Upbeat News Tuesday
Today's eclectic collection of positive news nuggets from around the world.
The Florist
"Every year between April and May, vast amounts of water from Angola inundate the floodplains of the Chobe River in Botswana, creating ideal conditions for numerous water lilies to flourish. In spring 2023, a combination of early flooding and unusually high water levels resulted in a truly spectacular display of white and purple flowers. I spent each day out on a boat, hoping to photograph wildlife feeding on the nutrient-rich floating vegetation. One afternoon, in perfect light, everything came together: an African elephant strolled leisurely through the shallow water, plucking flower after flower. Lying flat in the boat, I managed to capture this unique scene." See more images from the European Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026 competition.
Free Train Travel
The European Union is giving free rail travel passes to 41,000 teens. The programme is intended to give young people “the opportunity to travel across Europe by rail, while gaining new experiences and meeting people from different countries.” Successful applicants will be able to travel for up to 30 days between March 2027 and May 2028.
The Power of Touch
In a scientific breakthrough, scientists at Stanford University found a promising new way to restore bleached coral reefs: touching them with healthy coral. The discovery happened by accident last year, when a scientist noticed two pieces of coral had fallen against each other in a lab tank - where the two were touching, the bleached piece of coral was regaining color. The scientist expanded the experiment to ten pieces of healthy and bleached coral from the same colony, and found that all bleached segments put in direct contact with a healthy segment recovered within seven weeks. It can typically take coral months or years to recover - if they do at all. While not yet applicable on a large scale, this breakthrough could help researchers find ways to mimic the results in the ocean and save more of these critical marine ecosystems.
Major Milestone
As winter approaches on 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 numbers over 1,000 for the first time since the organization’s founding more than 20 years ago. American Prairie - a conservation nonprofit -is attempting to stitch together the largest contiguously-wild stretch of North American Prairie in the country for the purpose of conservation and recreation. Thus far they have stitched together 603,657 acres, but the ambition is to protect and some cases rewild 3.2 million acres.
Mighty Impact: New research shows that a herd of 170 bison roaming Romania’s Țarcu mountains have such a positive environmental impact, that it's equivalent to taking almost two million cars of the road for a year.
Striking Back
Greenland’s Parliament has unanimously voted to ban deep-sea mineral extraction. The resolution was passed after President Trump threatened large-scale exploration for mineral deposits around the island. Lawmakers aim to protect the marine environment and fish welfare, as fishing is vital to Greenland’s economy.
Treemendous
In the last seven years, millions of Ethiopians have planted more than 47 billion trees across the country. One of the world’s largest environmental restoration campaigns, the program aims to plant 50 billion seedlings by 2030 to rebuild native forests and integrate them into farmland. In the early 20th century, forests covered an estimated 35 to 40 percent of Ethiopia. By 1989, forest cover was estimated at less than 3 percent. Now, the good news is that forests now cover around 25 percent today. And counting.
“Do what you love. If you love it, you’ll be really good at it.” Ina Garten
On This Day
27 October 1913: In a speech in Mobile, Alabama, President Woodrow Wilson vows the US will "will never again seek one additional foot of territory by conquest." The speech aimed to foster closer economic and political ties with Central and South America.
Today's Articles
Community Kindness: 'Book Brigade' moves thousands of books in a human chain from the old store to a new one, a block away.
Richard Avedon: His provocative portraiture style in the 50s and 60s changed fashion photography for ever.
Mood Boosting Video
Leap of Faith: Amazing cliff jump by baby Emperor penguins.
