Just Good News Friday

Editor OGN Daily
Aug 15
3 min read

Wrapping up the week with today's global selection of positive news nuggets.

The Beatles at Shea Stadium in 1965 | Credit: SubaFilms Ltd

Mets Revive Beatlemania

The New York Mets will honor the 60th anniversary of the Fab Four’s performance at Shea Stadium when they host the Seattle Mariners today for The Beatles Night at Citi Field. The 1965 performance was a milestone because The Beatles became the first rock band to perform a major stadium concert. A 50-minute documentary entitled The Beatles at Shea Stadium captured the show. At the time, the multi-purpose stadium was home to both the Mets and New York Jets. The celebration begins with a performance by 1964 The Tribute in front of Shea Bridge at 6:15 p.m. ET and the celebrations will continue throughout the night.

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.

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 after the government’s announcement of a new ‘Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging’ scheme, which shifts the financial burden to businesses who produce the packaging. They will be charged fees, which vary based on how easy their packaging is to recycle, with lower costs for reusable or refillable packaging. The scheme aims to incentivise businesses to slash packaging and switch to more planet-friendly materials.

The head of a sunflower — Indiana sunflower looks set to break record

Record Breaking Height

An Indiana man's towering sunflower is unofficially a world record-breaker after being measured at 30 feet and 7 inches tall. Fort Wayne resident Alex Babich previously attempted to break the U.S. record with a sunflower he grew last year, but ultimately fell short. This year he fared better as his 2025 sunflower, named Clover, broke the U.S. record when it reached 26 feet and 8 inches tall, and now it has unofficially beat the Guinness World Record of 30 feet and 1 inch. Evidence of Clover's height must now be examined by Guinness World Records to make the accomplishment official.

Australia's Big Bet

Drive three hours north of Perth, and you'll arrive in Eneabba - barren and desolate, just the odd hill in the distance. This is Western Australia mining territory. Buried in this vast terrain is a massive pit, full of what looks like mounds of worthless dirt, says the BBC. But appearances can be deceiving: this pit is home to a million-tonne stockpile containing critical minerals, better known as rare earths, which are crucial for making electric vehicles, wind turbines and other products. And Australia is betting big on this discovery with a billion dollar loan to a mining company to extract these metals - and disrupt a supply chain that China has thus far monopolised.

Beauty Fridge

While raiding the minibar at your hotel could probably contribute to bags under your eyes, the Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles‘s new amenity is a fridge full of products to make your face look great instead. Next month the hotel will debut a new in-room menu of “Sanctuary Services” that deliver high-end skincare essentials and amenities, including the hotel’s first “Beauty Fridge” that will come stocked with products to rejuvenate your appearance. Recognizing that skincare is highly personal, the hotel allows guests to customize their own fridge, eclipsing the need to lug around your whole routine on your travels with you.

“I was always looking outside myself for strength and confidence, but it comes from within. It is there all the time.” Anna Freud

On This Day

15 August 1914: After some 10 years of work, the Panama Canal opened to ships. The 40 mile canal connected the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the narrow Isthmus of Panama.