United States | Good News For Humankind

Colorado to be first state in the U.S. to expand automatic voter registration to tribes

By Peter Schulte / December 15, 2023 / Good news links

Tribal communities in Colorado share some of the same registration and voting barriers as other rural communities across the U.S., like geographic isolation and unreliable mail delivery. But according to the Native American Rights Fund, tribal communities also commonly experience obstacles like language barriers, a lack of voter registration opportunities, and state laws in some parts of the country that block polling places on tribal lands.

New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art to return looted ancient art to Cambodia and Thailand

By Peter Schulte / December 15, 2023 / Good news links

Thirteen of the works are being returned to Cambodia in concert with an investigation from the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of New York and Homeland Security. Among the works are a large head of Buddha made of stone in the seventh century, and a tenth century sandstone goddess statue from the Koh Ker archaeological site.

Self-portrait of a woman with cancer and her children

Triple-negative breast cancer vaccine shows good response in first clinical trial of patients

By Peter Schulte / December 15, 2023 / Good news links

A drug that targets the deadliest form of breast cancer was administered to 16 women in three separate doses in a trial conducted at the Cleveland Clinic with funding from the Pentagon. The trial found that the drug elicits no side effects and triggered an immune response in 75% of patients.

Massachusetts becomes first U.S. state to approve phase-out of natural gas as a source for residential heating

By Peter Schulte / December 9, 2023 / Good news links

According to Inside Climate News, Massachusetts is the first state to take such a clear step to phase out natural gas, but it likely won’t be the last. At least 11 other states, including California, Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island and Washington — as well as Washington, D.C. — have ongoing regulatory cases that are exploring the future of natural gas.

U.S. sets policy to seize patents of government-funded drugs if price deemed too high

By Peter Schulte / December 7, 2023 / Good news links

“We’ll make it clear that when drug companies won’t sell taxpayer funded drugs at reasonable prices, we will be prepared to allow other companies to provide those drugs for less,” White House adviser Lael Brainard said on a press call.

Biden administration forgives another $4.8 billion in student loan debt for 80,300 borrowers

By Peter Schulte / December 6, 2023 / Good news links

The Biden administration has now cancelled an unprecedented $130 billion in student debt for more than 3.6 million Americans, offering much-needed relief to low-income families across the country.

The U.S. and six other nations commit to unabated coal phase-out

By Peter Schulte / December 2, 2023 / Good news links

At the COP28 Climate Summit in Dubai, the U.S., Czech Republic, Cyprus, Dominican Republic, Iceland, Kosovo and Norway in formally joining the alliance, which was launched in 2017 by the U.K. and Canada. The new members have committed to not developing new unabated coal power plants and phasing out existing unabated coal plants.

Detroit becomes first city in the U.S. to install wireless-charging roadway

By Peter Schulte / November 30, 2023 / Good news links

Initially, a Ford E-Transit fitted with a receiver will be used to gather data as part of a five-year pilot to perfect the technology in real-world settings and study potential public transport applications – though there are plans to open the electric road system to the public within the next few years.

U.S. Inflation Reduction Act has driven $92 billion investment in EV production and 84,000 jobs

By Peter Schulte / November 22, 2023 / Good news links

Investment in new manufacturing capacity for zero-emissions vehicles, batteries, and critical minerals have jumped more than 250%, climbing from $14 billion in the year before Inflation Reduction Act’s passage to $51 billion in the year since its passage, according to the Clean Investment Monitor.

Gulfstream completes first-ever transatlantic flight with 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel

By Peter Schulte / November 22, 2023 / Good news links

SAF is designed to cut aviation carbon emissions by using sources that rely much less on fossil fuels: include maize, seed oils, algae, animal fats, oils, greases, farm residues, and more. According to Gulfstream, SAF has the potential to reduce net carbon emissions by 70%.