What went right this week :) Bad news sells, but good news still exists out there. For example...
Amazon deforestation falls over 60% compared with last July, says Brazilian minister
Marina Silva welcomes progress but says climate crisis means upcoming regional summit needs to produce real action.
The US gender pay gap narrowed
The pay gap between full-time working women and their male counterparts in the US is now narrower than ever, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics – but there’s still some way to go before parity is reached.
Bhutan and India boosted tiger numbers
Tigers are clawing their way back from the brink of extinction in Bhutan. According to the country’s latest tiger census, the big cats have increased their population from 103 to 131 since 2015 – a rise of 27 per cent.
AI helped doctors identify breast cancer cases
Further signs of AI’s potential to transform healthcare came this week as a Swedish study revealed that AI-supported screening can identify more cases of breast cancer than conventional screening.
Germany’s €49 travel pass got the country moving
It’s a green policy that would do well to catch on: a €49-a-month pass allowing unlimited travel on buses and trains in Germany.
The result? A 25 per cent year-on-year uptick in the number of people making low-carbon train trips, according to the national rail operator Deutsche Bahn (DB).
UK crop yields rose despite a fall in fertiliser use
Turns out we don’t need fossil fuel fertilisers as much as people thought. New data from the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) revealed that UK crop yields rose last year, despite a sharp decline in fertiliser use.
According to Defra, wheat, barley, oilseed rape and sugar beet yields rose by 2.4 per cent in 2022, while fertiliser use fell by a reported 27 per cent. Artificial fertilisers are made using natural gas, the cost of which soared after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, prompting farmers to embrace natural alternatives or simply use less.
England’s plastic bag charge was hailed a success
There’s been a 98 per cent reduction in single-use plastic bags in England since the government forced supermarkets to charge shoppers 5p each for them.
That’s according to figures from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which introduced the charge in 2015, then increased it to 10p in 2021.
Speaking of plastic waste…
Amazon claims to have shrunk its supersized plastic footprint – and said that more measures to tackle waste were on the way.
In its latest sustainability report, Amazon said that its fulfillment centres used 85,916 metric tonnes of single-use plastic in 2022 – down 11.6 per cent compared to 2021. The retail giant also said it will be “phasing out padded bags containing plastics in favour of recyclable alternatives”.
Ex-prisoners helped insulate Britain
A pioneering retrofit academy is doing what British politicians can’t seem to – insulating homes, and with the help of ex-prisoners and single mothers.
Manchester-based B4Box trains people who traditionally struggle to access the labour market in retrofit. Their newfound skills are helping keep thousands of homes warm (and cool), while cutting emissions.
There is still good, and hope, in this world. We must remember this 😊🌱🌈
Marina Silva welcomes progress but says climate crisis means upcoming regional summit needs to produce real action.
The US gender pay gap narrowed
The pay gap between full-time working women and their male counterparts in the US is now narrower than ever, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics – but there’s still some way to go before parity is reached.
Bhutan and India boosted tiger numbers
Tigers are clawing their way back from the brink of extinction in Bhutan. According to the country’s latest tiger census, the big cats have increased their population from 103 to 131 since 2015 – a rise of 27 per cent.
AI helped doctors identify breast cancer cases
Further signs of AI’s potential to transform healthcare came this week as a Swedish study revealed that AI-supported screening can identify more cases of breast cancer than conventional screening.
Germany’s €49 travel pass got the country moving
It’s a green policy that would do well to catch on: a €49-a-month pass allowing unlimited travel on buses and trains in Germany.
The result? A 25 per cent year-on-year uptick in the number of people making low-carbon train trips, according to the national rail operator Deutsche Bahn (DB).
UK crop yields rose despite a fall in fertiliser use
Turns out we don’t need fossil fuel fertilisers as much as people thought. New data from the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) revealed that UK crop yields rose last year, despite a sharp decline in fertiliser use.
According to Defra, wheat, barley, oilseed rape and sugar beet yields rose by 2.4 per cent in 2022, while fertiliser use fell by a reported 27 per cent. Artificial fertilisers are made using natural gas, the cost of which soared after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, prompting farmers to embrace natural alternatives or simply use less.
England’s plastic bag charge was hailed a success
There’s been a 98 per cent reduction in single-use plastic bags in England since the government forced supermarkets to charge shoppers 5p each for them.
That’s according to figures from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which introduced the charge in 2015, then increased it to 10p in 2021.
Speaking of plastic waste…
Amazon claims to have shrunk its supersized plastic footprint – and said that more measures to tackle waste were on the way.
In its latest sustainability report, Amazon said that its fulfillment centres used 85,916 metric tonnes of single-use plastic in 2022 – down 11.6 per cent compared to 2021. The retail giant also said it will be “phasing out padded bags containing plastics in favour of recyclable alternatives”.
Ex-prisoners helped insulate Britain
A pioneering retrofit academy is doing what British politicians can’t seem to – insulating homes, and with the help of ex-prisoners and single mothers.
Manchester-based B4Box trains people who traditionally struggle to access the labour market in retrofit. Their newfound skills are helping keep thousands of homes warm (and cool), while cutting emissions.
There is still good, and hope, in this world. We must remember this 😊🌱🌈
