Climate crisis | Good News for Humankind

Global solar installations up 64% so far this year

By Peter Schulte / September 3, 2025 / 🌏 Good News For Humankind

The global energy transition is hitting new milestones, with solar power leading the charge. A recent report from the International Energy Agency reveals that new solar capacity surged by an impressive 64% in 2025. This record-breaking growth establishes solar as the world’s largest source of new electricity generation, proving its economic viability and role in bolstering energy security. This progress demonstrates that a cleaner, more resilient energy future is not only possible but is accelerating at an unprecedented pace.

Clean energy to provide one-third of India’s utility electricity for first time ever

By Peter Schulte / September 1, 2025 / 🌏 Good News For Humankind

India’s energy sector is experiencing a monumental shift, marked by a record 20% surge in clean electricity generation in the first half of 2025. This significant increase, fueled by wind and solar power, has allowed the country to reduce its fossil fuel output by 4%. The growing share of clean power in India’s energy mix demonstrates that robust economic growth and environmental sustainability are not mutually exclusive goals.

Lagos bans single-use plastics

By Peter Schulte / August 12, 2025 / 🌏 Good News For Humankind

On July 1, 2025, Lagos introduced a ban on single-use plastics like Styrofoam plates, straws, and cutlery. The city—home to 20 million people—has long battled severe plastic pollution, with clogged waterways worsening floods and harming health. The ban is already driving grassroots recycling, sparking innovation in sustainable packaging, and raising public awareness about waste reduction. If supported by stronger enforcement, better waste systems, and affordable alternatives, this move could slash hundreds of thousands of tons of plastic waste annually—positioning Lagos as a model for African cities aiming to protect their environment and build a cleaner, more resilient future.

Ethiopia to plant 700 million trees in one day

By Peter Schulte / August 7, 2025 / 🌏 Good News For Humankind

Ethiopia has launched a record-breaking push to plant 700 million trees in a single day, part of a plan to grow 50 billion by 2026 to fight deforestation, boost livelihoods, and tackle climate change. By early morning, 14.9 million people had already planted 355 million seedlings. The nationwide effort has been championed by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed since 2019 as a personal and national priority.

Vatican strikes solar farm deal to become the world’s first carbon-neutral state

By Peter Schulte / July 31, 2025 / 🌏 Good News For Humankind

Italy has agreed to a Vatican plan to build a solar farm on 1,000 acres near Rome, aiming to make Vatican City the world’s first carbon-neutral state. The Santa Maria Galeria project will generate enough clean energy for the micronation while preserving the land’s agricultural use and minimizing environmental impact. This step marks a significant commitment by the Vatican toward sustainability and climate leadership.

New York becomes first U.S. state to require all-electric new buildings

By Peter Schulte / July 30, 2025 / 🌏 Good News For Humankind

Buildings are one of New York’s biggest climate polluters, responsible for nearly a third of the state’s emissions. In 2025, the state finalized the nation’s first statewide gas ban, requiring most new buildings to run on electric systems, with larger ones following in 2029. A federal court upheld the law, clearing the way for implementation. By ending fossil fuel hookups in new construction, New York is cutting a major source of greenhouse gases, improving air quality, and creating a model for other states—pushing the country closer to a future where all buildings help solve the climate crisis, not fuel it.

World Court says countries are legally obligated to curb emissions and protect climate

By Peter Schulte / July 23, 2025 / 🌏 Good News For Humankind

A landmark decision by the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands has cleared the way for countries to sue each other over climate change. Campaigners and climate lawyers have called this a “watershed legal moment” and hope the decision will pave the way for compensation from countries that have historically burned the most fossil fuels. The unprecedented case was the brainchild of a group of young law students from low-lying Pacific islands on the frontlines of climate change, who came up with the idea in 2019.

Sun shining with wind turbines rising above clouds

More than 90% of global new renewable energy capacity is now cheaper than fossil fuels

By Peter Schulte / July 22, 2025 / 🌏 Good News For Humankind

The global switch to renewable energy has passed a “positive tipping point,” according to two United Nations reports. Solar is now 41% cheaper than fossil fuels worldwide. Not long ago, it was four times the cost. Offshore wind is now also 53% cheaper and the most affordable source of new renewable energy. Even more, costs for renewables are expected to keep dropping as technology matures and supply chains strengthen.

California becomes world’s largest economy to be powered by two-thirds clean energy

By Peter Schulte / July 14, 2025 / 🌐 Good news links

The state released new data showing California’s continued progress toward a clean energy future with 67% of the state’s retail electricity sales in 2023 coming from renewable and zero-carbon electricity generation — compared to just 61% the previous year and around 41% a decade ago. Then, in 2024, the state added a record-breaking 7,000 MW of clean capacity to the grid, the largest single-year increase in clean energy capacity in state history.

Solar in the foreground, wind turbines in the background

India now gets 50% of its energy from non-fossil sources

By Peter Schulte / July 14, 2025 / 🌏 Good News For Humankind

The world’s most populous nation has achieved the milestone of generating a majority of its installed electricity capacity from non-fossil fuel sources — five years ahead of its 2030 target under the Paris Agreement. India’s renewable power output rose at its fastest pace since 2022 in the first half of 2025, while coal-fired generation declined nearly 3%. The country added nearly 28 GW of solar and wind in 2024 and had already added 16 GW of wind and solar capacity by June 2025.