Ukraine passes bill banning LGBTQ+ hate speech in media
The bill bans hate speech and incitement based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Europe
This archive covers progress stories and milestones from across Europe, spanning health, climate policy, social equity, and scientific research. From small-nation experiments to E.U.-wide initiatives, these reports highlight what is working and why.
E.U. agrees to include shipping companies in emissions trading system
Starting in 2024, shipping companies will have to buy E.U. carbon permits to cover 40% of their emissions, including methane and nitrogen oxides, rising to 70% in 2025 and 100% in 2026.
E.U. strikes deal on world-first carbon border tariff
The levy aims to prevent European industry from being undercut by cheaper goods made in countries with weaker environmental rules and incentivize trading partners to decarbonize.
Heat pump sales are soaring around the world
Sales of the climate-friendly heating technology are set to hit record levels, especially in Europe where some countries are seeing sales double in the first half of 2022 compared with the same period last year.
World’s first solar car goes into production
Solar-powered cars have moved from moonshot idea to manufacturing reality — and that shift matters more than any single vehicle rolling off the line. Lightyear’s debut model uses curved solar arrays across its roof and hood, harvesting enough sunlight to cover up to 40 miles daily — matching most people’s actual driving habits. At $255,000, it targets early adopters, though with solar panel costs having dropped over 99% since the 1970s, wider accessibility may follow. A car that generates its own fuel from sunlight quietly answers one of the strongest critiques of electric vehicles.
E.U. agrees to new law preventing import of goods linked to deforestation
The law will require companies to produce a due diligence statement showing that their supply chains are not contributing to the destruction of forests before they sell goods into the EU – or they could face hefty fines.
Stéphanie Frappart makes history as first-ever female World Cup referee
Stéphanie Frappart made history on December 1, 2022, when she blew the opening whistle for Costa Rica vs. Germany — the first woman ever to referee a men’s FIFA World Cup match. She led an all-female team that day, joined by Brazil’s Neuza Back and Mexico’s Karen Díaz Medina, and called the game so cleanly that her performance drew no controversy at all. That quiet competence was the whole point: she earned the spot through the same FIFA assessment process as everyone else, building on a decade of firsts in Ligue 1, the UEFA Super Cup, and the Champions League. Her story is a reminder that real equality often arrives not with fanfare, but with someone simply doing the job well.
World’s first test run of a hydrogen jet engine proves a success
Hydrogen-powered flight moved from theory to reality when Rolls-Royce and easyJet successfully ran a modern jet engine on green hydrogen produced entirely from wind and tidal energy. Unlike battery-electric approaches, hydrogen burns clean — releasing water vapor instead of carbon dioxide — and this test proved a real engine can handle it. Aviation has been one of the hardest sectors to decarbonize, so a confirmed proof of concept opens a genuine path forward. Every major breakthrough in flight history started exactly here: on the ground, with an engine, and a question that finally got answered.
Lynx, wild horses and vultures return to eastern Spain in latest rewilding project
Rewilding Europe’s first project in Spain is bringing an 850,000-acre mountain landscape back to life — and the early signs are genuinely hopeful. Wild horses are already breeding, black vultures are being released at up to 15 a year, and Iberian lynx are expected within two years. The project is also designed around local communities, creating economic incentives for nature-based tourism and forest protection. Stories like this show that recovery is possible when wildlife, people, and landscape are treated as one connected system.
France to require all large parking lots to be covered by solar panels
The new provisions are part of French president Macron’s large-scale plan to heavily invest in renewables, which aims to multiply by 10 the amount of solar energy produced in the country.