New York

New York is home to some of the most densely populated cities and rural communities in the U.S. This archive tracks positive milestones from across the state — from public health and housing wins to environmental and civic progress.

A heat pump unit on a home exterior, representing U.S. heat pump sales growth supported by the Kigali Amendment

Nine U.S. states, including California and New York, sign heat pump agreement to clean up air pollution

By / / Good news links

Nine U.S. states have inked an agreement to promote climate-friendly heat pump sales. The memorandum of understanding sets a 2030 target for heat pumps to make up 65% of residential heating, cooling, and water heating equipment sales. By 2040, the goal is for heat pumps to account for 90% of the HVAC and water heating market. The states on board with the agreement include: California, Colorado, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, and Rhode Island.

Manhattan skyline, for article on medical debt relief

New York City plans to wipe out $2 billion in medical debt for 500,000 residents

By / / Good News For Humankind

Medical debt relief is coming to New York City in a big way: a new program will wipe out more than $2 billion in unpaid medical bills for as many as 500,000 residents, no application required. The city is spending $18 million over three years and partnering with the nonprofit RIP Medical Debt, which buys debt portfolios for pennies on the dollar and simply cancels them. Eligible families will just receive a letter letting them know their balance is gone. With roughly 100 million Americans carrying some form of health care debt, this kind of municipal action offers a hopeful template — one that treats medical debt not as private misfortune, but as something cities can actually help fix.

Wind turbines, for article on offshore wind farm

Offshore wind sites are delivering power to the grid for the first time in U.S. history

By / / Good news links

In December 2023, Danish wind energy developer Ørsted and the utility Eversource announced that their first turbine was sending electricity from what will be a 12-turbine wind farm, South Fork Wind, 35 miles east of Montauk Point, New York. Now, the joint owners of the Vineyard Wind project have announced the first electricity from one turbine at what will be a 62-turbine wind farm 15 miles off the coast of Massachusetts.

Human eye, for article on whole-eye transplant

New York surgeons perform world’s first successful eyeball transplant

By / / Good News For Humankind

Whole-eye transplant surgery has been performed successfully for the first time, with a team at NYU Langone Health spending more than 20 hours combining a donor eyeball, a partial face transplant, and a stem cell infusion into the optic nerve. The patient, Aaron James, lost much of his face in a 2021 electrical accident, and surgeons had carefully preserved his optic nerve in anticipation of exactly this kind of operation. Doctors say the transplanted eye is healthy and blood is flowing to the retina, though James has not regained sight. Restoring vision may still be years away, but this opens a real door for people with catastrophic eye injuries — proof that something once considered impossible is now a starting point.

Surgeons operating, for article on pig kidney xenotransplant

Pig kidney functions in human patients for two full months for first time ever

By / / Good News For Humankind

A genetically modified pig kidney kept working inside a human body for 61 days at NYU Langone Health — the longest a non-human organ has ever functioned in a person. Surgeons used a simplified approach, transplanting a kidney from a pig with just one gene edit and leaving the thymus gland attached to help the recipient’s immune system accept it. Around 100,000 Americans are on the kidney waitlist at any given time, and researchers hope pig organs could one day help close that gap. The team is now preparing for clinical trials pending FDA approval. For the thousands waiting on a kidney that may not arrive in time, this is real, tangible hope.

Pills and syringe, for article on fentanyl vaccine human trials

Scientists preparing first human trials for vaccines that block the effects of deadly opioids

By / / Good News For Humankind

Fentanyl vaccines are heading into their first human trials, with Phase 1 testing set to begin in early 2024 at Columbia University. Developed by researchers at the University of Montana and University of Washington, the vaccines train the immune system to grab fentanyl molecules in the bloodstream, like a sponge, before they can reach the brain. That means no high, and no slowed breathing, which is what makes overdoses fatal. The team is especially focused on people in the first two years of recovery, when relapse risk is highest. If it works, this could become a powerful new tool in a crisis that has demanded every bit of compassion and ingenuity we can offer.