Global Good News Round Up
- Editor OGN Daily
- Sep 21
- 5 min read
Quick summary of all the top good news stories from last week.
Health & Wellbeing
Women's Health: Philanthropist Melinda French Gates has announced a new partnership that will commit $100 million to accelerate women's health research, focusing on areas of women's health with the highest rates of mortality. "I'm talking in years, not decades - to change women's lives."
School Phone Ban Study: Grades are better in schools with smartphone bans, according to a landmark study in India - led by the University of Pennsylvania - which “puts hard evidence behind what teachers and parents have long seen”.
Global Public Health: In a big win for public health access, the WHO has added 39 medicines to its global essential list. Being on the list means countries are more likely to buy the medicine in bulk, copycat versions get made faster, and prices come down quicker.
Imagination Library: Ohio is allowing families to sign up for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library program from the hospital at birth - as part of their birth certificate paperwork. The program sends children one free book each month until they’re 5 years old to help them fall in love with reading early.
Africa School Meals: Demonstrating a strong commitment to the importance of education, Reuters reports that governments in sub-Saharan Africa have provided school meals to approximately 20 million more children over the past two years. 87 million children received school meals in 2024. This also benefits local farmers.
Global School Meals: National school meal programmes now serve 466 million children worldwide, up 80 million since 2020 (yes, that’s 80 million more children in just four years). 99 percent of funding is now coming from national budgets.
Ireland’s Progress: From postwar poverty to one of Europe’s most prosperous and progressive societies, Ireland’s transformation over the past 70 years is nothing short of staggering, writes Vox. Life expectancy has climbed from 70 to 83 years; infant mortality has plummeted; and gross national income (GNI) per capita has risen from $2,000 to $60,000. Emigration has flipped to immigration, and half the population now holds a university degree.
African Health: Japan has committed up to US$550 million over five years to Gavi’s 2026 - 30 program. Coming on top of the US$9 billion already pledged earlier this year, it puts Gavi (the global vaccine alliance) on target for its goal of vaccinating half a billion children by 2030 well within reach.
New York's 'Black Gold': In many U.S. cities, food waste items and yard trimmings are bound for the landfill - in New York, they become “black gold,” a rich compost used throughout the city to improve soil health. This is good news on many levels, particularly because if such waste goes to landfill, they generate methane, a greenhouse gas even more potent than carbon dioxide. When these waste items are composted, not only are those emissions prevented - they help improve soil health, manage stormwater, and keep city green spaces thriving.
Wildlife & Conservation
New Ocean Reserve: An “extraordinary and unique” marine ecosystem off the coast of Western Australia is to be designated a protected ocean reserve. Encompassing coral reefs and mangroves, the Exmouth Gulf - a 1,000 sq. mile (2,600 sq. km) expanse of water - is home to Australia’s largest concentration of dugongs and is a vital stop-off point for migrating humpback whales.
Conservation Success: The Columbian white-tailed deer, native to the Pacific Northwest, has rebounded so successfully that federal officials are now recommending removing it from the endangered species list. “It’s incredibly exciting to see the deer reach this milestone. This effort shows what’s possible when we work together to recover a species.”
Huge New Reserve: Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize share one of the most biodiverse habitats on the planet. To safeguard this area, the three national governments have created the Great Mayan Jungle Biocultural Corridor, a 14 million acre (5.7 million hectares) protected area. It will become the second biggest nature reserve in the Americas, only behind the Amazon rainforest.
First Time in Millennia: For the first time in more than 10,000 years, wild horses once again roam Spain’s northwestern highlands. Przewalski’s horses - the world’s last fully wild horse - have been introduced as a key element for rewilding the Iberian highlands, which today are mostly made up of land left degraded by abandoned crops and pastures. Through grazing, the horses are helping to restore ecosystem health and prevent wildfires.
Chicago River Swim: Chicago is to hold the first open water swim in Chicago River in nearly a century. The Chicago River Swim website says: "Celebrate the Chicago River's remarkable environmental turnaround by applying to the first organized swim since 1927!"
Climate & Renewables
Ozone Layer Healing: The Earth's protective ozone layer is on track to fully recover by mid-century, according to a new report from the UN's World Meteorological Organization. "Today, the ozone layer is healing," United Nations chief Antonio Guterres said. "This achievement reminds us that when nations heed the warnings of science, progress is possible."
Meteoric Rise: The world’s fastest growing source of energy has continued its “gravity defying” ascent in 2025. Global solar installations surged by 64 percent in the first half of 2025, compared to the same period in 2024. The growth was led by China, but India also deployed near-record amounts of solar, while Africa saw the technology begin to “take-off”.
Major Shift in Guatemala: The country has permanently closed the Xan oil field in Laguna del Tigre National Park, marking a major shift from fossil fuel extraction to forest protection. The site, once responsible for nearly 90 percent of the country’s oil production, will now serve as a security base to curb illegal logging, ranching, and trafficking in the Maya Biosphere Reserve.
Methane Milestone: California’s dairy farms have reached a major climate milestone by cutting methane emissions equivalent to 5 million tons of carbon dioxide each year - putting the state’s dairy industry more than two-thirds of the way toward meeting California’s ambitious goal to reduce livestock methane by 40 percent below 2013 levels by 2030.
Cheaper Renewables: According to a new study by independent energy think-tank Ember, Chinese factories now produce 60 percent of the world’s wind turbines and 80 percent of its solar panels - making the cost of renewables more competitive globally. This has resulted in 91 percent of newly commissioned wind and solar projects being cheaper than their fossil fuel equivalents. Ember's report comes amid growing optimism that China’s emissions may have peaked.
And Finally...
The most entertaining story of the week comes from Austria, where three elderly nuns escaped from their retirement home and, with the help of a locksmith, managed to break into (and set themselves up in residence again) their beloved old convent - which had been officially dissolved at the beginning of 2024. Supporters are celebrating the intrepid trio, but their superior is horrified. It may sound like a fictional Netflix movie, but it isn't. Read on...
