Wrapping up the week with a bundle of good news nuggets from around the globe.
The populations of several species and subspecies of rhinoceros are increasing, some dramatically, while poaching rates in east Asia have plummeted over the decade, a new report from the International Rhino Foundation reveals. The biggest success story is the greater one-horned rhino. Native to India and Nepal, during the early 1900s there were a mere 100 individuals left. Today conservationists are celebrating that there are now 3,700, and numbers are still increasing.
Philanthropists and investors committed $5 billion to nature restoration and conservation on Wednesday, a move environmental activists welcomed as the highest sum of private funding ever pledged. The funding, pledged at an event on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, will focus on the "30by30" target, which aims to protect 30 percent of the planet's land and water over the next decade.
Ford says that their F-Series has been the biggest-selling truck in the US market for 44 years in a row, and the best-selling vehicle, car or truck, for most of that time, as trucks overtook cars in popularity. So, it's good to hear that Ford has now confirmed it has 130,000 deposits for its new all-electric F-150 Lightning model (priced from $40,000 to $90,000) which will hit dealerships in the US next year.
On the subject of cars, who could have guessed that Nissan employs a member of staff in England who has ‘enhanced senses’ - to ensure its products have the all-important perfect ‘new car smell’. Peter Eastland has a master’s degree in chemistry and forensic science from Leicester University. But he also possesses an extremely acute sense of smell, which allows him to identify more than 15 smell categories. Nissan recognized he has the ‘nose for the job’ and appointed him as the ‘odour evaluation lead engineer’ at its European Technical Centre in Bedfordshire.
A crucial series of Albert Einstein’s calculations, scrawled down between 1913 and 1914 as the physicist struggled to account for an anomaly in the orbit of Mercury while developing his theory of general relativity, is set to be auctioned. Christie’s France and auction house Aguttes, who will auction the manuscript in Paris on 23 November for an estimate of €2m to €3m, said it documents a crucial stage in the development of the theory of general relativity, and is “without doubt the most valuable Einstein manuscript ever offered at auction”.
Welcome news is expected shortly for waiters and waitresses in the UK. New legislation is set to be announced which will prevent companies from retaining a percentage of employees tips when bills are paid by card. This would bring it in line with the law around cash tips, which are kept in full by waiting staff.
Late last year, a Mongolian family sold their aging camel to another farmer, but after about 9 months the camel ‘ran away’ from its new keeper. The camel reportedly walked more than 100km in the desert alone in its bid to return to its previous owners. And succeeded! The family was touched by its loyalty and decided to buy it back and offered the current owner another camel in return. The family wrapped a traditional Mongolian scarf around its neck as a symbol of being a member of the family.
New 161m super-yacht concept by Kurt Strand has sails that capture energy when moving and then store it in a battery bank onboard. This energy can then be converted to hydrogen. Even without wind or sunshine, the vessel - named Norway as she was inspired by the longships of the Viking Age - will forge ahead powered by engines that run on hydrogen. Thus, the yacht is emission free, whatever the weather.
Coming up this weekend on OGN: Extended selection of global good news nuggets on Saturday and the OGN Sunday Magazine has a great collection of upbeat, positive news articles. Enjoy!
Fun Fact: More energy from the sun hits Earth every hour than the planet uses in a year.
Dive in Deeper
Mont Saint Michel
Enjoy a spectacular aerial tour of this stunning monastic island off the Normandy coast of France.
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