Last fur farm in Germany shuts down
The country introduced a ban on all fur farming in 2017, with a deadline for closures required by 2022 to allow farmers to transition into new, less cruel industries.
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.
HPV vaccine linked to ‘dramatic’ drop in cervical disease in Scotland
Researchers said the vaccine has nearly wiped out cases of cervical pre-cancer in young women since an immunization programme was introduced 10 years ago.
Finnish innovation boosts EV battery recycling rate to over 80%
Present recycling solutions for EV batteries are not able to recover these scarce metals. To combat this, Fortum has a unique recovery process, involving chemical precipitation methodology that allows these minerals to be recovered and delivered to battery manufacturers to be reused in producing new batteries.
U.K. Government announces end of fossil fuel heating systems in new houses from 2025
To ensure homes are better for the environment, they will introduce a Future Homes Standard by 2025, so that new build homes are future-proofed with low-carbon heating and world-leading levels of energy efficiency.
Norway is starting the world’s biggest divestment in oil and gas
The Government Pension Fund Global, which was built off Norway’s oil revenues, will begin phasing out $8 billion held in 134 firms to reduce the fund’s risk from volatile oil prices.
In ‘world first’, blind people in Scotland have vision restored thanks to stem cells
Thanks to the pioneering tissue transplant, eight patients with a common condition that destroys vision have had the affected area repaired –and two were able to read again after having severe macular degeneration.
Finland to ban coal-fired power by 2029
The Finnish Parliament approved a motion last week to bring forward its ban on coal for energy use to May 1, 2029, bringing the country in line with the majority of the European Union in walking away from coal-fired power.
Honda to electrify 100% of its European sales by 2025
Honda revealed their ambition to make 100% of its European sales electrified by 2025. This has built on the vehicle manufacturer’s previous goal of two thirds electrified by 2025.
H.I.V. is reported cured in a second patient, a milestone in the global AIDS epidemic
A second patient clearing HIV after a bone-marrow transplant confirmed the first cure wasn’t an anomaly — and gave researchers something real to build on. The procedure replaced the patient’s immune cells with donor cells carrying a mutation that blocks HIV from entering the body, but it remains risky, expensive, and limited to those already requiring it for cancer. Still, the case is quietly reshaping what scientists believe is possible, pointing gene therapy research toward a future that doesn’t require a transplant at all.
Electric vehicle sales in Europe jump 67% year over year in January 2019
Fully electric vehicles (BEVs) have been flourishing. In the first month of 2019, all-electrics jumped 67% year over year (YoY), to almost 21,000 deliveries.