Archive of Human Genius
The world’s largest database of social change milestones, from the first fire to today’s good news.
A Timeline of Human History A Database of Good News An Imagining of our Collective Future
We are building the world’s largest database of social change milestones, from the first fire to today’s good news. Change is not only possible, it has happened consistently throughout human history.
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2024 C.E.
March 29
Two weeks of talks at the U.N.'s International Maritime Organization have concluded in London, with a clear majority of countries emerging in favor of a historic, first-ever global emissions levy. The shipping sector, which accounts for 3% of global emissions and transports more than 90% of global trade, is regarded as one of the hardest industries to decarbonize, partly owing to the vast amounts of dirty fossil fuels the ships burn each year.
2024 C.E.
March 28
Among the changes, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will reinstate a decades-old regulation that mandates blanket protections for animals and plants newly classified as threatened. That means officials won’t have to craft specific plans to shield each individual species while protections are pending, as has been done recently with North American wolverines in the Rocky Mountains, alligator snapping turtles in the Southeast and spotted owls in California.
2024 C.E.
March 28
Slovakia stopped production at its last coal-fired power plant this week. Its electricity will now come almost entirely from nuclear and renewable sources. Slovakia originally slated its coal phaseout for 2030 but has now expedited this to mid-2024, when it will join Belgium, Austria, Sweden and Portugal as Europe's coal-free countries.
2024 C.E.
March 27
The law, like those passed in New York, California, and Minnesota, will require many manufacturers to provide the same parts, tools, and documentation to individuals and repair shops that they provide to their own repair teams. But Oregon's bill goes further, preventing companies from implementing schemes that require parts to be verified through encrypted software checks before they will function.
2024 C.E.
March 26
Judges overseeing a high-profile human rights trial in Argentina have convicted 11 former officials of crimes against humanity, in the South American nation's first case to focus on the former military dictatorship’s overlooked practice of committing sexual violence against transgender women.
2024 C.E.
March 25
After Cyprus and Malta, Croatia is the third E.U. member state to recognize the crime of femicide, which is defined as the killing of a woman or girl, in particular by a man and on account of her gender. The legislation will also increase the prison sentence for rape from one to five years to three to eight, and victims will have the option to give testimony via videocall rather than attending in person.
2024 C.E.
March 22
The new law will allow adults to carry up to 25 grams of cannabis for their own consumption and store up to 50 grams at home. Public consumption will be allowed, so long as it is not within sight of children or near sports facilities. It will also be prohibited in pedestrian zones between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. It is slated to come into effect on April 1.
2024 C.E.
March 23
Scientists from the University of Surrey in England, working with colleagues at the University of Cambridge, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xidian University, and Zhengzhou University, have developed a flexible perovskite solar panel that use electrodes made of tiny carbon nanotubes. The researchers demonstrated that in addition to producing more energy than traditional solar panels, “the material cost of an all-carbon-electrode-based bifacial PSC is about 70% lower than that of a monofacial device.”
2024 C.E.
March 22
Indian oil refineries have stopped accepting Russian crude oil delivered by tankers operated by Russia’s largest commercial shipping company that has been sanctioned by the U.S., likely as a result of the war on Ukraine. The move deals a significant blow to Russia's economy as India has emerged as a major importer of Russian crude oil over the past two years.
2024 C.E.
March 21
The Assembly called on all Member States and stakeholders “to refrain from or cease the use of artificial intelligence systems that are impossible to operate in compliance with international human rights law or that pose undue risks to the enjoyment of human rights.” The text was “co-sponsored” or backed by more than 120 other Member States. It represents the first time the Assembly has adopted a resolution on regulating the emerging field.
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