Global round up of good news nuggets to perk up the day.
Dubbed Nemo’s Garden, the world's first underwater farm has begun once again yielding produce after a yearlong pandemic pause. It consists of six mini underwater greenhouses off the coast of Noli, Italy. The farm uses solar energy and desalinated seawater to produce various herbs, lettuce, and strawberries, 8m under the water surface. The sea naturally provides ideal temperatures for plant growth and, in addition to yielding crops that are stronger in flavour, the underwater environment provides the plants with protection. It's another example of how we can further develop our food security.
Good news for Cristiano Ronaldo: He's shot to the top of Instagram’s annual rich list of celebrities who can charge the most for a sponsored post, with the footballer able to command as much as $1.6m (£1.2m) to endorse a product on social media. The Portugal captain, who rattled the Euro 2020 sponsor Coca-Cola by removing its drinks from view at a post-match press conference, has been crowned king of the influencers.
Following the joyful surprise at Japan's oldest zoo of the birth of twin panda cubs a couple of weeks ago, it's even better news to hear that giant pandas are no longer considered an endangered species in the wild after numbers rose to 1,800 - but they are still considered vulnerable, Chinese authorities said. China has brought the animals back from the brink through a programme to recreate and extend bamboo forests, which provide pandas with their main food source. A spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the reclassification of the giant panda was “great news” and reflected the fact that "The concept that lush mountains and clear water are worth their weight in gold and silver has taken root among the public in China.”
Ghana has just planted 5 million trees in a single day. Organisors of the west African nation's Green Ghana Day provided schools, parks, and businesses with more than 7 million free seedlings ahead of the planting day in June. "We don't have tomorrow or the day after tomorrow to do this. We have to act now," the country’s President Nana Akufo-Addo commented.
As the volume of goods traded across the world continues to increase, emissions from container ships are becoming a more prevalent source of pollution. In an effort to transition to industry towards a greener future, the International Maritime Organization has proposed a regulation that would make ships pay for their emissions. The new policy would charge shipping companies $100 for every metric ton of carbon dioxide they emit, starting in 2025. The system would be tiered, increasing the charge per ton every five years to eventually force the entire industry to transition to renewable options.
In a first for major social networks, Pinterest is banning all adverts with weight loss language and imagery, including ads that idealise or denigrate certain body types. The popular, picture-led social network, which allows users to create and share mood boards, said it would also not allow ads with testimonials about weight loss or weight loss products, or ads referencing BMI or similar indexes.
Councils in the Glasgow area have pledged to plant 18m trees - equivalent to 10 trees for every resident as the city prepares to host a global climate summit later this year. It includes greatly increasing tree cover in some of Glasgow's poorest peripheral estates, and former coal-mining sites, as well as planting trees in city streets, parks, and squares to help cooling during heatwaves.
You've may have a box full of your children's old gaming kit gathering dust in the back of a cupboard or in the loft. If so, it's possibly worth taking a look at what's in there as this classic Atari gizmo loaded with a game called Air Raid just sold for $10,000.
Several years ago, a group of local fishermen established a fishing sanctuary in Oracabessa Bay in response to a decline in vital Jamaican coastal life like coral and herbivorous fish. Due to its success, the conservation model is set to be replicated at multiple other sites in Jamaica.
Dive in Deeper
Happy Flappy Ravioli
Despite weighing more than a ton, members of the eagle ray family love launching themselves above the ocean's surface. For good reason.