Good News Tuesday for May 23, 2023: Slowing Deforestation X 2, Greece’s Mission to Make Beaches More Wheelchair Accessible, and a Truck Driver is Rescued from a River in Kenya

Seeking Balance One Tuesday at a Time

EU Countries Require Proof that Trade is Not Contributing to Deforestation

The 27 European Union countries recently adopted legislation requiring companies trading palm oil, cattle, wood, coffee, cocoa, rubber and soy to verify that the goods they sell in the EU have not led to deforestation. I found this AP article on Ned Hamson’s blog: https://nedhamsonsecondlineviewofthenews.com/

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… speaking of slowing deforestation:

The Rate of Deforestation has Decreased in Brazil

So far this year, deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon is down 40 percent from last year. In April, deforestation was down 68 percent. You can read more from Yale Environment.

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Greece is Improving Wheelchair Accessibility on Beaches

Greece is working to make beaches more accessible for people in wheelchairs. The Seatrac system includes a solar powered track operated by remote control. For more information and a video showing how the system works, here’s an article from Nice News.

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A Truck Driver was Rescued from a Flooded River in Kenya

A truck driver in Kenya had become trapped on the side of his overturned truck in a flooded river. The arial elephant rescue team of Sheldrick Wildlife Trust came to his rescue in a helicopter. Read more about it HERE.

To read more about the usual rescue work of Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, click HERE.

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Good News Tuesday for Nov. 2, 2021: Climate Summit, Students Save Bus Driver, Top 10 CNN Heroes, and a Dog Who Saved Koalas

Seeking Balance One Tuesday at a Time

World Leaders Meet for Climate Summit and Promise to End Deforestation

Last year’s world climate summit was cancelled due to covid. Now, over 120 leaders have come together in Glasgow, Scotland to reduce the negative impact of humans on planet Earth. BBC reports that over 100 leaders from around the world, including Brazil, have promised to sign a pledge to end and reverse deforestation by 2030. Read more about the two week COP26 Climate Summit and the deforestation pledge here.

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Two Middle School Students Act Quickly to Save Bus Driver

Conner Doss and Kane Daugherty are two Atlanta middle school students whose quick thinking saved their bus driver. Read more about it here.

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Top 10 CNN Heroes

CNN is in its 15th year of celebrating heroes. On December 12, they’ll be recognizing their top 10 picks for 2021 who each receive $10,000 and announcing who received the most votes for hero of the year. Read more about the top 10 heroes from CNN.

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A Dog Named Bear has been Recognized as a Hero for Saving Koalas

A dog named Bear recently won an award from the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) for saving 100 koalas from Australia’s bushfires last year. Before being trained to rescue koalas, Bear had been rescued himself from a shelter where his former family gave him up due to behavior issues and his “boundless energy and obsessive enthusiasm for play.” You can read more from the Good News Network and watch the video:

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Good News Tuesday: A Rescue, Dog Sense, Good Teens, and Palm Oil Progress

 

Sanitation Worker Helps Elderly Woman to Safety

Dane Cummings was told to get out as the fire approached, but he decided to check on the elderly citizens he knew lived along his route.

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Dogs Help Identify Malaria from Frozen Socks

In a proof of concept study, dogs were able to detect which socks had been worn by children with malaria about 70% of the time. “Moreover the researchers pointed out that the success rate potentially could have been higher if the dogs were actually with the children or were working with socks that had been worn recently, instead of samples that had been frozen for several months while the dogs were being trained.”

We are only beginning to understand the power of a dog’s sense of smell. Dogs have been known to detect other diseases. Like some other animals, dog intelligence is different from ours but in some ways greater.  I hope we will be intelligent enough to treat our animal companions and colleagues with the respect they deserve.

Here’s the story from Good News Network.

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Good Teenagers

The student council of this South Carolina high school asked Andrew to sit with them during lunch. This is what good leaders do. They reach out to people who may be different, alone, or needing help. It’s okay to be alone sometimes, but it’s also good to be invited and feel welcome.

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Major Company Cuts Ties with Palm Oil Suppliers

The Good News Network reports that Mondelēz International, parent company of Nabisco and other snack foods, has cut ties with 12 palm oil suppliers that contribute heavily to deforestation and habitat destruction. They are putting in place measures to become 100 % sustainable and transparent regarding palm oil.  You can read more about this move here.

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What’s Your Good News?