Germany unveils world’s first zero emissions hydrogen-powered passenger train
French company Alstom unveiled the first-ever passenger train powered completely by hydrogen at this week’s Berlin InnoTrans trade show.
2016 C.E.
France becomes first country to ban plastic plates, cutlery
The initiative is one small part of the country’s Energy Transition for Green Growth Act, as lawmakers aim “to make France ¦ an exemplary nation in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, diversifying its energy model and increasing the deployment of renewable energy sources.”
Dozens of countries poised to drive out malaria by 2020
Success in Sri Lanka raises hopes that at least 30 other nations could follow suit, marking beginning of the end for disease that kills 400,000 every year
The Giant Panda is no longer listed as endangered
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced the positive change to the giant panda’s official status in the Red List of Threatened Species, pointing to the 17 per cent rise in the population in the decade up to 2014.
Florida votes overwhelmingly to remove property tax on solar equipment
Solar advocates finally got a win in the Sunshine State on Tuesday, as voters approved a measure to get rid of property taxes on solar equipment.
With more than 1,970,000 Floridians checking ‘yes,’ the measure, known as Amendment 4, received more support than the state’s two U.S. Senate primary winners, Marco Rubio (R) and Patrick Murphy (D), combined.
California lawmakers approve mandatory sentencing for rape
The California Assembly unanimously passed a measure that requires a prison sentence for anyone convicted of sexually assaulting an unconscious person.
Egypt cracks down on female genital mutilation
Three months after a teenager died while undergoing female genital mutilation conducted by a doctor, Egypt is cracking down on the practice.
The Egyptian cabinet approved a draft bill on Sunday that would enact a punishment of five to seven years in prison for anyone who performs FGM, according to Ahram Online. Previously, the penalty was three months to two years.
Obama to quadruple Hawaii monument, creating world’s largest protected marine area
The designation, expected to take effect Friday, will expand Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument from 139,797 square miles to 582,578 square miles, making it the largest marine protected area on the planet.
Learning gap between rich and poor kids in the U.S. narrows
Despite a societal backdrop of widening income inequality, kids on opposite ends of the wealth spectrum are now entering kindergarten with closer levels of achievement than in the past, new research finds.
U.S. Justice Department says it will end use of private prisons
The Justice Department plans to end its use of private prisons after officials concluded the facilities are both less safe and less effective at providing correctional services than those run by the government.