Good News for Humankind 🌏
The world’s latest milestones for climate, justice, freedom, peace, health, and more
24 February 2025 C.E.
Nine Asian nations have cut child mortality by more than half since 2000
Child mortality in Asia has fallen sharply, especially in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, and Nepal, which have all seen a decline of at least 50% since 2000. This progress amounts to millions more children surviving through the crucial early years of life. Particularly noteworthy, India’s child mortality fell from 9% to 3% and China’s from 4% to just 1%. These huge strides have been made possible by improved nutrition, clean water, sanitation, vaccinations, and poverty reduction.
France runs fusion reactor for record 22 minutes
Achieving the dream of commercial fusion power is the Holy Grail of engineering and has been for 80 years. With a single gram of hydrogen isotopes yielding the energy equivalent of 11 tonnes of coal, a practical fusion reactor would hold the promise of unlimited, clean energy for humanity until the end of time. France has upped the ante in the quest for fusion power by maintaining a plasma reaction for over 22 minutes – 25% longer than the previous record set by China in January 2025.
Michigan expands hate crime law to protect LGBTQ+ identities
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed a bill adding sexual orientation and gender identity to the state’s hate crime law, along with a companion bill amending sentencing guidelines for hate crimes. The 1988 ethnic intimidation law initially applied only to religion, ethnicity, and race. The new law adds LGBTQ+ identities, as well as sex, age, disability, national origin, and affiliation with these groups. A first offense for committing a hate crime against one of the protected classes is punishable with a fine of $5,000 and/or up to two years behind bars.
Canada to build massive, fully electric, 185-mph inter-city rail network
Canada is set to begin work on a high-speed inter-city rail network – the largest infrastructure project in the country’s history. Spanning 621 miles, the fully electric new rail network will serve 18 million people – nearly half of Canada’s population – across the Toronto-Quebec City corridor. It’s expected to serve 13 times more passengers annually than the current service. Canada is expected to invest nearly $3 billion USD over the next six years to bring the project to light.
More than 100,000 pounds of trash removed from the Arctic since 2021
Over 50,000 pounds of trash have been removed from the Arctic in 2023 alone after a multilateral effort flooded critical northern ecosystems with volunteers. Working during the brief Arctic summer, clean-up operations were carried out in Alaska, Greenland, Norway, and Iceland. Nearly 2,000 volunteers were enlisted across the treaty nations of the Arctic Council, an inter-governmental panel on peaceful and sustainable use and protection of the Arctic zone formed by the nations that pierce its frozen bordersand the Indigenous peoples that call it home.
Global child mortality rate plummets from a historical average of 48% to 27% in 1950 (1950 C.E.)
As recently as two centuries ago, around 1 in 2 children died before reaching the end of puberty. Our ancestors were often largely powerless against poverty, famine, and disease, and these calamities were especially devastating for children. Since then, child mortality has plummeted across the world. This dramatic decline has resulted from better nutrition, clean water, sanitation, neonatal healthcare, vaccinations, medicines, and reductions in poverty, conflicts, and famine.
Global child mortality rates drops below 2.5% for the first time in history (2040 C.E. ???)
The global Sustainable Development Goals adopted by all U.N. member states in 2015 set out an ambitious goal to achieve less than 25 deaths before the age of 5 per every 1000 children. A decade after the initial 2030 goal, the world finally achieves this monumental milestone for families and communities around the world.
These milestones have been added to the Archive of Human Genius – our database of social change milestones – past, present & future.
Stop Trump’s Postal Service Takeover
From Common Cause: Congress must protect our Postal Service from Trump’s reported plot to take it over. Millions of Americans rely on the Postal Service for receiving medications, sending letters to family, or casting mail-in ballots. The Postal Service is a public good guaranteed by our Constitution, which gives Congress – NOT the President – authority over the USPS. Our members of Congress must step up and protect this crucial service from Trump’s hostile takeover. Sign the petition.
This week’s calendar
- GET S*** DONE Work Group every weekday, 10:30am-12pm PT (online)
- Bellingham Men’s Circle on Monday, March 3, 6-8pm PT (in-person)
Weekly reflection
Hi beautiful people,
Humans have a miraculous ability to envision new, better worlds. We constantly compare how the world is now to how we think it could be. No other creature we know of can do this.
In many ways, this is an incredible gift. It inspires us to dream up and build a brighter future and constantly evolve ourselves. It often offers a sense of meaning, purpose, and possibility.
But this gift is also the source of a lot of unnecessary pain. We can so easily imagine the world that we think we should have or is supposed to be. It can be infuriating and discouraging to see how far away we are from this idealized conception of our minds. For many of us, this feeling is now perhaps stronger than ever, given the daily barrage of foolishness and cruelty from our supposed leaders.
My invitation is to keep dreaming and earnestly building that better world of your dreams. That is meaningful, important work. But perhaps you can let go of the idea that the world is supposed to be the way you want it to be. The world isn’t actually supposed to be anything. It is what it is. It is whatever we decide to make it.
Once we stop believing we are owed the world we want or are somehow shameful or broken for not collectively realizing the world we believe should be, we offer ourselves a greater sense of peace and acceptance that can be an important balm in these troubled times. But we also free up the energy we need to do something meaningful to create that brighter future.
Could and want inspire. Should and supposed to only bring us suffering.
Love,
Peter