health, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on Positive News
Science Wins
Berlin’s REWE supermarket: the grocery store with a working rooftop farm
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The lettuce in REWE’s Lankwitz store in Berlin has had a short morning. Grown on the rooftop farm directly above, cut, packaged by hand, and carried downstairs before most shoppers wa
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Team Sequesters Plastic and Makes New Products Before it Breaks Down in Environment
In central California’s city of San Carlos, recycling plastics is a family affair. Nick Schick and his parents, David and Andrea, work exclusively with products made from hard-to-recycle plastic polymers called thermopla
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Scientists Solve Mystery Behind Snowfall That Dropped 695 Billion Tons of Ice on Antarctica
A warming pool of tropical ocean water has been shown to be the cause of immense snowstorms over East Antarctica which contributed to a net gain of 695 billion tons of ice between 2021 and 2023. To put that tonnage into
Community
The World Is Getting Noisier — But We Can Change That
I spent years immersed in noise. Sometimes it was deafeningly loud, like the crescendo of horns and two-stroke motorcycles during rush hour in Mumbai. Other times it was simply maddening, like the parade of big-rig truck
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Chinese Scientists Develop New Oil Refining Method That Cuts Energy Use by 90%
Rather than bringing crude oil to boiling point over and over again as is done in traditional distillation refining, Chinese scientists have found a way to separate the mixture molecule by molecule at room temperature, c
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Students Win James Dyson Award for Device That Screens Students for Concussions in Just 60 Seconds
A trio of students at Harvard University have invented a low-cost, eye-tracking headset designed to help schools quickly screen child athletes for possible concussions. The invention takes just 2 to 3 minutes to screen f
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Good News in History September 17
Happy 41st birthday to The Great 8, Alexander Ovechkin. Playing left wing for the Washington Capitals since 2004, he is quite simply among the greatest goal scorers in the history of ice hockey. He has won the Hart Memor
The Planet
51 ways to get the planet tipping the right way
Researchers have identified 51 environmental solutions to save the planet. Here are five of the most promising The post 51 ways to get the planet tipping the right way appeared first on Positive News .
Science Wins
8 low-cost hobbies that add hours of joy to your week
Image alt text: Hands carefully pressing colorful flowers between the pages of an open book on a wooden table surrounded by dried botanicals and greenery Research has put a number on the value of a good hobby: eight hour
Science Wins
Travel scams have gotten harder to spot. Here’s what changed and what to watch for.
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The old cues for spotting a scam are becoming unreliable. Misspelled words, strange formatting, unfamiliar sender names, requests that arrive completely out of nowhere: those signals
Science Wins
The world’s largest battery-electric ferry just crossed an ocean
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In 2019, a South American transport company ordered a diesel ferry. By the time it launched six years later, it had become the largest electric vehicle ever built, of any kind, on lan
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Nashville Singer Becomes Local Celebrity Rescuing Foxes and Saving Them from Mange
A Nashville singer-songwriter has become a star—but not because of his guitar playing. Jerry Vandiver, whose songs have been recorded by country stars like Tim McGraw, moonlights as a volunteer hero to the local red fox
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Scientists Determine Australia’s Vast Red Deserts Could Fuel a Hydrogen-Powered Energy Revolution
Scientists have revealed that Australia may hold the key to generating ample green energy while creating a major export industry, and that it’s buried underneath their feet. The breakthrough centers on magnetite, a miner
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Mexico Reintroduced Bison into Precious Desert Ecosystem After Century-Long Absence
A series of reintroductions have seen the bison return to a landscape in Mexico’s Chihuahua Desert after a 200 year absence. Having acted as ecosystem anchors for the vegetation is this vital biosphere reserve for millen
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10 Pounds of Viking Silver Found in Finland Extend Incredible Year for Scandinavian Treasure Hunts
Metal detectors have had a banner year in Scandinavia, where records for the largest recovered Viking silver hoards have been made in Norway, Denmark, and now Finland. A man found two large hoards of silver in southern F
Community
What We’re Reading: 20,000 Salmon Return to the Klamath River
Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Tell us what you’ve been reading at info@reasonstobecheerful.world and we just might feature it here. Swimming upstream 20,000: Tha
The Planet
What happened when I stopped filling the silence
Angela Garwood swapped conversation for stillness at a device-free silent retreat, hoping to discover what lies beneath the noise The post What happened when I stopped filling the silence appeared first on Positive News
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Good News in History September 16
60 years ago today, the Metropolitan Opera House opened at the Lincoln Center on Broadway and Lincoln Square on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York City. Back then, it opened its doors and its curtains for the fir
Science Wins
Baked Bites: how Frisco students turned a passion for baking into a force for community change
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM At a Baked Bites pop-up in Frisco, Texas, the transaction looks simple: you place a pre-order, you pick up a homemade cookie. Buried inside that small exchange, though, is something m
Science Wins
The world’s first solar ambulance just completed its first real-world test in rural Kenya
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The question most ambulances are designed to answer is how fast a patient can reach a hospital. In the Narok region of Kenya, where long distances and unreliable electricity make qual
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Christian Bale Opens Long-Dreamed of Foster Care Village Aimed at Keeping Siblings Together
The personal passion project of Hollywood A-lister Christian Bale has finally come to fruition, as the Welsh actor cut the ribbon on a children’s foster care village in Palmdale, California. Called Together California, t
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$1,000 Bonus for Every Year at the Company: Casino Employees Shocked at Company’s 50th Anniversary
When thousands of employees at Station Casinos arrived at one of the company’s resorts to celebrate its 50th anniversary, they hadn’t a clue what was about to happen. They were going to hit the jackpot. In a stunning dis
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UK Runner Makes Improbable Comeback to Conquer the Grueling Trail Run That Nearly Killed Him
A runner whose improbable resurrection from the frigid fells of north England saw his heart stopped for hours, has returned to conquer the athletic challenge that nearly claimed his life. Tommy Price suffered cardiac arr
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Wind Turbines Provide Half of Rancher’s Income Since He Decided to Invite Them on His Land
In 2006, the largest wind power project in Kansas was turned on among the Flint Hills. Today, the royalties it has generated for rancher Peter Ferrell are allowing him to pass the farm down to his children. The 50 turbin
The Planet
What if giving away a day’s revenue was the best day of your year?
Twenty-five years on from 9/11, BGC Group has managed to turn tragedy into a day with purpose The post What if giving away a day’s revenue was the best day of your year? appeared first on Positive News .
Community
How Afghan Women Are Rebuilding Reproductive Health Care
In Helmand province in southern Afghanistan, Ram Bibi, a 30-year-old mother now pregnant with her sixth child, counts herself as one of the lucky ones. She gets regular prenatal checkups at the Qari Safed family health h
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Good News in History September 15
Many happy returns to a brilliant Brit, Tom Hardy, who turns 49 years old today. The London actor got his start in Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down, and preceded along a course of action and adventure films to rival any ac
Science Wins
Elementic’s MO6 is the building material claiming to lock away carbon for thousands of years
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Lignin is the part of wood that paper mills and timber companies tend to get rid of. It comes off as a byproduct when wood is processed, resists most conventional uses, and usually en
Science Wins
The Mercator map has distorted Africa’s size for 450 years. The UN just voted to replace it.
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM On most world maps hanging in classrooms, conference rooms, and government offices around the world, Greenland and Africa look roughly the same size. The reality is that they are not.
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Athens Is Turning its Old Airport into One of Europe’s Largest Parks
A former Athens airport site is set to host one of the continent’s most ambitious urban greening projects. Called the Ellinikon Park, it won’t only add an unforgettable attraction to the birthplace of Democracy, but also
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Feather Preserved in Dinosaur Dung Could Explain Why Birds Survived Mass Extinction
A feather preserved inside dinosaur dung could help explain why birds survived the mass extinction that wiped out most life on Earth. Specifically, it could explain whether it prepared a certain lineage of birds to weath
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Following Timor-Leste’s Triumph, All of Southeast Asia Has Eliminated Trachoma
The World Health Organization (WHO) recently announced it has certified Timor-Leste as having eliminated trachoma as a public health problem. The leading infectious cause of blindness, the achievement on the island natio
The Planet
How ‘housing first’ is helping people leave rough sleeping behind
A housing model that gives people a permanent home before asking them to tackle their other problems has achieved striking results The post How ‘housing first’ is helping people leave rough sleeping behind appeared first
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Former Industrial Ground Goes from Dump to Diversity and Hosts 64% of UK’s Black-Necked Grebes
A conservation charity in the UK has turned what was once a dumping ground for material dug up during canal dredging into a nesting habitat for two-thirds of the UK’s black-necked grebes. These beautiful waterfowl with t
Community
With Adapted Sailing, the Sea Is for Everyone
César Maquieira has always loved the sea. Born and raised in the northwest of Spain, much of which is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, he would for years regularly go fishing and on boat trips, and he dabbled in scuba div
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Good News in History September 14
41 years ago today, the Penang Bridge officially opened connecting the Malay Peninsula with the island of Penang. Stretching 5.2 miles across the Penang Strait, it’s the second-longest bridge over water in Malaysia. Arch
Science Wins
The gardening window most people miss: late summer and early fall weed control
Image alt text: Close-up of dandelion seed heads and crabgrass growing between garden bed plants in late summer A single dandelion, left to finish its summer in the garden, can drop thousands of seeds. Those seeds can li
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How Colombia’s outgoing president protected 42% of the country’s Amazon from mining
Image alt text: Dense green Amazon rainforest canopy photographed from above in Colombia with a winding river below On August 4, 2026, three days before he left office, Colombian President Gustavo Petro signed a resoluti
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She ‘Asked for a Sign’ and Suddenly a Kingfisher Darts Up and Sits in Her Hand for 10 Minutes
A woman in England had just “asked for a sign” when a kingfisher streaked in, and even landed on her hand—staying there for ten minutes. “I had just asked for a sign, then just moments later this happened,” Laura O’Brien
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Researchers Use Math to Ensure a Wordle Win 99% of the Time
Millions of people playing their daily Wordle games will be eager to hear about this new research. Using information theory, the team of researchers from Binghamton University and State University of New York has develop
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Elephants Can Think Before They Act and Resist Impulsive Behavior, Shows Study
Elephants can think before they act, as well as resist impulsive behavior, reveals new research that adds to growing evidence of elephants possessing sophisticated cognitive skills. Experiments at the National Elephant I
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Good News in History September 13
Happy 75th Birthday to actor-comedian Jean Smart, the brilliant TV star and winner of 7 Emmys, 3 Golden Globes and many other awards for her lovable characters in Designing Women, Frasier, and Hacks. Check out her trophy
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The Blackout of ‘65 Left 800K Trapped in NYC Subway – 6 Hours Later People Were Inspired by Each Other
In November of 1965 a great blackout spread across the northeastern United States and parts of Canada. 30 million people were affected and Lynn Lowin was one of them. Now in her senior years, she wanted to finally tell h
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Massive Footprints Reveal First Ever Adult T Rex Trackway, a 66-Million-Year-old Walk Through North Dakota
Scientists have confirmed the discovery of the first adult T. rex trackway, providing new insights into how this emblematic predator moved. While a myriad of isolated footprints made by adults in the T. rex species have
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Homeless Guy Got Famous Playing Amazing Piano in a Church–Now He’s Raised $50K for Charity
A homeless man who was recorded playing piano in a church on a cold January night says his whole life has turned around, in the two years since his performance went viral. Rhys Wynne-Jones had been homeless for a decade
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Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicat
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Good News in History September 12
2,516 years ago today was one of two days in the ancient era of world history that, if events had gone a different way, Western Civilization as we know it may never have sprouted. Athenian citizen soldiers, demonstrating
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First Permit to Clean Up Old Mine Waste Issued for WA State Under 2024 ‘Good Samaritan Act’
The US Environmental Protection Agency has approved the first permit under the its new “Good Samaritan” law to remediate abandoned mine workings. The permit has been issued to Trout Unlimited, a fishing and sportsmen foc
Science Wins
Podcast Transcript September 11th, 2026— NYC bans AI for 500,000 students, and seven other solutions
Episode Description: An approach to treating degenerative blindness has been in development for more than ten years across research institutions in Spain. The result is not a surgery, a gene therapy, or an implant. It is
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Hotel Staff Give Girl’s Lost Plushie the VIP Treatment Before Sending Her Home with a Note (LOOK)
A Sicilian hotel recently went above and beyond the call of the reception bell in reuniting a young woman with a cherished childhood stuffed animal. Visiting the Four Seasons in Taormina recently was a mother and her dau
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Luxurious Bath Complex Used by Roman Emperor Found in Serbia
From Serbia comes the story of a technically-impressive and luxurious Roman bath complex discovered for the first time. Containing three different bathing pools and a sauna, it was designed for Emperor Maximinus Daza, wh
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Kenyan Startup Makes Robotic Hands That Translate Teacher’s Voice into Signs for Deaf Students
In Kenya, an entrepreneur has created a robotic hand that can translate a teacher’s voice into sign language for deaf students. Some 300,000 children in Kenya are either deaf or hearing impaired, and not only are just a
Community
‘We Held Each Other Up’
This week in our New York City office, we found ourselves talking about what we remembered from 25 years ago: the darkness, the sadness — and the ways people cared for one another. Our managing director, Rebecca Faulkner
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Good News in History, September 11
65 years ago today, the World Wildlife Fund was formed to save diverse species across the planet. With 35 million supporters and offices in nearly 100 countries, WWF has helped establish protected areas like the Galapago
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
Solutions to save the planet, protecting childhood from algorithms, and the new world map, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on Positive News .
Science Wins
Heart failure and valve disease spotted in seconds by new AI ECG tool
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In a trial of 67,000 patients, an AI tool identified heart failure in up to 81 percent of cases and heart valve disease in up to 90 percent, all from a standard electrocardiogram (ECG
Science Wins
How offshore wind foundations became accidental reef habitat
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM When engineers drove 54 steel cylinders into the sandy seafloor southeast of Long Island to anchor Empire Wind 1’s turbines, the goal was simple: keep 810 megawatts of generating capa
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Humanity’s 3rd Visit to Mercury Kicks Off with the Successful Arrival of BepiColombo Mission
Reprinted with permission from World at Large. On September 3rd, the European Space Agency marked the successful arrival of its BepiColombo mission to Mercury, just the third spacecraft to ever visit our solar system’s i
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A Hungry Cleaning Lady Bit into an Apple and Solved the Case of Legendary Diamond Heist
It’s a beautiful stone no, the Grand Condé diamond? Its presence in the public eye was almost lost 100 years ago, but thanks—of all people—to a hungry cleaning lady, it can still be part of new exhibitions like the one u
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91-yo ‘Greybeard’ Becomes Oldest Person to Hike the Appalachian Trial After 359 Days and 71 Falls
Not long ago on a lonely peak in Maine, a 91-year-old grey-bearded man stood taking in the sights, as he observed the sensation of success that came with being the oldest person to complete a hike along the famous Appala
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Indie Comic Creator Sells Out Thanks to Viral Visit from Reviewer Who Stopped When Others Didn’t
It’s so tempting to dismiss social media as all doom scrolling through AI-generated slop and political arguments, but it also just turbo boosted this young comic book author’s career. @slow_comics has accumulated 40K fol
Community
The ‘National Park’ That Stretches From Coast to Coast
On Doug Tallamy’s 10-acre property in rural Pennsylvania, the evidence arrives on wings. Wood thrushes now nest in shrubs that were once cut for hay. Luna moths — emerald-green giants that had become increasingly rare —
The Planet
Celebrating 10 years of the Nikon Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards
Ten years of Comedy Wildlife Photography is brought to life in a new immersive experience in London this autumn The post Celebrating 10 years of the Nikon Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards appeared first on Positive New
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Good News in History, September 10
35 years ago today, Nirvana’s single “Smells Like Teen Spirit” was released in the US. The unexpected success of the Seattle band’s song propelled their second LP Nevermind to the top of the charts—an event often marked
Science Wins
New heart attack guidelines correct decades of under-diagnosis in women
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The world’s four leading cardiovascular health organizations just agreed on a universal heart attack definition for the first time. The announcement came at the European Society of Ca
Science Wins
NYC schools issue the country’s broadest AI ban, covering pre-K through eighth grade
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM New York City Public Schools, the nation’s largest school district, is banning generative AI for all students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade for the 2026-2027 school year. M
Bringing Our Kids Back to Just Schools
We know the tools for building transformative schools, but they must be in the hands of those who will most benefit from such a transformation.
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A ‘Living Roof’ is Growing Atop Ford’s Largest Factory–Saving Energy and Boosting Birds
The year was 1915, and before Henry Ford decided to turn a 2,000 acre stretch of land along the Rogue River into one of America’s largest manufacturing centers, he thought of turning it into a bird sanctuary. In a strang
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Arthritis Drug Demonstrates Substantial Hair Regrowth in 1,400 Alopecia Patients
An arthritis drug of all things was recently found in a study to restore up to 100% of hair in patients with severe alopecia. Around 2% of the world population live with alopecia areata, an autoimmune disorder where the
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Scientists Recreated Chirps of Jurassic Insects, Simulating a 165 Million-yo Soundscape (Listen)
It wasn’t just the roars of the dinosaurs that made up the soundscape of the animal world during the Jurassic period. Crickets and grasshoppers communicated through a variety of songs and high-pitched sounds, some of whi
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Yard Work Reveals Largest Trove of Viking Silver Ever Discovered in Denmark
When a man in Denmark broke ground in his backyard on home improvement work, it was a new terrace that he was looking forward to seeing at the end of the sweaty job. Yet merely half an hour had passed when he realized th
The Planet
The right to play: displaced by conflict
With nearly 50 million children displaced by conflict, charities are finding ways to give young people something often lost in war: the chance to play The post The right to play: displaced by conflict appeared first on P
Community
What We’re Reading: What If You Could Opt Out of Algorithms?
Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Tell us what you’ve been reading at info@reasonstobecheerful.world and we just might feature it here. Safe scrolling In December, A
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Good News in History, September 9
On this day in history, two masters of early ocean exploration returned to their prospective homes—Vasco da Gama 527 years ago to Lisbon, and Thomas Cavendish 438 years ago to Plymouth. The former had chartered the first
Science Wins
A simpler path to treating degenerative blindness: photoswitchable eye drops
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Scientists at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia developed light-activated compounds that restored light perception and visually guided behavior in blind animal models, wit
Science Wins
Beyond the thrift store: where your donations do more good
THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM When you’re decluttering, the thrift store is the obvious first move. Drop it off, and it’s done. But a lot of what people donate there sits on a rack for weeks and then gets tossed anyw
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FDA Immediately Approves Drug That’s Doubling Lifespan for Late Pancreatic Cancer Patients
Pancreatic cancer has long been a death sentence, and a rapid one at that, but a new two-a-day pill has seen patients live twice as long even after chemotherapy fails. “Surviving” cancer refers to living more than 5 year
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Armless Racing Driver Hits 110 mph Steering with His Feet–Aims to Make History at Le Mans
Meet the world’s only armless racing driver who uses his feet to steer. 23-year-old Callum Smith was born without arms but has already handled speeds of more than 110 mph on track. Smith just signed his first driver cont
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EMT Ran 1.5 Miles up 1,000 Feet of Elevation in 31 Minutes to Get Blood Transfusion for Injured Climber
Experienced rock climber and father Jacob Gregory was dying. Experienced rock climber and EMT Will Soper wasn’t going to let that happen. Gregory had fallen 20 feet down a rock face on North Carolina’s Shortoff Mountain,
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S. Carolina Aquarium Celebrates ‘Baby Boom’ of Critically-Endangered Penguin Chicks
5 baby penguins from a species considered Critically-Endangered have hatched at an aquarium down in South Carolina. The 5 join 2 that hatched in May, and together make up a record nesting season for the organization’s re
The Planet
They’re resilient, low-effort and beautiful: how to plant a rubble garden
Forward-thinking gardeners are using leftover builders’ waste to create gardens that are drought-tolerant and full of biodiversity The post They’re resilient, low-effort and beautiful: how to plant a rubble garden appear
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Good News in History, September 8
60 years ago, the first episode of Star Trek, featuring “Space: the final frontier” and the USS Enterprise, began its three-year mission of exploration on TV screens across America. The science-fiction television show cr
Science Wins
The neuroscience of motivation: what orexin neurons reveal about staying the course
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Researchers at Nagoya University identified orexin-producing neurons as the brain’s apparent mechanism for deciding whether a reward is worth pursuing. Published in the Proceedings of
Science Wins
At-home urine test spots bladder cancer in nine of ten cases
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In an NHS trial of nearly 1,000 patients across seven hospitals in England and Scotland, an at-home urine test detected 92 percent of bladder cancer cases. When the result came back n
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22-yo with Down Syndrome Becomes Certified Fitness Instructor, Leads Class of 60 at Local Gym
A 22-year-old Utahan with Down Syndrome has just become a certified fitness instructor for the popular fitness program UpBeat Barre. UpBeat Barre instructor and co-owner of VASA Fitness in Kaysville, Jane Johnson, said s
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Firm Buys Texas Coal Plant to Leverage its Grid Connections for New Massive Solar Project
Coal power has a huge role still to play in the American energy mix—by turning over its substantial grid infrastructure to renewable energy projects. Energy investment firm Panamint is putting up $1.7 billion to build Bi
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Fitted with a Berlin Heart, Little Macs Is ‘Absolutely Thriving’ While He Waits for a Heart Transplant
From the UK comes the story of a baby called Macs, who seemed poised for final-stage heart failure, but who has been saved by a device called a Berlin Heart. The only device of its kind available for babies and children
Good News
Chance Encounter Between 2 Indiana Graduates Rescues Former College Ball Star from Homelessness
See that red backpack there? Sampson James used it to carry around his meager possessions during a stint of homelessness. Little did James know at the time this photo was taken, however, that it was also carrying around
The Planet
We’re likely to breach 1.5C. What happens next is still in our hands
Crossing the climate threshold now looks unavoidable, but temperatures are still shaped by the choices we make now The post We’re likely to breach 1.5C. What happens next is still in our hands appeared first on Positive
Community
Beavers Are Having a Moment
Over the last 20 years, Oregon’s wilderness has suffered big time. Salmon have disappeared, wildfires have scoured the hills and drought has parched once-fertile soils. Years of small fixes — a little forest thinning her
Good News
Good News in History, September 7
90 years ago today, Buddy Holly was born into poverty in a musical family in Lubbock, Texas. In just 18 months, from his first #1 hit song, That’ll Be The Day, to when he died in a tragic plane crash at age 22, the proli
Good News
Teen Discovers Coconut Fungi Can Filter Plastic and Sunscreen From Sea—And Wins Science Fair
An East Honolulu high school student discovered a fungi in coconut husks that could clean up plastics and sunscreen from the ocean—and her won multiple awards at the Hawaiʻi State Science & Engineering Fair. Vera Wang, a
Good News
Astronomers Create Gallery of 16 ‘Cosmic Gems’ to Show Variety of Shapes a Galaxy Can Be
Space scientists have put together a photo gallery of ‘cosmic gems’ to showcase the variety of sizes, shapes, and high-energy features of distant galaxies. Astronomers put galaxies into three main categories: spirals lik
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Debt-Stricken Single Mom Pays Off $25K Debt in 5 Months by Decluttering 410 Items
A British mom who racked up £23,000 in debt ($31K) has paid back $25,000 (£19,000) in just five months by decluttering and selling 410 household items on Vinted, eBay, and Facebook Marketplace. 32-year-old Ellie says her
Good News
Good News in History, September 6
31 years ago today, Cal Ripken Jr. broke Lou Gehrig’s baseball record when he played in his 2,131st consecutive game. Once considered a near-impossible feat, “the streak,” which continued for 2,632 games, earned Cal the
Good News
New Gym in Paris Helps Homeless Folks Improve Their Health And Habits–Without Leaving the Shelter
A gym equipment company from Finland is bringing physical fitness to the homeless community of Paris. Inactivity is a growing public health concern, but especially in lower income communities. To address this challenge,
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Red Sea Coral Dying From Heat Stress is Being Revived With Probiotics
Coral dying from heat stress has been revived after scientists successfully applied probiotic and post-biotic treatments in open seas for the the first time. Although probiotics have previously been shown to rehabilitate
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12 Golden Puppies in One Litter Reunite With Mom On First Birthday: ‘It turned into a real extended family’
A litter of 12 unexpected puppies were reunited with their golden mom and dad to celebrate their first birthday as a family. The humans, crucial to this dog family, were also there, reminiscing about when sister Rhian wa
Good News
Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicat
Good News
Good News in History, September 5
252 years ago today, the First Continental Congress was organized in Carpenter’s Hall, Philadelphia, after the British Navy implemented a blockade of Boston Harbor and the Parliament of Great Britain passed the punitive
Good News
Endangered Salmon Return to California Rivers in Incredible Numbers: ‘Everybody’s just ecstatic’
A record 30,000 coho salmon returned to central California rivers last season—up 10x from an average of 3,000 over the last decade—and double the total of last season. Running up the rivers which empty into the Mendocino
Science Wins
Podcast Transcript September 4th, 2026— AI music banned from Australia’s charts, Roman telescope launches, a biodegradable balloon and much more!
Episode Description: Arielle and Karissa are reunited after a few weeks apart, covering a wide range of solutions this episode: a new telescope that survived two White House cancellation attempts, the decade-long trial t
Good News
Neighbors Get Swept Up in Man’s Viral Journey to Clean a NYC Street Block Every Day for 100 Days
In New York City, something magical has happened along the sidewalk in Washington Heights that can best be described in a metaphor. In the East, the lotus is not only a food source, an ornamental, and a religious symbol,
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A Terrier Rescued After Spending 2 Days Underground Lost in a Badger Warren
A very English story of peril and rescue comes to us now from Nottinghamshire, where a man’s terrier was stuck underground for 2 days after getting lost in a badger warren. Cello is a 6-year-old parson Russell terrier, a
Good News
After 30 Years of Estranged Trains, Sweden and Finland Re-Connect Their Railway Lines
Early on a Monday morning in early August, a train rumbled across a thawed out Arctic landscape in Finland before screeching to a halt at its final destination at a border crossing with Sweden. It may sound ordinary for
Community
The Spark: Your Laundromat Could Be a Library
Welcome back to The Spark, our monthly celebration of how people just like you are creating positive change, one meaningful step at a time. The Spark is generously supported by Laura Rice. Sign up to Reasons to be Cheerf
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Good News in History, September 4
Happy 64th Birthday to the Japanese Nobel laureate, Sinya Yamanaka, whose pioneering work in the science of stem cells led him to identify the “Yamanaka Factors”— 4 different genetic transcription factors that he used to
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
A ‘superhuman’ tool to spot heart disease, France slows fast fashion, and a species comes back from the brink, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on Positive News .
Science Wins
Why managers struggle with coaching and what the research says to do instead
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Ask any organization whether they invest in coaching, and you’ll almost certainly get a yes. It’s a stated priority, a line item in leadership development budgets, a topic in manageme
Science Wins
Statins reduce heart attack risk in healthy adults over 70, decade-long trial confirms
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A decade-long clinical trial of nearly 10,000 adults aged 70 and over has found that daily statins reduce the risk of a first major cardiac event by 30 percent, with no significant in
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Indian Home Stays Cool Without A/C Through Clever Clay Architecture
Every summer it seems there’s a part of the world experiencing record temperatures, so perhaps it’s time for architects to design buildings designed to resist heat as easily as possible. GNN has reported, mostly in Asia,
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Survey Finds Blackbirds to Have the Most Beautiful Songs in the Avian World–Science Explains Why
The next time you hear a blackbird singing in the dead of night, know that you’re listening to the most pleasant song in the world. What the bird lacks in dressage it makes up for in repertoire, a new survey and study fr
Good News
3 Million Oysters Eaten by New Yorkers Are Rebuilding the City’s Reefs
On Governor’s Island in New York City, a nonprofit is turning wasted oyster shells into new oyster reefs that filter pollutants from the harbor, absorb wave energy, and supply the city’s restaurant industry. Called the B
Good News
Common Supplement Rivals Antibiotics for Severe Gum Disease When Taken with Low-Dose Aspirin
A combination of omega-3 and low-dose aspirin performed about as well as antibiotics in a yearlong study of people with severe gum disease, or periodontitis. It raises the possibility of an alternative treatment for some
The Planet
Richard E. Grant fronts Second Hand September as Britons try to buy fewer clothes
The actor is helping launch Oxfam’s annual secondhand fashion campaign, as research finds 57% of UK adults tried to buy less clothing in the past year The post Richard E. Grant fronts Second Hand September as Britons try
Community
Former Poachers Are Protecting One of Nigeria’s Last Rainforests
Sunday Abiodun can often tell an animal is nearby before he sees it — from a broken twig or the way birds suddenly stop singing. For 15 years, he used those instincts to hunt wildlife to feed his family or to sell as bus
Good News
Good News in History, September 3
Happy Birthday to Shaun White, the three-time Olympic gold medalist in half-pipe snowboarding, who turns 40 today. He was a champion skateboarder in his teens after undergoing two open-heart surgeries as an infant. He be
Science Wins
NASA’s Roman space telescope heads to deep space after surviving budget cuts
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A space telescope with 100 times the sky coverage of Hubble lifted off from Florida this past Sunday. Astronomers have been waiting nearly a decade for this. The Nancy Grace Roman Spa
Science Wins
How to choose a fertility clinic: what reproductive endocrinologists look for
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There’s a lot tangled up in choosing a fertility clinic. Some of it is practical: where is it, what does it cost, what are their numbers. Some of it is harder to put into words, like
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Belligerents in 6-year Military Standoff Agree to Swap Rifles for Ballots
A civil war, military standoff, and a state experiencing double-government are all hopefully set to end after Libya’s rival factions agreed to hold elections. The breakthrough occurred in a signing ceremony Sunday at the
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Stray Cat Nursed Back to Health by Train Staff, Climbs the Ranks to Become Stationmaster
Japan is nothing if not a servant to tradition; even if the tradition is a little strange. Admittedly a little less strange than the annual Kanamara Matsuri festival in Kawasaki (parental guidance suggested) the custom o
Good News
Original Picasso Stolen 8 Years Ago Found Hanging in Relinquished Apartment by Milwaukee Landlord
Whether it’s cleaning out an attic or a Wisconsin apartment, in one landlord’s case, finding an original Pablo Picasso work might seem like an unbelievable stroke of luck. GNN knows slightly better—every year pieces by t
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Last-Minute Flood Warning Saved Over 900 Nepal Students, School Principal Said
More than 900 students and 16 faculty members escaped before the tragic flood on the border with China and Nepal destroyed a school. They are alive today because of a truly last-minute warning by the school’s accountant,
Community
What We’re Reading: In Baltimore, 911 Now Has More Ways to Help
Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Tell us what you’ve been reading at info@reasonstobecheerful.world and we just might feature it here. Call and response In Baltimor
The Planet
What Brazil’s supercentenarians can teach us about living to 120
While tech-moguls pour billions into trying to live longer, the answer might well be in the simple life The post What Brazil’s supercentenarians can teach us about living to 120 appeared first on Positive News .
Good News
Good News in History September 2
Happy 62nd Birthday to Keanu Reeves, the actor who might be called one of the nicest guys in show business. The Canadian started his career with humor and light-hearted films like Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, befo
Science Wins
Climate attribution science just changed the rules for fossil fuel lawsuits
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Scientists can now draw a straight line from a single oil company’s emissions to a specific disaster. Not a rough estimate of the industry’s overall contribution, but a specific compa
Science Wins
8 clever ways to reuse spice jars around the house
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Most spice jars get rinsed and recycled. A few get left on the counter until someone throws them away. Almost none get a second life, and professional organizers say that’s worth reco
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Pokémon Fans Rally to Help Child After He Was Scammed Out of His Most Valuable Card
A heartwarming story of a community putting values above value comes from the convention floor of Pokémon XP. At the August 29th event in San Francisco, venture capitalist Eric Bahn shared that his son was scammed while
Good News
WHO Declares Uganda Ebola-free After 42 Days Without New Cases
Even as their Congolese neighbors battle the worst Ebola outbreak in its history, Uganda has registered 42 days without any new cases. The achievement was marked by the WHO, heavily involved in supporting the two countri
The Planet
London’s Ulez linked to healthier lung growth in children
Seven years after London introduced its Ultra Low Emission Zone, researchers are measuring the impact on children's health The post London’s Ulez linked to healthier lung growth in children appeared first on Positive New
Good News
Good Samaritan Helps Mother After Seeing Her Destroyed Home on the News: “He’s been a blessing”
From the Bronx comes the story of a Good Samaritan who donated what he could spare to help a woman he’d seen on the news newly-impoverished at the hands of a house fire. Months later, and history now shows that it was th
Community
Could Plastic-Eating Robots Clean Up Our Oceans?
This story has been co-published by Reasons to be Cheerful and the Outrider Foundation. In Los Angeles, in Mumbai, in Kuala Lumpur and in several other cities around the planet, autonomous plastic-eating robots are takin
Good News
Good News in History, September 1
881 years ago today, Ibn Jubayir was born in Moorish Spain. This pilgrim and talented writer went on the Hajj to Mecca in 1183, and penned a valuable, beautiful, first-hand account of the places and people he saw, which
Science Wins
Meet the Bioloon: the biodegradable balloon aiming for shelves by 2028
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Balloons have always been made from natural latex, a material derived from rubber tree sap. Natural latex is biodegradable. The rubber tree has been producing it since before the firs
Science Wins
The Reddit-popular five-minute productivity rule that truly works for procrastinators
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Most to-do lists have two kinds of items on them: the real work you’re managing, and the small things that keep getting moved to tomorrow. Reply to that email. File that paper. RSVP t
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US Cities Are Terminating Flock Camera Contracts at Record Pace in August After Nationwide Pushback
In April, millions of readers came to GNN for the scoop on Maryland’s first-in-the-nation ban on “surveillance pricing” in retail grocery stores. Now, municipal governments around the country are ending their association
Good News
In London, Children’s Lungs Grow Faster as Traffic Pollution Falls
A visceral reminder of the dangers of air pollution comes now via an uplifting study which found lung development in children was faster in London’s ultra low-emissions zone (ULEZ). It compared children between the ages
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Florida Teens Design Charity App to Help Generous Locals Deliver ‘Pizza for a Purpose’
Two South Florida teens with a penchant for volunteering have used their IT skills to build an app that facilitates the donation of pizzas from local restaurants to local charities. It streamlines the donation process, a
Good News
Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope Survives Attempted Budget Cuts to Launch 9 Months Early
Reprinted with permission from World at Large. 9 months ahead of schedule, and surviving attempts in both Trump Administrations to cut its budget in half, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope soared into space on Sunday
The Planet
The unlikely rise of the sea shanty band
Sea shanties became an online craze, but these old working songs are doing more than filling dancefloors: they're connecting communities too The post The unlikely rise of the sea shanty band appeared first on Positive Ne
Community
One Way to Keep Childcare Affordable? Give Staff Free Housing
This article was originally published by Shelterforce, an independent newsroom reporting on affordable housing. When it came time for college student Eric Gil to choose a career, the Dominican Republic native opted for o
Good News
Good News in History, August 31
And, on this day 29 years ago, the Good News Network made positive news available on the web for the first time. Geri Weis-Corbley, the founder, worked in TV news, freelancing for CNN and other media companies, until the
Science Wins
What counts as real music? Australia’s charts just drew a line.
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For 16 weeks, an AI-generated variation of Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” sat in Australia’s top 20 singles chart. At its peak, it hit number two. Listeners streamed it, and the chart coun
Science Wins
Your guide to September’s best night sky events in 2026
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM September is a transition month for the sky. The Milky Way‘s core is still visible in the Northern Hemisphere, but not for much longer. The nights are getting longer, Venus is at its
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Rare Sea Turtle Near Death on UK Beach Gets 5,000-mile Lift to Texas Rehab Before Returning to Gulf Home
It’s a tale two years in the making, including a helicopter ride from Wales to London and a transatlantic flight to Houston for a long-awaited homecoming for a Kemp’s ridley sea turtle—one of the most endangered species
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Rare 1930s Watch Stashed in Old Jewelry Box Sells for $80,000 in Thrilling UK Auction
A rare vintage Swiss watch discovered hidden away in a late mother’s jewelry box while the family was cleaning out her home has sold for £59,000 at a British auction—$80,000 in US dollars. The 1930s Patek Philippe wristw
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Mobile Dental Lab Brings Volunteer Dentists to Deliver Care to Homeless and Vulnerable in UK
A million-dollar fund has been launched to provide dental treatment to the most vulnerable members of Britain. The mydentist Foundation announced it is supporting charitable organizations assisting underserved communitie
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Good News in History, August 30
Happy 96th Birthday to Warren Buffett, the “Oracle of Omaha.” He rose from working in his father’s store and delivering newspapers to becoming a multi-billionaire and the most successful American investor of the 20th cen
Good News
Self-Taught Artist Carves Logs into Amazing Sculptures Using a Chainsaw
An artist is carving out a living by making amazingly-realistic wooden sculptures—after teaching himself how to use a chainsaw. The 53-year-old started carving with chainsaws 30 years ago and now makes thousands, selling
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Deep Sleep Brain Waves Offer Protection Against Alzheimer’s, Shows New Research
Poor sleep quality has been linked to cognitive decline, neuro-degeneration and Alzheimer’s disease in seniors—but it may be possible to counteract certain risks. A new study shows that specific sleep brain waves provide
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Dogs Provide Security and Comfort at Busy Train Station in ‘British First’
London’s Waterloo station has become the first major train hub in Britain to employ dogs on regular patrols. Canine caretakers Riley, Buster and Flo are providing “additional reassurance” to passengers as part of a three
Good News
Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicat
Good News
Good News in History, August 29
On this day, 79 years ago, Dr. Bhimrao R. Ambedkar was appointed to chair the Indian constitutional drafting committee. This national hero is responsible for the constitution being one that is largely considered one of t
Good News
World’s Oldest Person Celebrates 117 Years of a ‘Nonconfrontational’ Approach to Life
The world’s oldest person as acknowledged by the Guinness World Records turned 117 last Friday Ethel Caterham was born in the United Kingdom on August 21st, 1909, when the great-great grandfather of the current king was
Science Wins
Podcast Transcript August 28th, 2026— Niger restored 5 million hectares without planting a single tree plus nine other things going right
Episode Description: Karissa hosts solo this week while Arielle recovers, covering ten solutions including the world’s first wild bird flu vaccination program for Phillip Island’s little penguins, France making unsolicit
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Frogs Produce a Protein That May Be an Antidote for Deadly Shellfish Toxin in Humans
He’s no poison-arrow frog, but that doesn’t mean the American bullfrog doesn’t understand poison—far from it, according to scientists. Hidden within the humble bullfrog’s genetics is the equipment to produce an antidote
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Abu Dhabi Ice Cream Entrepreneur Uses Her National Crop to Make Healthier Soft Serve
An Arab entrepreneur has turned her country’s national crop into creative new ice cream recipes. It needed several years of experimentation, and she broke several ice cream machines before perfecting her soft-serve blend
Good News
Renter Is Shocked When Landlord Gives Her a Home After 20 Years Being a Good Tenant There
Landlords get a bad rap, often unfairly, but now from Melbourne comes the story of one who gave a long-term tenant the home she was renting. The magnanimous gesture is typical, 9 News reports, of the late self-made milli
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The Goat-Cow Is Spain’s Wildfire-Fighting Secret Weapon
“In Galicia, we have lots of rain and strong sun, so vegetation grows quickly and it’s hard to control,” shouts José Taboada, as we hurtle up a steep, rocky path in his rickety Land Rover. “In summer, when it dries, fire
Good News
Good News in History, August 28
118 years ago today, Roger Tory Peterson, the inventor of the modern field guide, was born. The American naturalist, ornithologist, artist, and educator published his groundbreaking Guide to the Birds in 1934, at age 25,
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
A ‘historic’ fall in US violent crime, Europe’s right to repair law, and a conservation triumph for Kazakhstan, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on Positive News .
Science Wins
6 useful things to donate before back-to-school season this year
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Back-to-school season is a great time to donate. Kids have outgrown things. Backpacks didn’t survive the year. Notebooks never got opened. Most of it ends up in the trash, and a small
Science Wins
Phillip Island’s little penguins are getting bird flu vaccines in a world-first program
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Little penguins are the world’s smallest species of penguin, standing about the height of a ruler, found only in southern Australia and New Zealand. Every night on Phillip Island in V
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5 US Cities Hire Robot Called ‘Dax’ to Help Survey and Repair Sidewalks–Kids Love Him
Citizens across the nation have reported strange figures on city sidewalks. They’re white, short, and inhuman. But this unidentified rolling object comes in peace. His name is Dax, and he’s here to help. This summer saw
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Man Saves Baby Otter with CPR: ‘A life’s a life, no matter what it is’
It takes a village to raise a child they say. Well a story comes to us now from Alert Bay in British Columbia, where it took a village to save one. It was a retired logger and fisherman named Gordon Mellish who first res
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Pakistan Combines River Dolphin Sanctuaries Along the Indus River, Protecting 250 Miles of Habitat
Pakistan has created a wildlife sanctuary along 123 miles of the Indus River where it’s estimated 440 of these extraordinary freshwater cetaceans live. The endangered Indus River Dolphin has seen large declines in the am
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‘Wood Foam’ Startup Uses Logging Waste as Substitute for Plastic, Producing 400 Pounds Daily
The University of British Columbia has taken low value timber waste and turned it into “wood foam” to replace plastic in packaging. With one of the largest timber industries in the world, the innovation clears two hurdle
Community
Want to See a Tiger? Let These Women Be Your Guides
It is dawn in Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve in the western Indian state of Maharashtra. Most of the tourists waiting to start their safari have come to see a tiger. Instead, another sight catches their attention: women in
The Planet
Life after: oil
Former oil executive Samantha Cooper once helped power the industry. Now she’s fighting to end its hold on our future The post Life after: oil appeared first on Positive News .
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Good News in History, August 27
Happy 87th Birthday to Osage-American travel writer William Least Heat-Moon. His debut novel, Blue Highways, (1982) is a chronicle of a three-month-long road trip that Least Heat-Moon took throughout the United States in
Science Wins
The case for eating blueberries every day, according to a nutritionist
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There’s a specific kind of health advice that asks a lot of you: meal prep, supplements with confusing ingredient lists, routines that cost more than they should. Blueberries aren’t t
Science Wins
Baltimore reimagines what 911 can do, with $400 million to back it up
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In March, mental health clinician Michala Williams met a 38-year-old woman sobbing in the front seat of her car in a McDonald’s parking lot. The woman had called 911. She had children
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Scientists and Volunteers Take Big Step Towards Saving Rare ‘Cryptic’ Australian Orchid
There are many orchids at risk of extinction in Australia alone, few more than this rosella spider orchid. Thanks to a dedicated team of volunteers however, the Royal Botanic Gardens in Victoria actually possess a nurser
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Resurrecting Plant Inspires ‘Fridge Free’ Vaccines That Could Save the Millions of Doses Wasted Annually
A new ‘fridge free’ production method for vaccines could create far more reliable immunizations for low and middle income countries, as well as cut back on waste. Currently, it’s estimated that a large percentage of all
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Tribute to Dolly Parton: Country Music Star and Childhood Literacy Champion Giving Free Books to Kids (1946-2026)
Dolly Parton passed away yesterday at age 80 following a brief battle with cancer. She leaves behind a legacy captured in many GNN stories; one of championing childhood literacy, uplifting Americans of every gender, colo
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India’s Lion Populations Increase 70%, Total Habitat by 15% Over the Last Decade
The Asiatic lion populations living in western India have increased 70% over the last decade, while their rangeland has also increased 15%. In a large protected area called the Greater Gir Landscape in Gujurat state, the
Community
What We’re Reading: A Wheelchair Rugged Enough for National Park Trails
Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Tell us what you’ve been reading at info@reasonstobecheerful.world and we just might feature it here. Rolling vistas Utah’s Zion Na
The Planet
Putting slugs on the map: farmers pioneer precision crop protection
A new mapping tool pinpoints where slugs are likely to strike, helping farmers cut pesticide use while protecting crops The post Putting slugs on the map: farmers pioneer precision crop protection appeared first on Posit
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Good News in History, August 26
235 years ago today, John Fitch was granted a US patent for a boat propelled by steam power which used mechanical paddles to propel it atop lakes and rivers—an invention that revolutionized commercial transportation of b
Science Wins
London’s clean-air zone is linked to faster lung growth in children, a new study finds
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For years, researchers knew that air pollution stunts lung development in children. What they hadn’t been able to show was whether cleaning up the air could actually change that traje
Science Wins
In France, peace and quiet is now a legal right by banning unsolicited cold calls
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Ninety-seven percent of French people find telemarketing calls annoying. A 2025 parliamentary report called it “one of those rare issues that unites people in France.” The government
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Woman Can See Again After World’s First Transplant of a Central Retina
From Turin comes a surgical world-first: the simultaneous transplant of a complete human macula, along with the cornea, sclera, and connective tissue, from one of the patient’s eyes to the other. It allowed a woman blind
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US Approves First Drug That Targets Root Cause of Narcolepsy Rather Than its Symptoms
A Japanese pharma company has developed a drug that treats the root cause of a leading form of narcolepsy, and is celebrating as it becomes the first of its kind to receive American FDA approval. Narcolepsy type-1 afflic
Community
Could Shellfish Farming Fix Florida’s Algal Bloom Problem?
It’s a sight that stops Florida boaters and beachgoers in their tracks: a thick green sludge coating the water, smelling of rotten eggs and dead fish. Ashley Smyth, a coastal biogeochemist at the University of Florida, l
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Over 3,000 Endangered Yellow-Legged Frogs and Tadpoles Unleashed to Reclaim SoCal Mountains
American amphibian lovers will be jumping for joy at the news of 3,000 frogs and tadpoles from an endangered species bred and released into their former mountain homes. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has been breeding a
Good News
First Bluefin Tuna Caught in North Sea in 60 Years Is Sign of Healthy Ecosystem
Jack Gardner couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw the behemoth hooked on his fishing line. If he and his crew aboard Dominator reeled it in, he knew it would be the greatest catch of his life and provide the equivalent
The Planet
Art attack: five habits to help you get (back) into art
Here are five simple ways to reconnect with your artistic side and make art part of everyday life The post Art attack: five habits to help you get (back) into art appeared first on Positive News .
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Good News in History, August 25
110 years ago today, the National Park Service was created in the US. Guardians of 64 extraordinary places which documentarian Ken Burns called “America’s best idea” the NPS is among the most identifiable and appreciated
Science Wins
The world hit 3 terawatts of solar power faster than anyone predicted
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The first terawatt of global solar capacity took nearly 68 years to reach. The second arrived in roughly two years. The third came in 19 months. The world crossed the 3-terawatt mark
Science Wins
Back-to-school shopping without the meltdown: How to keep trends and budgets in check
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For parents of tweens and teens, August often brings the same showdown: a wish list brimming with the latest must-have styles and a budget that’s not budging. That water bottle your k
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Moms Love This Initiation Ritual Freshmen Must Go Through at This Oklahoma High School
School initiation rituals can be embarrassing, crude, and even disturbing, but for a 14-year-old, nothing could be worse than what is demanded of them, day 1, at Bishop Kelly High School in Tulsa. If initiation is about
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Chinese Man Takes Paralyzed Wife on Epic Road Trip: ‘Die On the Road, Not in Hospital’
Like any pair of baby boomers in America, Liu Peijin and his wife dreamed as newly-weds of a grand tour around their native China. Marrying out of high school, they had a normal enough life—with Mr. Liu embarking on a lo
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Inventor Envisioned a Waterless Toilet for Astronauts, Realized it Could Solve a Global Sanitation Crisis Instead
An inventor and serial entrepreneur has created a non-flushing, waterless toilet that’s already making sanitation safer and accessible for some 20,000 households, Deployed in Uganda, Panama, and the United States, the ‘i
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Zebra Sharks the First Ever to Be Rewilded After 82 Pups Released by Dedicated ‘Shark Nannies’
Out in the wild waters of Indonesia, zebra sharks are extremely rare. Overhunted, these striped bottom dwellers were at risk of going extinct. After 3 years of foundational work, an international consortium of 60 aquariu
The Planet
How rewilding could help stop the spread of Britain’s wildfires
Why rewilding is one of the best solutions we have to the concerning rise of wildfires The post How rewilding could help stop the spread of Britain’s wildfires appeared first on Positive News .
Community
Horizontal Levees Are Spreading Across the Bay Area
This story was originally published by Grist. Sign up for Grist’s weekly newsletter here. Visitors to the Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve, captivated by gliding birds overhead and golden hills across the Bay waters, c
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Good News in History, August 24
10 years ago today, the European Southern Observatory confirmed the existence of Proxima Centauri b, the closest exoplanet to Earth orbiting within the habitable zone of the red dwarf star Proxima Centauri. It’s just ove
Good News
Ethiopian Farmers Save Thousands by Switching to Solar Irrigation–While Cutting Emissions
Farmers in Ethiopia are slashing their growing costs, increasing food production, and protecting the environment thanks to solar-powered irrigation systems introduced through the Nature-based Solutions for Sustainable an
Science Wins
Student Makers: teen volunteers are teaching STEM across three continents
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In 2022, a group of high schoolers designed 150 LEGO-inspired airplane kits, 3D-printed them one by one, assembled them by hand, and shipped them to a school in Kenya. How is that for
Science Wins
How Niger restored 5 million hectares without planting a single tree
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In 1983, an Australian agricultural adviser named Tony Rinaudo was working in the Sahel when he noticed something that didn’t fit the picture everyone had of the region. The land look
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Dog Lost on 3rd Tallest Peak in England Finally Found After Three Weeks Stuck on Steep Ravine
A dog missing for nearly three weeks on a mountain in rural England’s Lake District has been rescued—and it was a real team effort. Tiny Teddy vanished on August 2nd while hiking with her owner on Helvellyn, the third-hi
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California Joins 30 States to Require Financial Literacy Courses For Teens in Every High School
California will be helping teens mold their futures as early as possible, by requiring every high schooler to pass a financial literacy course. Legislation now being implemented after its passage in 2024 made California
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Good-Humored Scientists Create ‘OnlyMarms’ Page to Boost Marmot Conservation and Donations
Desperate times call for desperate measures. With traditional funding sources facing cuts, The Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory, which has spent the last 65 years studying yellow-bellied marmots, had to get creative.
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Good News in History, August 23
3 years ago today, the chief of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) exclaimed “India is on the Moon!” after the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3, the Indian Lunar lander. In doing so India became the fourth
Good News
‘Double Spiral’ Secret of Narwhal’s Twisted Tusk Revealed By High Tech X-Rays
Hidden secrets of the narwhal’s twisted tusk have been revealed using the latest X-ray technology. Tusks of the species of whale native to the Arctic have long been the subject of myths—even being sold as ‘unicorn horns’
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Gas Station Goes Viral For Offering a Discount For Dance Moves – And Then Posts a Video
A New York gas station encouraged patrons to “pump it up” last month, and they weren’t talking about fuel. Instead, the Halfmoon Sunoco 25 minutes outside of Albany was helping customers move past the pain of skyrocketin
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Zoo Plucks 21 Snails From Extinction and Returns Hundreds to Pristine Atlantic Island (WATCH)
A breeding program at England’s Chester Zoo has restored hundreds of tiny mollusks to their native land after they had grown so rare, they could collectively fit inside a petri dish. The zoo, which participates in many g
Good News
Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicat
Good News
Good News in History, August 22
76 years ago today, Althea Gibson became the first black competitor in international tennis, after US officials, bowing to pressure, invited the 23-year-old to play in the National Championships (now the US Open). Born i
Good News
French Firm Switches On Africa’s Largest Renewable Energy/Storage Plant to Power 200K Houses
French energy supermajor TotalEnergies recently inaugurated the largest hybrid renewable energy project in Africa that will generate 400 gigawatt-hours of electricity in South Africa. Located in the Northern Cape provinc
Good News
Community Rallies to Support Wages of Beloved Pizza Joint’s Staff While They Rebuild After a Fire
A sisters-owned pizza institution in Minnesota which recently closed after fire damage has received a big slice of help from the community. In the early morning hours of July 11th, firefighters responded to a call as smo
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First River Otter Spotted in the Bronx in 100 Years Along the Bronx River
It was June 23rd when a furry brown arrow shot past a motion-activated camera along the Bronx River and sent conservationists mad with excitement. It was the first time in approximately 100 years that an otter was observ
Good News
Man Makes 200+ Trips to Remote Villages to Connect Elders with Their Children Working Abroad
It’s estimated that over 110 million Chinese live and work abroad, which for the family members they leave behind can be heart-wrenching and difficult, above all for the elderly. But thanks to a generous soul born to the
Science Wins
Podcast Transcript August 21st, 2026— (Guest Interview) Catch up with Kristy: clean energy, leaving California, and embracing the slow life
Episode Description: Many of the long-time listeners of The Optimist Daily’s podcast will recognize Kristy Jansen’s voice. She’s the former co-host and Executive Director of this show, and she’s back, joining Arielle and
Community
Transforming Britain’s Old Coalfields Into Clean Energy Sources
In the town of Gateshead in North East England, coal mining runs thick in the blood. Up to the final coup de grâce delivered by Margaret Thatcher’s coal purge in the 1980s, Gateshead had been tapping its dark subterranea
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Good News in History, August 21
Happy 40th birthday to the world’s fastest man, Usain Bolt. The Jamaican superstar sprinter who retired in 2017 is a world record holder in the 100-meters, 200m and 4 × 100m relay. RE-LIVE Bolt’s career below… (1986) Whe
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
A ‘pivotal moment’ for cancer treatment, resurgent whales, and the city that made public transport free, plus more The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on Positive News .
Science Wins
Maternal RSV vaccine cuts newborn ICU admissions in half
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Good news! In the UK, only 63 infants were admitted to intensive care with RSV infection last winter, which is down from 131 the year before. Same 20 hospitals, same surveillance syst
Science Wins
How to help an anxious kid through back-to-school season
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM If you’ve ever driven away from school while your kid was still crying at the door, you know the horrible feeling. The half-formed urge to turn the car around. The uncertainty about w
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Experimental Drug Generates Immune Response Against Pancreatic Cancer in People at High Risk
Researchers at Johns Hopkins report that an experimental drug targeting one of the most common genetic drivers of pancreatic cancer was safe in humans, and generated durable immune responses aimed at preventing the cance
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Archaeologists Triple the Scale of an Ancient Amazonian Civilization We Know Almost Nothing About
Hundreds of geometric earthworks were recently found in the southwestern Amazon, evidence that a monument-building, precolonial civilization was so much larger than previously thought. The scale of this hidden world of m
Good News
Woman Gives $1 Million in ‘Life-Changing’ Bonuses to Teachers in Her School District
When a local resident found out that her schools in an extremely wealthy Northern California county was at the bottom for state funding, she stepped up to make the difference. Maja Kristin asked the Ross Valley School Di
Good News
Man Rescued Alive After Being Trapped in Underwater Cave for 15 Days Without Food or Light
A harrowing story of survival and perseverance comes to us from Mexico, where a fisherman was rescued after spending 15 days in a pitch black cave. The man, Erasto Crisanto Valdez, said he trusted in god to deliver him f
Community
The Spanish Town Doing Capitalism Better
There are all kinds of enormous, impressive and, frankly, noisy machines at work across the 20,000 square meters of industrial warehouses at the headquarters of Fagor Arrasate, a manufacturing company in Spain’s northern
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Good News in History, August 20
Happy 91th birthday to the former Congressman from Texas, Dr. Ron Paul. Before serving three terms as representative of the 22nd and 14th Congressional districts, the country doctor delivered an average of 1 baby per day
The Planet
The mobile library bringing books to rural Syria
A brightly painted bus is bringing books, puppets and art workshops to children who have grown up with war The post The mobile library bringing books to rural Syria appeared first on Positive News .
Science Wins
Australia’s biggest gun reform in 30 years kicks off this November
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Eight months after a shooting at a Hanukkah celebration in Bondi Beach killed 15 people, Australia is following through. New South Wales starts a gun buyback on November 2, Prime Mini
Science Wins
Are algae oil supplements worth taking? Here’s the evidence
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There’s a pattern in the supplement industry that tends to repeat itself. Researchers find that people who eat foods rich in a particular nutrient have better health outcomes. Compani
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Internet Showers DoorDash Driver and Fiancé with Wedding Gifts Thanks to Note he Left in the Bag
When a TikTok influencer and NYT bestselling author received her DoorDash meal in early August, a hand-scrawled note in the bag caught her eye. The words were from the delivery driver: “Your tip is helping make our weddi
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White Storks Make Historic Return to the English Midlands After 600-year Absence
The last time a white stork nested in Derbyshire in the English Midlands region, the country’s King Henry VI was declaring war against the Duchy of Brittany and the Kingdom of France, while an independent Venice won a wa
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Italian Police Recover Stolen Renoir, Cézanne and Matisse Artworks Worth Millions
From the Italian police’s crack art crimes team comes the news that 3 stolen paintings by famous French artists were recovered and returned to their owners. The Carabinieri, or military police, report that the paintings
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Zion Becomes First National Park to Get All-Terrain Wheelchair for Public Use
The world renowned Zion National Park has become the first to offer an all-terrain wheelchair for disabled visitors who want to enjoy the canyon system’s trails. The equipment was made available thanks to a charitable no
Community
What We’re Reading: Should Short Flights Be Banned?
Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Tell us what you’ve been reading at info@reasonstobecheerful.world and we just might feature it here. On track Do you really need t
The Planet
How to forge meaningful human connections – according to you
We asked: how do you forge meaningful human connections in a busy, disconnected world? This is what you said The post How to forge meaningful human connections – according to you appeared first on Positive News .
Science Wins
Rage workouts don’t calm you down, research finds. Here’s what does.
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Slamming tires with a sledgehammer, pummeling a punching bag, running yourself into the ground when you’re furious: the premise behind rage workouts is that intense physical exertion
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Why the poo taboo has held back a killer disease, and what’s changing
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There is a disease that kills more than one million people a year, nearly half of them children under five, and it rarely breaks through in global health coverage. Researchers have a
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Boston Aims to Tackle 100-year Flood Risks with $10 Billion in Infrastructure Projects
Expected to see 10 to 18 inches of sea level rise over the next 25 years, the city of Boston and the US Army Corps of Engineers have released a feasibility study for 20 separate infrastructure projects to protect the his
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Construction Worker Discovers Gold Hoard After Literally Striking a Gold Bar with His Jackhammer
Police in Belgium recently made a most remarkable discovery while digging under the foundations of an old brewery. While using a jackhammer on the property in the city of Dendermonde, about 19 miles outside of Brussels,
Community
The ‘Sisterhood’ Protecting Indonesia’s Coral Reefs
When she was 21, Gabriela Nathania H dove underwater with a cohort of four strangers off the coast of Gili Air. The tiny island is one of three that make up the Gili Islands, an archipelago that divers the world over adm
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Threatened Bird Species Given Tiny Foot Casts to Help Recovery After Hit by Car
A bird that was hit by a car is undergoing a rather curious rehabilitation procedure. The animal hospital it was taken do designed a pair of specially-built casts made of cardboard and tape. It’s a bit makeshift, but the
Good News
In Memorium: Zhu Rongji, the Leader Who Defied Mao and Opened China to the World
Former Premier of the People’s Republic of China, Zhu Rongji, passed away on last week at the age of 97, with the country raising its flags to half-mast in commemoration of one of its wisest custodians. His term as the h
The Planet
Can festivals leave the land better than they found it?
How music festivals are putting land restoration, community action and environmental change on the bill The post Can festivals leave the land better than they found it? appeared first on Positive News .
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Good News in History, August 18
88 years ago today, the Thousand Islands Bridge connecting the US with Canada over the Saint Lawrence Seaway was dedicated by F.D. Roosevelt. The complex contains 5 bridges spanning 8.5 miles, with each bridge section an
Science Wins
5 phrases to teach kids that will serve them for life
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM You spend the first few years of your kid’s life repeating words back to them, hoping one will stick. “Mama.” “Dada.” “Ball.” And then suddenly you’re coaching them through “please” a
Science Wins
Rooftop rainwater could break cities’ air conditioning trap
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Air conditioning is making cities hotter, and that’s not incidental. It’s the physics. Every AC unit pulls heat from inside a building and dumps it into the street, which raises outdo
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Cement Kilns Could Become Carbon Negative if Run on Clean Energy as Limestone Absorbs CO2
The production of cement ranks as one of the world’s largest industrial sources of CO2, but now a new study shows how in the future it could be used to remove, rather than produce the greenhouse gas. Every year, around 4
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Company Aims for ‘Moonshot’ Replacement for Trees in Paper Products with Humble Desert Plant
From the Wall Street Journal comes the story of a goldilocks discovery: a potential replacement for wood fiber that goes into making tissues, toilet paper, and paper towels. It’s called hesperaloe, and like the namesake
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270,000 Square Miles Around Easter Island to Become Indigenous-Managed Ocean Reserve
As one of the most isolated landmasses on Earth, residents of Rapa Nui, or Easter Island, rely on the bounty of the ocean more than most. It’s as good a place as any to institute marine environment protections, and indee
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Garbage Workers in Italy Help Woman Find Her Million Jackpot
After winning a million euros, a woman mistakenly tossed the lucky lottery ticket into a trash bin. But the local sanitation company in southern Italy launched an hours-long search through an entire truck of trash. Waste
Community
Traveling Doctors Are Filling the Gaps in Rural France
At the end of 2020, Dr. Jean-Luc Bernard, a family doctor who had been caring for the community in Ajain, France, for over 40 years, finally hung up his stethoscope and retired. It was not easy to convince a new general
The Planet
‘We like breaking the rules’: the radical farm that yields results
An Italian farm is using biomimicry and agroecological technology to ensure their crops can handle the heat The post ‘We like breaking the rules’: the radical farm that yields results appeared first on Positive News .
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Good News in History, August 17
81 years ago today, Animal Farm was published by George Orwell. Though most famous for his seminal dystopian fiction work, Nineteen Eighty-Four, this satirical novella carries similar socio-political allegorical heft. Ce
Science Wins
Beard dandruff remedies dermatologists swear by
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM If you’ve put real time into growing and grooming your beard, discovering a film of flakes underneath it can feel so unfair. All that trimming, all those oils, and somehow your skin i
Science Wins
Rainforest biodiversity rebounds within a single generation
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Cleared tropical rainforests can recover 90 percent of their species diversity within a single human generation, according to new research from Ecuador’s Chocó region, one of the most
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Boyfriend Secretly Trains For Two Months To Surprise Girlfriend and Run Alongside Her in Dreaded First Half-Marathon
As Emma Kessler headed to her first half marathon, her boyfriend’s running shoes were in the trunk, and a surprise was in the works. Kessler, a 22-year-old, had been anxious for weeks. Running 13 miles is no easy task—es
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Two Hours of Sleep Restored in Alzheimer’s Brains in Research Breakthrough
[By Christian Honce | UK College of Medicine] Picture this: You find a small fire isolated in your kitchen. If you had the right tool, you might be able to put it out. But before you can, the sprinklers turn on and soak
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Wendy’s Worker is Going To Yale After His Bosses Fund Scholarship for the Immigrant Who Survived Violence
A powerful portion of ‘the American dream’ was served by a Wendy’s fast-food restaurant in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to help out one of its own. Thalles DeSouza’s story may have started in a treacherous neighborhood near
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Good News in History, August 16
110 years ago today, the Migratory Bird Treaty was signed by the US and Canada. setting rules to protect birds that fly between both countries. This agreement stopped unregulated hunting and saved many bird species from
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A Real Rockin’ Horse: Music Tames a Rescue Foal Who Learns to ‘Play’ Instruments for Album Debut
The video starts normal enough, but a surprise is waiting somewhere near the chorus. Mikayla Khramov is strumming guitar strings on Instagram and singing the lyrics to the famous Dolly Parton song 9-to-5. Then, a moment
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Beating the Heat With a Million Blooming Sunflowers in Breezy Scotland (LOOK)
The month of August heralded the return of 14 acres of golden sunflowers topping the landscape in Scotland. Open to visitors through August 23, the Balgone Estate has once again opened its vibrant Sunflower Trail located
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California Creek Restoration Helps Young Salmon Grow Twice as Fast—And Doubles Their Survival Rate
Along California’s redwood coast, conservationists have been working for more than a decade to give a damaged creek something surprisingly simple: room to behave like a creek again. Prairie Creek is one of the last refug
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Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny
Our partner Rob Brezsny, whose latest book is Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicat
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Good News in History, August 15
108 years ago today, American cartoonist Winsor McCay released the first long-form animation film, the Sinking of the Lusitania, showing what pure conviction looks like. Far from being funny, the 12-minute film depicted
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97-Year-old is Overwhelmed to Attend Great-Granddaughter’s Graduation From Same Med School He Tackled 60 Years ago
97-year-old Westel Creager became determined to keep a promise he made years ago. When his great-granddaughter Haiden was going off to college, Westel told her that if she got into medical school, he’d be there when she
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New Radiation-Free Lung Scan Can Spot Disease Sooner in Children – And it’s Much Safer
For caregivers of children living with chronic or rare lung diseases, monitoring their condition presents an uncomfortable tradeoff: Repeated scans can be valuable, but they can also expose patients to radiation. Now, a
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Rescued Orangutans Released Into Isolated Forest Are Now Raising Babies, Creating New Wild Population
Fifteen years ago, conservationists began releasing rescued orangutans into a protected forest in Sumatra where no others from their species were living. Some arrived had been in human care after being orphaned. Others h
Good News
Five Endangered Secretarybird Chicks Hatch in Major Conservation First
England’s Chester Zoo reported last week they successfully bred the stunning secretarybird for the first time in its 95-year history—producing five chicks. The endangered African birds are part of an international conser
Science Wins
Podcast Transcript August 14th, 2026— Taking our own advice on slowing down this summer
Episode Description: Arielle checks in solo to explain why the Kristy guest episode is getting a little more time. Both she and Karissa have been doing what they always say matters most: showing up, fully present, for th
Community
More American Dads Are Taking Parental Leave
This story first appeared at The 74, a nonprofit news site covering education. Sign up for free newsletters from The 74 to get more like this in your inbox. A.J. Johnson’s oldest son was born in 2019, the year before res
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Good News in History, August 14
85 years ago today, US President Franklin Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill issued the joint declaration of peace and progress that later became known as the Atlantic Charter. The statement was issue
The Planet
What went right this week: the good news that matters
Plummeting deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon, hurricane-predicting sharks and a courtroom reckoning on the cards for tech giants, plus mor The post What went right this week: the good news that matters appeared first on P
Science Wins
Your Neanderthal genes may be building your muscles
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM People who carry a Neanderthal version of the growth hormone receptor have, on average, 271 additional grams of muscle compared with those who don’t. People who inherited the variant
Science Wins
The sun’s surface has whirlpools. Here’s why they may be the engine behind space weather.
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There’s something slightly odd about the fact that we’ve had solar telescopes for more than a century and still couldn’t quite see the sun’s surface. We’re already aware of the big st
Good News
Surf’s Up for Pups at World Dog Surfing Championship Where Rosie Leads the Pack (Video)
One of California’s most famous surfers has four legs and a tail. They call her Rippin’ Rosie. She’s a lovable 5-year-old Labrador Retriever with golden fur and almost 340,000 followers on Instagram. “Everyone knows Rosi
Community
There’s No Opting Out of These Crises – Liberation Is Collective
Communities have recognized a fundamental truth about challenging systems of power: You can't do it alone.
Good News
Ospreys Recover Thanks to ‘Pioneering Pairs’ Who Nest Away From Main Population
Ospreys are recovering in Britain thanks to “pioneering pairs” who prefer to nest away from the main population, according to new research. It could be key to increasing the proliferation of the raptors, which first beca
Good News
Cat Named ‘Toast’ Survives Intense Heat of 4-Alarm Fire By Hiding in Closet
A mechanical issue started a fire in a Utah apartment building last week that sent the entire five-story structure ablaze in a matter of minutes. Residents in the Salt Lake City suburb—and their pets—were evacuated from
Good News
Guard Becomes Celebrity Making Mini Statues For Each Event at Virginia Tech As Free Giveaways
The mini-statue of a warrior rhino was birthed in a guessing game. After graduating from Virginia Tech, Bryan Newton kept cultivating his school spirit and connections to campus by working for Rhino Sports and Entertainm
Community
These Wetlands Treat the Wastewater of a Megacity
On a humid summer afternoon, Gagan Das mixes groundnut and mustard meal in water in a large drum. On either side of him, large ponds reflect the sun. Mango trees laden with fruit, palms heavy with their payload of yellow
Good News
Good News in History, August 13
166 years ago today, Annie Oakley, who became the first American woman ‘superstar,’ was born in a cabin in rural Ohio. To support her five siblings and widowed mother, Phoebe Annie Mosey took up hunting and trapping at a
The Planet
Bringing the thrill of live music to deaf audiences – with the help of air guitar
Luke Holdsworth was born deaf and is now one of the UK’s most respected BSL interpreters at live concerts The post Bringing the thrill of live music to deaf audiences – with the help of air guitar appeared first on Posit
Science Wins
The physical effects of heavy phone use (aka tech neck) and how to address them
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Cervical spine surgeon K. Daniel Riew at Och Spine at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center has started seeing patients in their 20s. That age group rarely appeared in hi
Science Wins
Bioengineered gum could expand treatment options for oral cancer patients
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A bioengineered chewing gum cut HPV levels by 93 percent in oral samples from head and neck cancer patients, in new research from the University of Pennsylvania. The same formulation,
Good News
Antiviral Chewing Gum Cuts Risk of Certain Head and Neck Cancers to Almost Zero in New Study
Research from the University of Pennsylvania shows that antiviral and antibacterial chewing gums reduce the levels of three microbes known to be associated with oral cancer, paving the way for more effective and affordab
Good News
Early Farmers Figured Out ‘Engineering Wonder,’ Building Huge Irrigation System Without Government or Chief
Early farmers achieved an “engineering wonder of the world” by building a giant irrigation system in South America thousands of years ago. Communities living in what is now Colombia created the remarkable network based o
Good News
Duck Becomes Emotional Support Animal That Unexpectedly Heals a Golden Retriever (WATCH)
It was just what the duck-ter ordered… Tori and her husband, Justin Cannarelli, who own a garden center, volunteered to adopt Louie the Duck after he hatched at a Long Island elementary school. It was supposed to be temp
Good News
Fishing Guide Dials 911 for Entangled Manatee, Leading to Rescue While Calf Watches
A manatee is swimming free again thanks to a fishing guide who reported the animal tangled in crab trap lines, and the Georgia and Florida wildlife experts who raced to the scene. The drama played out over two days last
Community
What We’re Reading: New York City’s Summer of Soundwalking
Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Tell us what you’ve been reading at info@reasonstobecheerful.world and we just might feature it here. Hearing things What does New
The Planet
Back on track: Matt Haig on finding acceptance
At 50 years old and with the release of his new book The Midnight Train, Matt Haig explains why acceptance has descended on him The post Back on track: Matt Haig on finding acceptance appeared first on Positive News .
Good News
Good News in History, August 12
45 years ago today, the first IBM PC, one of the early personal computers, was released. The development team broke all the rules within IBM and went to outside vendors for most of the parts and software, acting as an in
Good News
Brown Student Spends Summer Helping Teens Find Their Voice in English
For a group of teenagers learning English in Providence, Rhode Island, summer school this year looked a little different. There were vocabulary games and journal entries, but also trips into the community where students
Science Wins
Europe’s electric flight era could begin within four years
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Electric aircraft startups have been promising a lot for a long time. Two of them are now close enough to matter. Battery-electric and hybrid planes with a range of up to 500 kilomete
Science Wins
Bullfrog protein could be antidote to shellfish poisoning
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Paralytic shellfish poisoning, a severe and potentially fatal foodborne illness, has no specific antidote. The neurotoxin responsible, saxitoxin, is classified as a chemical weapon un
Good News
Great Barrier Reef’s Recovery From Bleaching is Aided by Monsoon
The world’s largest coral system, the Great Barrier Reef, suffered six mass ‘bleaching events’ between 2016 and 2025, due in part to warming oceans. Before the 1990s, any bleaching events were “exceptionally rare” along
Good News
Pro Women’s Baseball Resumes for First Time Since 1954: A League of Their Own is BACK!
Almost eight decades after she last played baseball, Maybelle Blair returned to the diamond—in a wheelchair—to inaugurate the new women’s US baseball league. It brought Blair’s uniquely American story full circle—and she
Good News
Plant’s First Flower is ‘Death Bloom’ So Tall the Greenhouse Had to Remove Ceiling Panels
A ten-year-old plant has finally burst into flower for the first time after a decade of care by professional horticulturists—and the stalk was so tall greenhouse had to remove the Roof. Staff at the Birmingham Botanical
The Planet
Three sports groups using movement to tackle isolation
These three groups are using sport and movement to create connection, purpose and community The post Three sports groups using movement to tackle isolation appeared first on Positive News .
Good News
Good News in History, August 11
70 years ago today, Elvis Presley released his first double-sided mega-hit record. With Don’t Be Cruel on one side and Hound Dog on the other, the singles went to No.1 and No.2 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, where they st
Science Wins
What forest bathing does to your body, and the 5 best places to try it
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM You probably already know the feeling, even if you’ve never had a name for it. The way your shoulders drop and relax the moment you step under a canopy of trees. How the breath comes
Science Wins
Sweden to ban forever chemicals from kitchens and clothing by 2028
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Sweden announced on July 23 that it will ban per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances from consumer products by January 1, 2028. The list covers clothing, shoes, waterproofing agents, kitc
Good News
Voyager 2 was Running Low on Power Until NASA Engineered a ‘Big Bang’ to Buy Another Year
NASA engineers found a way to free up power aboard Voyager 2, helping the nearly 50-year-old spacecraft continue its scientific work. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory team decided to simultaneously shut down certain powered
Good News
When Zoo Elephants Are Rewilded in Africa, Here’s How Good Their Coping Skills Are
New research shows that elephants develop successful coping mechanisms when returning to the wild from human captivity. In fact, the team found that “rewilded” elephants can fit quite well within wildlife systems and rea
Good News
New Treatment Shows Remarkable Motor Improvements in Boys With Muscular Dystrophy—in Just 12 Weeks
Scientists studying one of the world’s most serious inherited muscle diseases have found encouraging evidence that treating children much earlier—potentially before obvious symptoms develop—could make a significant diffe
Good News
Toronto Zoo Celebrates Birth of Endangered Pygmy Hippo – The Pictures and Video are Adorable
When you see these photos from the Toronto Zoo of their newest resident, you’ll know why we had to share. A pregnant pygmy Hippopotamus gave birth a week ago—tiny feet appearing after 1.5 hours of active labor. The calf
Community
Can This City Banish Single-Use Coffee Cups?
This story has been co-published by Reasons to be Cheerful and the Outrider Foundation. If you line up to get coffee at one of Aarhus University’s many cafeterias, you won’t see a stack of disposable cups as you do at mo
The Planet
How birdwatching has become an unexpected hit with Gen Z
A new wave of young birders is helping to turn one of Britain’s oldest pastimes into one of its fastest-growing hobbies The post How birdwatching has become an unexpected hit with Gen Z appeared first on Positive News .
Good News
Good News in History, August 10
180 years ago today, the Smithsonian Institution was first chartered, and named after the British scientist, James Smithson, who bequeathed $500,000 to create a great museum in Washington, DC—even though he had never vis
Science Wins
New Mexico court orders Meta to pay $942m over child harms
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM New Mexico just became the first state to hold Meta financially liable for harms to children’s mental health. The total bill is now $942m. The new ruling, handed down last week on Thu
Science Wins
Children learn to be alone through love, not distance
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM There is something that makes adults uneasy about a child playing alone. A kid absorbed in something private at a playground edge, a bedroom door closed for an afternoon. These scenes
Good News
Cheese Lovers Unite: The Benefits of Full-Fat Dairy Documented in Study Without Cholesterol Rise or Weight Gain
A University of Toronto study is offering new evidence in support of full-fat dairy consumption. The findings from a 12-week study demonstrate that three daily servings of full-fat dairy can be incorporated into a person
Good News
Intricate Carvings in Ostrich Eggshells are 60,000 Years Old – and Reveal ‘Remarkable’ Human Thinking
Dating back more than 60,000 years ago, humans in southern Africa were engraving ostrich eggshells with intricate geometric patterns that—the longer we study them—look more organized than we previously realized. A new an
Good News
Leo DiCaprio Launches $200M Project to Bring 100 Most Threatened Species Back From the Brink
In 2021, Leonardo DiCaprio, the Bezos Earth Fund, and nine other conservation philanthropies launched the Protecting Our Planet Challenge, focused on protecting at least 30% of the most important land, freshwater, and ma
Good News
Blind Dressage Horse Wins Competitions By Using ‘Equine Braille’
Despite going blind, a remarkable horse is still on his way to becoming a dressage champion after adopting an extraordinary form of equine “braille”. The 15-year-old Appaloosa named Milo, has awed spectators since return
Good News
Good News in History, August 9
90 years ago today, track and field star Jesse Owens won his fourth gold medal at the Berlin Olympics—a first for any American athlete. Owens was cheered enthusiastically by 110,000 people in Berlin’s Olympic Stadium—and
Good News
Once Gone From Ireland, Majestic Sea Eagles Continue Their Comeback with Rare New Chick
More than a century after the country’s largest bird of prey disappeared entirely from Ireland, a white-tailed sea eagle has been delivered—and the young fledgling became another success for conservationists to celebrate
Good News
Loggerhead Sea Turtles Break Nest Record in Georgia – The Most in 37 Years
Loggerhead sea turtle nests along the Atlantic coast in the US have set a new 37-year record, topping every annual count for beaches in the state of Georgia, going back to 1989. The state’s Department of Natural Resource