Author: Gavin Haines

A new law to protect children from social media has been passed in the US state of Florida, as growing evidence highlights its negative impact on mental health. The strictest law in the US bans children under 14 from having a social media account and obliges platforms to delete accounts for children under this age… Continue reading What went right this week: the good news you should know about

From Somalia to France, this week has seen a host of positive events, including the fact under-5 child mortality rates have reached an historic low. The United Nations revealed that the reasons for this were multiple, but had been driven largely by successful healthcare programs in countries including Cambodia, Malawi, Mongolia, and Rwanda. Despite the good… Continue reading What went right this week: the good news you should know about

A new single is aiming to raise awareness of the lack of biodiversity in UK conifer plantations. Where Now A Dark Wood Stands, by Scottish composer Alexander Chapman Campbell and folk singer Julie Fowlis, encourages the reimagining of timber forests so that nature can flourish in them. The country’s dense planting of conifers creates dark,… Continue reading Call of the wild: can this song breathe life into our barren spruce plantations?

Utrecht, a city in the Netherlands, is providing a glimpse of what cities could look like in a decade. One example is Catharijnesingel, which was a six-lane road for cars but has now been transformed into a canal for boating and nature. The project, which cost around €1bn, began after a referendum in 2002, where… Continue reading The city where ‘the future has already arrived’

Amidst all the negative news, there are always positive stories to be found. Here are some good news stories from this week: Cancer mortality rates in the UK have dropped by 37% in men and 33% in women since 1993, according to a recent Cancer Research UK study. The biggest decrease was in cervical cancer… Continue reading What went right this week: the good news you should know about

An editor from the United Kingdom has taken on the mammoth task of publishing a Wikipedia biography for at least one woman from every country. Lucy Moore noticed there was a lack of female representation on the encyclopaedic website and saw that only 19.76% of biographies were about women. To address this, Moore set out… Continue reading What went right this week: the good news you should know about

California’s Delete Act, which aims to give residents more control over their online information, has been signed into law by the state’s governor Gavin Newsom. The act will allow residents to request that their personal information be deleted by all data brokers operating in California. While similar legislation may be some way off in other… Continue reading Becoming less visible online: five ways to shrink your digital footprint

Europe passed a monumental law to restore nature while Finland almost completely eradicated homelessness. Additionally, a Scottish land deal empowered communities and the UK’s green economy defied early sceptics. The European parliament passed a law aimed at reversing biodiversity loss which has plagued the EU. This law will require EU countries to safeguard and restore… Continue reading What went right this week: the good news you should know about

This week’s roundup of good news offers many reasons for optimism, including the UK’s decision to leave a controversial energy charter treaty, a study proving that reforestation efforts in the eastern US have helped keep temperatures cool, and the decision by English hospitals to adopt “Martha’s rule.” Additionally, a new report shows that most of… Continue reading What went right this week: the good news that matters

The giant oil and gas companies are doing everything in their power to maintain our dependence on expensive fossil fuels. However, it’s time we explored ways to free ourselves from the grip of these conglomerates. While ordinary citizens struggle to pay their bills, the energy companies continue to cream in profits. Recently, electricity and gas… Continue reading 12 ways to phase fossil fuels out of your life