Global Good News Round Up
- Editor OGN Daily
- 9 hours ago
- 5 min read
Quick summary of all the top good news stories from last week.
Health & Wellbeing
SuperAger Research: Over two decades of research reveals how SuperAgers defy the odds and succeed in maintaining memory performance on par with those at least three decades younger.
Malaria-Free: Two decades after the Timor-Leste government prioritized fighting malaria, the World Health Organization has certified the country free of the disease, in a "significant milestone". Timor-Leste is the third Southeast Asian country to be declared malaria-free, after the Maldives and Sri Lanka.
New Exercise Trend: We all know that walking is good for us both physically and mentally, but the Japanese believe they have an even better way to boost the positive results of walking - known as the 3-3 walking workout.
New Eye Drops: The first aceclidine-based eye drop to improve near vision in adults with presbyopia, which affects more than 100 million adults in the US alone, has been approved by the FDA. Known as VIZZ, it will be available within three months.
Handy Innovation: Student invents self-disinfecting door handles for hospitals - hailed as a symbol of the Caribbean’s growing science and technology talent pool.
Male Pill: Finally, researchers are closing in on an oral male contraceptive pill that works without hormones, offers full reversibility and - most strikingly - has caused zero side effects. The pill has passed a critical human safety benchmark and will now advance to efficacy trials, and it could potentially be widely available from YourChoice Therapeutics within a few years.
Unapologetically Square: Two new studies show the interesting lifestyle habits of Gen Z Brits.
Wildlife
New Manta Species: Called Mobula yarae - or the Atlantic manta ray - it’s the third known species of manta ray in the world, joining the giant oceanic manta and the reef manta. The main features that set it apart from the other species are V-shaped white patches on its shoulders, lighter colouring around its mouth and eyes and dark spots on its abdomen. M. yarae can grow as large as the giant oceanic manta - between 16 and 20 feet wide.
White Storks in London? Their reintroduction is being mooted, as social enterprise Citizen Zoo is asking Londoners for their thoughts on sharing the city’s trees, rooftops and buildings with the majestic birds after an absence of six centuries.
'Walking Sticks': Scientists in Australia have found a new species of stick insect in the remote rainforests of northern Queensland, and it may be the heaviest insect in the country. Stick insects, also known as walking sticks, blend into their surroundings by looking like twigs. At about 15.75 inches long, the new species, named Acrophylla alta, is almost as heavy as a golf ball and looks, well, like a pretty massive twig.
Space
Fastest Ever Comet: Hubble has snapped an image of a recently discovered interstellar visitor hurtling through our solar system. Traveling at 130,000 mph, 3I/ATLAS is the fastest comet ever observed by astronomers, says NASA. Furthermore, it’s only the third known object to pass through our solar system from deep space ever.
Far Back in Time: A team of astronomers says it has identified the most distant black hole ever confirmed - and it's colossal. The black hole belongs to a mysterious class of compact, early galaxies dubbed Little Red Dots for their intensely bright red appearance in telescope images.
Recycling & Sustainability
Phones For Flamingos: A Tucson, Arizona zoo launched a cell phone recycling program that will help protect flamingos. In partnership with ECO-CEL, the zoo is now accepting used cell phones, tablets, and chargers with the goal of reducing the demand for new lithium mining, which threatens ecosystems where Chilean flamingos live.
New Packaging Policy: Oregon’s new Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act will hold companies that sell packaged products in the state financially responsible for helping the state collect and recycle the packaging. It's the first in the U.S. to implement an Extended Producer Responsibility policy specifically on packaging.
UK Recycling: Under the current system, local authorities - or, rather, taxpayers - foot the bill for recycling the various items that households pop into their recycle bin. That’s about to change with a new ‘Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging’ scheme, which shifts the financial burden to businesses who produce the packaging. The scheme aims to incentivise businesses to slash packaging and switch to more planet-friendly materials.
Triple Win: Biochar yields triple win for cotton: Healthier soil, less water, and 87 percent less nitrogen runoff. New study shows that applying sugarcane-derived biochar to cotton fields offers a sustainable path forward for one of agriculture’s most resource-hungry crops.
Climate & Renewables
First of Its Kind: Italy has agreed to a Vatican plan to build a solar farm on 1,000 acres near Rome, aiming to make Vatican City the world’s first carbon-neutral state.
Ford's $5 Billion Bet: The company reveals that it is preparing to launch a family of affordable (from $30,000) electric vehicles based on a new Ford Universal EV Platform.
The Aloha State: Hawaii is rolling out an unprecedented measure to offset climate change costs - and it’s targeting tourists’ wallets. Starting 1 January 2026, the Aloha State’s 10 million annual visitors will face a slightly higher price tag: a new “green fee” of around $2 per day. It's expected to generate $100 million annually, all of which will go to environmental restoration and climate mitigation efforts.
China & EU Unite: Chinese and EU leaders have shaken hands on fast-tracking the green energy transition. A joint climate statement reaffirmed China and the EU’s commitment to the Paris agreement, calling it the “cornerstone of international climate cooperation”.
UK Renewables: New statistics published by the British government confirm that renewable energy accounted for over half of the UK’s total electricity generation for the first time last year, with onshore and offshore wind generated their highest annual percentages of electricity ever. Renewables provided 50.4% of the UK’s electricity in 2024 (up from 46.4% in 2023).
And Finally...
Hilariously Wonky: Council contractors have been forced to repaint double yellow lines in an English seaside village because the first attempt was wildly wonky. Lines added in Old Hunstanton, Norfolk, just before the start of the summer holidays to stop visitors parking irresponsibly have been mocked by locals for their crooked appearance. Some lines have been painted across residents’ drives, while one appears to have painted over the section outside their property. One man out walking his pet said: “They must have been p----d when they painted them.”
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