Good news from around the world this week includes the US issuing the first ever fine for space junk, the world’s first timber skyscraper receiving the go-ahead and a beaver being born in London for the first time in 400 years. Here are some more highlights:
A second malaria jab has won approval from the World Health Organization (WHO). The R21 vaccine, developed by the University of Oxford, has reportedly been shown to be just as effective as the world’s first vaccine, RTS,S, which has been plagued by shortage issues. Demand for the RTS,S vaccine far exceeds supply, so the R21 vaccine is a vital addition to protect more children faster.
Thousands of oysters have settled into their new home on an artificial reef the size of a football pitch off the coast of north-east England. The release of mature native oysters on the newly created reef, which consists of materials made from stone and scallop shells, is the culmination of a three-year collaborative effort to protect European native oysters. The species has declined by over 95% in UK waters since the 1800s due to over-harvesting, disease and pollution. The new arrivals are hoped to form the foundation for a new marine ecosystem.
The Nobel prize committee has unveiled the first of 2023’s laureates, honouring achievements in science and literature. Hungarian biochemist Prof Katalin Karikó and Prof Drew Weissman from the Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, shared the prize for “physiology or medicine”; Pierre Agostini, Ferenc Krausz and Anne L’Huillier won the physics prize; and Moungi Bawendi and Louis Brus, from the US, share the chemistry prize with Russian colleague Alexey Ekimov. In addition, Norwegian writer Jon Fosse has been named this year’s literature laureate “for his innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable”.
The BBC has hailed environmental champions from the world of sport through its Green Sport awards, run in partnership with the Sport Positive Summit. Among the winners were Australian cricket captain Pat Cummins, named Athlete of the Year for his Cricket for Climate Foundation; British cross-country champ Innes FitzGerald, Young Athlete of the Year; and Forest Green Rovers, called the ‘greenest football club in the world’ by Fifa, named Elite Organisation of the Year. FitzGerald said she felt privileged to have been recognised and that she hoped her work would raise awareness about climate-related issues.
The world’s first ‘green container ship’ has arrived in Felixstowe, England. Its Danish owners describe the methanol-fuelled vessel as a “historic milestone” for global shipping, which currently spews around three per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions due to its reliance on heavy fuel oil
Read the full article on Positive News here: Read More