Scientists in China have developed a tough new bamboo-based plastic that biodegrades in 50 days. The new material matches the strength of engineering plastics used in cars and appliances while retaining 90% of its durability after recycling. Researchers say bamboo’s rapid growth makes it a promising, renewable alternative to oil-based plastics. New Scientist https://www.newscientist.com/article/2499052-biodegradable-plastic-made-from-bamboo-is-strong-and-easy-to-recycle/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

The entire Western Pacific has been verified free of measles and rubella. The WHO has verified the elimination of both diseases in all Pacific Island countries, alongside rubella elimination in Japan. The achievement follows two decades of coordinated immunisation campaigns, regional surveillance, and high routine vaccine coverage, making the Western Pacific the first WHO region to eliminate rubella entirely. https://www.who.int/westernpacific/news/item/26-09-2025-rubella-elimination-verified-in-japan--and-measles-and-rubella-elimination-verified-in-pacific-island-countries-and-areas?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

A decade after the Paris Agreement, global greenhouse gas emissions are barely rising, up just 0.3% a year since 2015, compared with 1.7% before. https://eciu.net/media/press-releases/2025/paris-agreement-at-ten-brakes-slammed-on-emissions-growth-finds-analysis?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

The lake sturgeon (a 100-year-living, 90-kg relic from the age of dinosaurs) is returning to Missouri’s rivers after near-extinction from dams and pollution. The Missouri Department of Conservation has reintroduced thousands of hatchery-raised fish since the 1980s, rebuilding wild populations, reviving a keystone species and signalling broader recovery of the Mississippi basin’s river systems. KRCG
https://krcgtv.com/newsletter-daily/ancient-fish-species-makes-historic-comeback-in-missouri-rivers?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

Researchers in Taiwan have added a brand-new biochemical cycle to plants, allowing them to absorb and use carbon dioxide more efficiently than photosynthesis alone. Test plants carrying the “McG cycle” grew up to three times larger, with bigger leaves and far more seeds and fats. The work shows it’s possible to reprogram plant metabolism to boost growth and carbon capture. Ars Technica https://arstechnica.com/science/2025/09/new-pathway-engineered-into-plants-lets-them-suck-up-more-co%E2%82%82/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

Kidney replicas get closer to the real thing. Scientists report lab-grown organoids that better reproduce kidney structure and function, promising sharper disease models and drug tests — a step toward lab-built tissue that could one day ease transplant shortages.Science https://www.science.org/content/article/scientists-make-most-authentic-kidney-replicas-so-far?utm_source=chatgpt.com&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

@SeanCasten
reposting all four charts with alt-text.
these are indeed marvelous news.

#alt4you #alt4u #ShareGoodNewsToo

MIT researchers have re-engineered CRISPR’s “prime editors” to slash one of their biggest problems: random DNA errors. The result is a new family of editors that keep efficiency while cutting indel errors up to 60-fold. In tests, they achieved edit-to-error ratios as high as 543:1, sometimes editing mouse stem cells with virtually no mistakes. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09537-3?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

Farmers in the US Midwest have permanently protected thousands of hectares of tallgrass prairie by placing their land under conservation easements, ensuring it can never be ploughed for crops or development. Less than 40% of North America’s grasslands remain, but, by embedding conservation into private land deeds, families are securing habitat for pollinators and wildlife while keeping working farms viable for future generations. Reasons to be Cheerful https://reasonstobecheerful.world/prairie-farmers-preserve-most-threatened-ecosystem-forever/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

Eastern Egg Rock now hosts the only puffin colony in the United States, restored through decades of painstaking work after the birds were hunted out a century ago. Researchers transplanted chicks from Newfoundland, built artificial burrows, and used decoys to lure them back. 50 years on, hundreds return each summer to rear chicks — no longer imported from Canada, but sustained by a self-sufficient colony. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/how-researchers-restored-a-thriving-habitat-for-atlantic-puffins-in-maine?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

Texas and California cement clean energy lead as oil demand wanes
Texas and California added more clean power capacity in 2024 than the next 30 US states combined. In California, two Bay Area refineries (around 15% of that state’s capacity) are closing as demand for gasoline falls into permanent decline. Together, the trends show America’s largest energy economies driving a decisive shift from fossil fuels to renewables. Reuters / CleanTechnica https://cleantechnica.com/2025/09/14/california-refineries-close-as-gasoline-demand-slips-into-permanent-decline/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

@joesteel This is why I keep an eye on #ShareGoodNewsToo

"today isn't the end of the story. today is the middle of the story."
we can make the world better. we really can.

Real Reasons for Hope
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhI6ueLxTvw

#ShareGoodNews #ShareGoodNewsToo

California moves to un-ultra-processed school meals. California lawmakers are awaiting the governor’s signature on a first-of-its-kind bill to define and ban ultra-processed foods in school meals. The state has already ditched certain food dyes; now it’s aiming for fresher, less-processed lunches. With 20 states having initiated a similar ban on synthetic food dyes, there’s hope that this new bill could set off a similar “California effect”. The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/sep/15/california-ultra-processed-foods-schools?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

Swimmers dive into Chicago river after 98 years. Some 300 swimmers looped through downtown Chicago in the first official river swim since 1927, a milestone made possible by decades of cleanup, starting with the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency and Clean Water Act in the 1970s. Volunteers and new infrastructure revived the waterway, luring back fish, beavers, and even ‘Chonkosaurus,’ a giant snapping turtle. The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/sep/21/chicago-river-swim?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

The fabulous Existential Hope podcast is offering a $10,000 prize to the best hopeful meme that helps envision a positive future! Can't wait to see the entries! #ShareGoodNewsToo

https://www.existentialhope.com/existential-hope-meme-prize

Duck Stamps power another wave of US wetland protection. The US Interior Department has approved $54 million to protect 21,737 acres of waterfowl habitat and expand four national wildlife refuges across Utah, Tennessee, and Louisiana. The money comes from the long-running sale of “Duck Stamps,” one of America’s most durable conservation engines. Since 1934 they’ve raised $1.3 billion to protect more than six million acres of habitat. USFWS https://www.fws.gov/press-release/2025-09/interior-announces-more-54-million-waterfowl-habitat-increased-public-access?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

Nepal establishes 13th national park. The Chhayanath National Park will protect alpine forests, rivers, and snow leopard range across 1,600 km² and strengthen Nepal’s push to keep 30% of its land under protection by 2030. Tiger Encounter https://tigerencounter.com/blog/chhayanath-national-park-nepals-youngest-national-park-in-mugu/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo

Same-sex partnership systems now cover 92% of Japan’s population. Ten years after Shibuya and Setagaya launched Japan’s first same-sex partnership schemes, 530 municipalities across 33 prefectures now offer them, reaching 92.5% of the population. In parallel, high courts in 2024 and 2025 have unanimously ruled the marriage ban unconstitutional, signalling mounting legal and social pressure for national reform. https://www.nippon.com/en/japan-data/h02465/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
#ShareGoodNewsToo