United States

The Wisconsin State Capitol building exterior for an article about Wisconsin abortion ban

Wisconsin Supreme Court strikes down the state’s 1849 near-total abortion ban

By / / Good News For Humankind

Wisconsin’s abortion ban — a law dating to 1849 C.E. — was struck down by the state Supreme Court in July 2025 C.E. The ruling invalidates a statute that criminalized abortion from conception with no exceptions, restores legal access up to 22 weeks, and reopens clinics that had closed after the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 C.E. reversal of Roe v. Wade. Legal analysts say the decision offers a potential roadmap for advocates challenging similar zombie laws in other states.

Rusted lead water pipes removed from the ground for an article about Flint lead pipe replacement — 13 words

Flint, Michigan finally replaces all lead pipes after decade-long water crisis

By / / Good News For Humankind

Flint, Michigan has completed the replacement of every lead and galvanized steel service line in the city — more than 10,000 pipes removed after a decade-long public health disaster. The Flint lead pipe replacement removes the primary source of contamination that exposed a majority-Black community to dangerous levels of lead starting in 2014. The finish line is real, but the road to full recovery is not.

A nurse-midwife consulting with a pregnant patient in a clinical setting for an article about autonomous midwifery practice

Virginia expands autonomous midwifery practice in a win for women’s health

By / / Good News For Humankind

Virginia has passed legislation granting nurse-midwives the authority to practice autonomously — without physician supervision — expanding access to maternal care across the state. Autonomous midwifery practice is especially critical in rural counties facing obstetric deserts, and part of a growing national trend to align state law with evidence on what qualified practitioners can safely do.

A diverse group of people gathered outside a government building for an article about LGBTQ+ elected officials

Out LGBTQ+ elected officials in the U.S. have tripled since 2017

By / / Good News For Humankind

The number of openly LGBTQ+ elected officials in the United States has more than tripled since 2017, spanning every level of government from local school boards to Congress. The surge in LGBTQ+ elected officials reflects growing voter willingness to elect diverse candidates across geographic and demographic lines — and is reshaping policy on healthcare, housing, and civil rights from within government itself.

A forensic evidence collection kit on a hospital surface for an article about rape kit tracking — 13 words.

Kansas launches statewide system for survivors to track rape kit status

By / / Good News For Humankind

Kansas survivors of sexual assault can now track their own forensic evidence in real time through a new statewide portal launched by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. Each kit receives a unique code at collection, giving survivors secure access to status updates from hospital intake through lab analysis — ending years of uncertainty about where their evidence stood in the testing process.

Hens moving freely in a cage-free barn for an article about cage-free egg pledges — 12 words.

More than 1,400 companies worldwide have made cage-free egg pledges

By / / Good News For Humankind

More than 1,400 companies worldwide have now committed to cage-free egg sourcing, with most 2025 deadlines arriving now. Driven by consumer pressure and coordinated advocacy, the shift is giving hundreds of millions of hens meaningfully better living conditions — and offering a documented model for how sustained campaigns can transform entire global industries without waiting for governments to act first.

Close-up of Tabernanthe iboga plant leaves and root bark for an article about ibogaine research funding

Texas funds largest state psychedelic research program in U.S. history

By / / Good News For Humankind

Ibogaine research got its biggest public investment ever in 2025 C.E., when Texas committed 0 million to supervised clinical trials targeting PTSD and opioid addiction in veterans and first responders. The move makes Texas the unlikely leader in a field that federal drug scheduling has long blocked — and puts a powerful plant compound derived from a Central African shrub at the center of American mental health policy for the first time.

A researcher examining a vial in a laboratory for an article about pancreatic cancer vaccine

Personalized mRNA vaccine wipes out pancreatic cancer in more than half of early trial patients

By / / Good news links

A personalized pancreatic cancer vaccine developed by BioNTech and Genentech/Roche has eliminated detectable cancer in more than half of patients who mounted an immune response in early trials. Using mRNA technology to target mutations unique to each patient’s tumor, the vaccine kept T-cells active for up to four years — a durable result against a disease with a five-year survival rate of just 13%. Researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center call it one of the most significant advances the field has seen.

Aerial view of a forested river canyon in Northern California for an article about Yurok land back

Yurok Tribe reclaims 17,000 acres in California’s largest-ever land back deal

By / / Good News For Humankind

The Yurok land back agreement returns 17,000 acres of ancestral territory along California’s Klamath River — the largest such transfer in state history. Secured through a partnership with conservation land trusts, the deal restores Yurok governance over forests, sacred sites, and traditional fishing areas. It also strengthens the largest dam removal and river restoration project in U.S. history, and offers a legal blueprint for land back agreements nationwide.

Scales of justice on a courthouse desk for an article about rape kit backlog reform — 13 words

Colorado eliminates its rape kit backlog and sets a national standard for survivor justice

By / / Good news links

Colorado has cleared its entire rape kit backlog and passed legislation to prevent a new one from forming. The law sets mandatory processing deadlines, dedicates sustained funding to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation crime labs, and gives survivors a real-time system to track their own evidence. It’s one of the most comprehensive sexual assault evidence reforms any U.S. state has enacted — and other states are watching.