Civil society

Civil society encompasses the nonprofits, advocacy groups, community organizations, and grassroots movements that operate outside government and business to advance the public good. This archive collects stories of civil society actors driving measurable progress on issues ranging from human rights and environmental protection to public health and civic participation.

Participants at the Indigenous Peoples’ and Local Communities’ Conservation Congress, for article on community-led conservation

Namibia hosts Africa’s first community-led conservation congress

By / / Good News For Humankind

Indigenous peoples and local communities took the lead at a major African conservation congress for the first time, with delegates from 43 countries gathering in Windhoek, Namibia to set the agenda themselves. Rather than international NGOs or governments calling the shots, community members chose the topics — from customary land rights to human-wildlife conflict — and shaped the conversation. One organizer put it simply: in many African villages, conservation isn’t a program people are recruited into, it’s already a way of living. As the world works toward protecting 30% of land and oceans by 2030, this shift from being invited to the table to building the table themselves could reshape how conservation actually works on the ground.

Ni'isjoohl memorial pole, for article on Nisga'a totem pole repatriation

National Museum of Scotland returns stolen totem pole to Nisga’a people after 100 years

By / / Good News For Humankind

The Ni’isjoohl memorial pole has come home to the Nass Valley after 94 years in Scotland, marking the first time a British museum has returned a totem pole to an Indigenous community. The 11-meter red cedar pole, taken in 1929 while most Nisga’a people were away working, was flown across the Atlantic and welcomed by hundreds, including children who laid cedar branches around it as it rested in the sun. The pole had been commissioned by a grieving mother to honor her son, a warrior named Ts’wawit. Its return offers a hopeful precedent for Indigenous communities worldwide still seeking the return of stolen ancestors and belongings — a quiet but powerful shift in what museums can choose to be.

Young snow leopard, for article on snow leopard population

Bhutan announces a “milestone achievement” with a 39.5% increase in snow leopard numbers

By / / Good News For Humankind

Bhutan’s snow leopard population has climbed to 134 cats, up from 96 in the previous national survey — a 39.5% jump for a species the IUCN still lists as vulnerable. Researchers confirmed the count using camera traps scattered across high-altitude terrain, identifying individuals by the unique rosette patterns on their coats. Much of the credit goes to Bhutan’s deep commitment to conservation: its constitution requires that at least 60% of the country stay forested forever, and protected areas now cover more than half its land. With fewer than 8,000 snow leopards thought to remain across 12 countries, Bhutan’s quiet success offers a hopeful blueprint for what’s possible when legal protection, intact habitat, and political will come together.

Rhinos, for article on white rhino rewilding

Africa NGO purchases world’s largest captive rhino population to rewild 2,000 across the continent

By / / Good News For Humankind

More than 2,000 white rhinos — roughly 15% of the wild southern white rhino population — are heading back to the wild, thanks to a landmark purchase by African Parks. The conservation NGO bought the entire Platinum Rhino herd and plans to release the animals across protected sites in southern Africa over the next decade. The rhinos lived in semi-wild conditions on the ranch, and experts believe they’ll adapt quickly to true wilderness, drawing on African Parks’ experience relocating thousands of animals across the continent. If it succeeds, this rewilding effort could become a defining chapter in one of conservation’s greatest comeback stories — and a hopeful blueprint for protecting threatened species worldwide.