Milestones from Today (2017 C.E. - 2025 C.E.)

image for article on French Polynesia marine protection

French Polynesia protects 540,000 sq mi of ocean, hitting the global 30% target

By Peter Schulte / June 22, 2026 / Good News For Humankind

French Polynesia has now fully protected an ocean territory more than twice the size of continental France — a milestone that took over 12 years of community-led science, cultural expeditions, and hundreds of public meetings to reach. The newly protected zones shelter sharks, whales, and species found nowhere else on Earth, while still allowing local communities to fish using traditional methods. The model here — indigenous stewardship paired with international partnership — is already being watched as a potential blueprint for island nations working toward the global 30 by 30 goal.

Satellite image of Africa at night with sparse lights, for article on Mission 300 electricity access

50 million Africans have gained electricity since a continental push began in 2025

By Peter Schulte / June 20, 2026 / Good News For Humankind

Mission 300 is proving that coordinated global action can electrify a continent faster than anyone thought possible. Fifty million people across 40 African countries now have power they lacked just 18 months ago — and the initiative is delivering connections at nearly double its original pace. In Tanzania alone, electrification is happening five times faster than before Mission 300 launched. The $15 billion committed by the World Bank and African Development Bank, amplified by private capital, shows what alignment between governments, funders, and communities can unlock. This is a working model for what determined, coordinated investment can do.

Filling vaccine syringe, for article on HPV vaccine

England records zero cervical cancer deaths in young women, crediting HPV vaccine

By Peter Schulte / June 18, 2026 / Good News For Humankind

HPV vaccination is proving it can do something remarkable: wipe out a cancer entirely in a generation. England’s school-based program, now nearly two decades old, has driven cervical cancer deaths to zero among women in their early twenties — a cohort where dozens of deaths would otherwise have been expected. Researchers say this is only the beginning, with far greater impact ahead as vaccinated generations age. It’s a powerful reminder that a single vaccine, delivered early enough, can make a whole category of suffering disappear — and that other countries have a clear, proven path to follow.

EV charging stations at night, for article on public EV charging ports

U.S. now has 250,000 public EV charging ports, more than doubling since 2021

By Peter Schulte / June 17, 2026 / Good News For Humankind

Public EV charging in America has doubled since 2021, and the milestone reveals just how fast the country’s clean transportation backbone is growing. The U.S. now has over 250,000 public charging ports — and thousands more are already in the pipeline. Fast chargers are spreading along major travel corridors, while libraries, restaurants, and retailers are quietly adding chargers that work while you live your life. Every country watching this buildout sees proof that large-scale EV infrastructure is achievable — and that momentum, once established, is hard to stop.

Floating solar panels, for article on floating solar park

Portugal is opening Europe’s biggest floating solar park this year

By Peter Schulte / June 16, 2026 / Good News For Humankind

Floating solar on reservoirs is quietly rewriting what clean energy infrastructure can look like — and Portugal is leading the way. At Alqueva, Europe’s largest artificial lake, 12,000 solar panels work alongside an existing hydropower dam, producing 7.5 gigawatt-hours of electricity per year without requiring new land or new grid connections. Electricity from the park costs a third of what a gas-fired plant produces at current fuel prices, making the case that green power can be both practical and affordable. Models like this give the broader renewables transition something valuable: a proven, cost-competitive blueprint ready to scale.

Person giving blood, for article on blood donation ban

Canada removes ban on blood donations from gay men

By Peter Schulte / June 16, 2026 / Good News For Humankind

Canada’s shift to behaviour-based blood donation screening closes a 30-year chapter in which gay and bisexual men were turned away not because of anything they did, but because of who they are. Starting September 30, 2022, donors will be assessed on individual risk behaviours — the same standard applied to everyone else. More than eight countries, including the U.K., France, and Brazil, have already made similar moves, signalling a global reckoning with policies that lagged far behind the science. This is what it looks like when health systems finally catch up to both the evidence and human dignity.

Offshore wind farm, for article on offshore wind farm

Taiwan’s ‘biggest offshore wind farm’ generates its first power

By Peter Schulte / June 16, 2026 / Good News For Humankind

Taiwan’s offshore wind sector just crossed a milestone that shows the island’s clean energy ambitions are becoming real. The Greater Changhua facility — 111 turbines spread across deep water off Taiwan’s west coast — will power around one million households once fully operational. Taiwan ranks second in Asia-Pacific for planned offshore wind installations, and projects like this one help build the track record that makes future investment easier to secure. Every turbine connected to the grid is proof that island nations with strong wind resources can lead the global shift away from fossil fuels.

School bus on the road, for article on electric school bus mandate

New York enacts first-in-nation plan to electrify all state school buses

By Peter Schulte / June 16, 2026 / Good News For Humankind

New York’s commitment to electrifying all 50,000 of its school buses sets a new standard for what statewide climate and children’s health policy can look like together. More than two million students — disproportionately from low-income communities — currently ride to school in diesel buses linked to asthma, reduced lung development, and cognitive harm. At least $500 million in state funding, paired with federal support, gives districts a real financial path forward. For advocates working to make clean air a guarantee rather than a privilege, this is a proof of concept other states can follow.

Colombia hillside, for article on cattle traceability law, for article on cattle traceability law, for article on cattle traceability law

Colombia passes landmark law to track millions of cattle and fight deforestation

By Peter Schulte / June 16, 2026 / Good News For Humankind

Colombia’s new cattle traceability law is a landmark shift in how one of the Amazon’s most deforestation-prone industries will be held accountable. For the first time, slaughterhouses, traders, and exporters must prove their beef isn’t linked to illegal deforestation — covering more than 29.7 million cattle across the country. The law also aligns Colombia’s beef sector with the EU’s incoming deforestation regulations, adding real trade incentives to the environmental ones. Conservation groups see it as a model for the region, proof that persistent advocacy can turn a long-documented problem into binding law.

Japanese students walking, for article on LGBTQIA+ education

Japan to roll out LGBTQ+ education nationwide for the first time

By Peter Schulte / June 15, 2026 / Good News For Humankind

LGBTQIA+ education is coming to Japanese schools, universities, and workplaces through the country’s first standardized national framework of its kind. The plan — approved by the ruling party and heading toward cabinet endorsement — would embed awareness training across society, with mandatory progress reviews every three years to measure whether understanding is genuinely shifting. Advocates are clear-eyed about its limits: Japan still has no national anti-discrimination protections, and same-sex marriage remains unrecognized. But a 2024 survey of around 8,000 people found 37 percent neutral on marriage equality, a group researchers believe education could move. Where minds shift, laws can follow.