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

This archive spans the years 2017 through 2025, a period marked by rapid advances in clean energy, medicine, technology, and social equity. It collects documented breakthroughs, policy wins, and scientific achievements from the present era. If you want evidence that progress is real and ongoing, this is where to look.

Houses with solar panels, for article on heat pump and solar installations

U.K. achieves record numbers of heat pump and solar panel installations in first half of 2023

By / / Good News For Humankind

UK clean home energy hit a record-breaking stretch in the first half of 2023, with rooftop solar installations climbing 62 percent compared to the same months a year earlier. That works out to roughly 17,000 households each month deciding to put panels on their roofs — a pace that suggests solar has crossed from premium choice to practical one. Heat pumps are gaining ground too, with nearly 18,000 installed alongside government schemes easing upfront costs. Together, the country’s small-scale renewables now hold four gigawatts of capacity, more than Europe’s largest gas plant produces. It’s a quietly powerful reminder that the energy transition isn’t only built in boardrooms — it’s built one rooftop, one home, one decision at a time.

New Delhi buses, for article on India emissions intensity

India has reduced its emissions rate by 33% over 14 years

By / / Good News For Humankind

India’s emissions intensity dropped 33% between 2005 and 2019, meaning the country now produces far less greenhouse gas for every dollar of economic output. Even better, the pace is picking up: annual reductions doubled to 3% per year in the most recent stretch measured, the fastest on record. That’s happening while the economy keeps growing, driven by a rapid build-out of solar and wind, expanding forest cover, and fresh investment in green hydrogen. For a country of 1.4 billion people, breaking the old link between prosperity and pollution is exactly the kind of shift the world needs to see — proof that climate progress and development can move together, not in opposition.

Aerial view of rainforest clearing, for article on Amazon deforestation

Brazil’s Amazon deforestation continues to fall dramatically

By / / Good News For Humankind

Amazon deforestation in Brazil dropped 42% in the first seven months of 2023 compared to the same period the year before — a signal that determined policy can turn the tide fast, even within a single year. After President Lula took office, environmental agencies were restaffed and enforcement resumed, reversing years of weakened protections, with satellite data confirming the trend in near real time. Whether these gains hold across future governments and economic pressures remains an open question — but for now, Brazil is offering the world a measurable, verified proof of concept.

Dam, for article on Klamath River dam removal

Work begins along California-Oregon border on largest dam removal project in U.S. history

By / / Good News For Humankind

Klamath River restoration is now the largest dam removal effort in U.S. history, reopening more than 400 miles of river to salmon once the last three dams come down. But the real story is what comes next: members of the Karuk, Yurok, and other tribal nations spent five years hand-gathering seeds from nearly 100 native plant species, and roughly 17 billion of those seeds will be sown along the freed riverbanks over the coming decade. Tribal ecological knowledge is shaping every phase, woven together with western science. For Indigenous communities worldwide fighting to restore ancestral waters, the Klamath offers a powerful template — proof that rivers, and the cultures rooted in them, can be brought back to life.

Melbourne skyline in the distance, for article on Victoria gas ban

Australian state of Victoria bans natural gas in new homes

By / / Good News For Humankind

Victoria’s gas ban on new homes is a meaningful shift in how Australia’s most gas-dependent state builds for the future — locking cleaner, cheaper energy into every new home from the foundation up. Around 80 percent of Victorian households currently run on gas, and doctors have long warned that gas appliances raise asthma risk in children and carry carbon monoxide dangers. All-electric new homes are projected to save owners roughly $1,000 a year, rising to $2,200 with solar. The harder challenge remains retrofitting existing homes, where lower-income households could be left behind without targeted support.