Getting the weekend off to an upbeat start.
"We have a deal" says Joe Biden as he gets his bipartisan moment on infrastructure. He has long said he wants to show Americans that Washington can work to solve problems and, in coming to a tentative agreement with a bipartisan group of senators to fund approximately $1.2 trillion in infrastructure spending, Biden took a step toward that goal. The money includes a very substantial sum for a raft of environmental initiatives, and includes $15 billion for EV infrastructure.
The mystery of how birds migrate long distances over land and sea is a step closer to being cracked. By studying robins, scientists have found clues to how birds sense the Earth's magnetic field - . birds are thought to have an in-built 'living compass'. A chemical in the eye that is sensitive to magnetism could be proof of this theory, according to a new study. Peter Hore, professor of chemistry at the University of Oxford, said it could be that birds can 'see' the Earth's magnetic field, although we don't know that for sure yet.
Hats off to 17-year-old Kieran Moise who just had his 19-inch hair cut for the first time in six years. He decided to donate it for wigs for children battling cancer. "I’m going into the military and I didn’t want to just cut it off and drop it on the floor," the teen said. Kieran has also raised more than $34,000 through his Fundraising page "Kieran’s Curls for Cancer" with the money going to families of children battling cancer.
Wales is coming to the end of the road: The Welsh government is freezing new road-building projects as part of its plans to tackle the climate emergency, and an external panel will review all proposed schemes. The deputy minister for climate change, says: “Since 1990, Welsh emissions have fallen by 31 percent. But to reach our statutory target of net zero emissions by 2050, we need to do much more."
Good news for renewable energy: It’s now cheaper to build and operate new large-scale wind or solar plants in 46 percent of the world than it is to run an existing coal or gas-fired power plant, reports Bloomberg. And, as the price of renewables continues to fall, that percentage will continue to rise.
As everybody in Europe knows, the postponed 2020 Euro football tournament is now down to the knock-out stages. Next Tuesday England are slated to play Germany, their nemisis in so many previous encounters. It's not a case of 'don't mention the war', more a case of don't utter the words 'penalty shootout'. So, this great Matt cartoon captures the spirit of the day in more than one way.
The first new areas of outstanding natural beauty (AONB) for a quarter of a century are to be created in England. The move follows a commitment by the UK government to protect 30 percent of its land by 2030. The Yorkshire Wolds and Cheshire Sandstone Ridge are the probable landscapes to be recognised as protected areas, alongside extensions to the Surrey Hills and Chilterns AONBs.
The Japanese government has just released its annual economic policy guideline, which includes recommendations that companies permit their staff to opt to work four days a week instead of five - aiming to improve the balance between work and life for people who have family-care responsibilities or need more time off to acquire new skills.
Don't miss the OGN Sunday Magazine tomorrow, and have a great weekend!
Dive in Deeper
Remarkable
Once a desolate island with just one tree - not a single tree species, literally just a one tree. A naturalist decided to do something about it. Take a look at the island now...