#148 Ten More Stores of Good News About Our World

Adventures in Sustainable Living Podcast

Episode 148

Ten More Good Stories About Our World

In last weeks episode I gave you ten different stories of good new about our world. The reason I did that is because we are constantly bombarded by bad news. And because of that people are developing climate anxiety, depression, hopelessness, and apathy. If all we ever hear about is bad news that we get to the point to where we never expect a good outcome for any reason. 

But if you really start looking, there is plenty of good news all around us. Even today there are exciting new discoveries, encouraging news about the environment and people just doing some good things for others. So this week I want to bring you another strong dose of good cheer. So, stayed tuned for Ten More Stories of Good News About Our World. 

Welcome back everyone to the Adventures in Sustainable Living podcast. This is your host Patrick and this is E148 which is called Ten More Good Stories About Our World 

Over the last couple of weeks I have been combing through a couple of different networks that report only good news. But as I have stated before I pay attention to world news just about enough to give me a good idea of the state of the world. 

And I have to tell you it does not take long before I once again get weary of the fact that we are constantly told about one thing or another that is going to destroys us all. War, food shortages, water scarcity, hurricanes, wild fires out of control, volcanic eruptions, or maybe even the next alien death ray that is going to reach our planet by the year 2050. 

But it does make me question why it is that humanity is so enamored with our ultimate demise because I have been hearing about it for most of my life. It is because of our genetics? Is it because focusing on an impending disaster helps us to assure our ultimate survival? 

Whatever the reason, while most people are focused on all the bad news and perhaps losing their last ounce of personal security, in the back ground of all that there are a lot of very smart people doing a lot of really good things. On top of that, there are also a lot of everyday people doing some very good things. So, this week, I am going to bring you a combination of just that. 

I spent two hours yesterday only going to internet sites that report good news. I found plenty of inspiring stories as well as things that made me laugh. Instead of feeling depressed about the world, I felt light hearted and even got a good chuckle. In the end I felt encouraged about our world instead of depressed. 

1) Scientist find a whole new ecosystem hiding beneath the Earth’s crust. 

As you likely know at this point, as with much of the rest of our planet, our oceans are also feeling the effects of human activity. That is likely nothing new to anyone that keeps track of what is happening to our environment.  So, to start things out here, I want to bring you two encouraging stories about our oceans. 

Some of those that spend their time studying the oceans have actually made a very interesting discovery. And this bit of news was particularly interesting because I am an active scuba diver. Scientist have discovered new life around and under volcanic vents. 

The reason I find this fascinating is that I have seen numerous volcanic vents while scuba diving. You can find these vents because the warm water from the vent tends to produce certain type of shimmer or glitter as it comes out. I don’t know exactly why that is but it likely has to do with the difference in temperature. What is fascinating about these vents is there are miniature ecosystems arounds them that are distinctly different from the ecosystem even one to two meters away. Temperatures around these vents are typically 10 degrees warmer than the surrounding ocean. 

And while I have only seen life around these volcanic vents, the Schmidt Ocean Institute has actually discovered life beneath these vents. This discovery was made at a well-studied undersea volcano on the East Pacific Rise off of Central America. 

An international team of oceanographers and biologist discovered ecosystems of worms, snails, and even bacteria living under the sea floor. 

This team used an underwater robot to turn over chunks of volcanic crust where they discovered narrow cave systems. Creatures on the sea floor freely entered these cave systems which added an entirely new dimension to the ecosystems associate with hydrothermal vents. Animal habitats existed above and below the sea floor. This remarkable discovery of a new ecosystem hiding beneath another ecosystem shows us yet again that life can exist in some pretty incredible places. 

All sort of new creatures were also discovered around undersea volcanos off the cost of Australia’s Cocos Keeling Islands. A new deep sea coral reef was discovered 2,000 feet deep in the Galapagos Islands marine protected area. That reef was teaming with life.  In 2020, the British conducted an Antarctic Survey and sent a submersible vehicle beneath the Arctic shelf. They instantly discovered 36 new species living on a single boulder. 

What I find to be most interesting about these discoveries is that despite the fact that approximately 75% of the Earth has been altered by human activity there are still places that are untouched and species that have yet to be discovered. Certainly this should underscore the fact that we desperately have to work to preserve our plant because there is still so much that we do not know.  

2) We have been overestimating the amount of plastic in the oceans by 30X

The next bit of good news I want to pass along is that scientists in the Netherlands have shown that the amount of plastic pollution in the oceans is far smaller than previously believed. This bit of research highlights two important things: scientific modeling can in fact be completely wrong and that organizations that focus on removing plastic from the ocean and rivers are making a significant difference. 

According to the Netherland Times the amount of plastic that enters our oceans was estimated to be somewhere between 50 million and 300 million tons annually. However, the correct amount may be as little as 3.2 million tons. According to the Netherland Times the models estimating what ended up in the oceans was based on how much plastic was made, how much was recycled, how much was buried or incinerated and how much is missing. 

Oceanologist Mikel Naandorp and his team conducted the study and the results were based on 20,000 measurements. The study highlights that our rivers actually bring much less plastic into the ocean than previously thought and micro plastics comprise a much smaller percentage of pollution than was previously estimated. 

Best estimates are that 10 million tons of plastics ends up in our oceans every year. Even though there is still a lot of plastic that is unaccounted for, it is wrong to assume that all of that missing material ends up in the ocean. 

At the end of the day, dumping waste material into the ocean is never good. However, it is nice to know that we have polluted our oceans much less than we originally thought.  

Now, the next bit of good news is about a couple of corporations that are doing good things. Hopefully you have started to realize that there are few times that big business and big government actually takes responsibility for the waste that they produce. A good example is the plastics industry. Plastics are produced, shipped to the consumer, disposed of then that material takes thousands of years to degrade. But the very businesses that produce those plastics take little responsibility other than making it and getting it to the consumer. 

Additionally if you are someone that truly follows current news regarding environmental and sustainability issues then you already know that one study stated that just 100 companies are responsible for more than 70% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions since 1988. ExxonMobile, Shell, British Petroleum, and Chevron are at the very top of the list. 

That said, there is also a growing wave of corporations including Apple, Google, IKEA, and Facebook that have committed to 100% renewable power and are making a difference in other ways. 

3) Apple has committed to $2.5 billion to build affordable housing. 

And one example of this is Apple, which has committed $2.5 billion to building affordable housing in San Jose, California. CEO Tim Cook, citing a profound civic responsibility, created a corporate fund to build affordable housing in the city.  Presently Apple has spent $1.5 billion to build thousands of housing units across the city and county. 

As part of an on-going effort, Kristina Raspe, Apple’s vice president of worldwide real estate and facilities, said that “We really look for projects ad programs where not only do we have a deep impact but we actually see the impact fairly quickly. That is why we’ve  chosen to focus on funding projects that need that last bit of funding in order to be built.” 

Furthermore, Apple has been working with specific non-profit partners to obtain a list of apartments and housing units that need additional funding in order to push the project to completion. 

4) IKEA

Now, good corporate story number 2 is about the IKEA corporation. IKEA actually started as a one-man mail order company in rural Sweden and has now become a global brand that focuses on affordable home furnishings. 

IKEA continues to push to remain true to their principles of protecting the environment and striving to become a carbon neutral company. In doing so IKEA purchased 11,000 acres of land, which is about 4,453 hectares, in Georgia, in the United States. These forested acres were in danger of being lost to development. 

This acreage was formerly a working forest, which means lumber was harvested and then regrown. The environmental challenge is that these forests are often fragmented and developed which means the local ecosystem is no longer intact. 

But this particular forest is home to the gopher tortoise, which is native to the southeastern United States. This tortoise is considered a keystone species in the local ecosystem. What this means is that it has a disproportionately large effect on its natural environment relative to its abundance. In other words, a keystone species literally defines an entire ecosystem. 

The estimated lifespan of the gopher tortoise is from 40 to 80 years. It is important because it has the unique capability to dig burrows which are sometimes 10 feet wide and 40 feet long, roughly 3 by 12 meters. These burrows provide shelter for approximately 400 other species. Of course the biggest reason for their decline is habitat loss. IKEA’s purchase of this tract of land prevented the further loss of valuable habitat for the tortoise. The purchase of the land was the result of direct cooperation with the Conservation Fund, which is a non-profit that has protected over 8 million acres, or approximately 2.4 million hectares, in the United States from fragmentation and development. 

Furthermore, I subsidiary of IKEA currently owns 616,000 acres in the United States and Europe and chooses to ensure the highest standards of forestry management which helps to ensure permanent conservation protections by blocking fragmentation and development. 

But IKEA is also taking further steps to become a carbon neutral company. They just recently announced that would begin buying used IKEA furniture from customers and implementing the use of electric cars and vans and using less carbon emitting materials in their products and packaging. 

5) New National Monument has been established which spans 1 million acres  of sacred land linking Indian reservations to the Grand Canyon

And speaking of the wise use of land the next good news story involves a new national monument that was recently established in the United States. 

One million acres of public land which is approximately 405,000 hectares, north, south, and Northeast of the Grand Canyon National Park has officially been turned into a national monument after successful lobbying efforts by twelve tribal nations including the Havasupai, Tribe, Hopi Tribe, Hualapai Tribe, Navaho Nation, Yavapia-Apache Nation, Pueblo of Zuni, the Colorado river Indian Tribe, and five separate bands of the Paiute. 

As a result, thousands of cultural and sacred sites, as well as many places of natural beauty are now protected under what is called in English the Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument. 

6) Scottish Farmer Creates a Sunflower Trail with over 250,000 sunflowers

Now what I want to talk about is yet another good and healthy use of land. And I think this is great considering I grew up with two working farms in the family. 

A Scottish farmer cultivated 250,000 sunflowers after he discovered they would not only survive, but to some degree thrive in the northern climate. He first conceived this notion of a flower lined path three years ago and wanted to plant then on his farm near Perth, Scotland.

After the flowers grew to over 6 feet tall he created a twisting and winding path through the field that takes 45 minutes to an hour to complete. Children under 12 can get in for free and he has had visitors from as far away as Australia. 

Crawford Niven, the farmer who planted the sunflowers stated that the only thing he can’t do is harvest the seeds because there is not enough sunlight in Scotland. 

Now that is a fantastic way to make someone smile. 

7) Sea Grass planting

Now the next great story I have about the wise use of land and resources and environmental restoration has to do with the planting of sea grass. 

Sea grass is a vital part of coastal ecosystems in that it is a primary food source for many organism including the manatee and green sea turtle both of which are endangered. But, sea grass also provides food, shelter, and essential nursery ares to countless invertebrates as well as recreational and commercial fishing species. 

Sea grass ecosystems also provides vital habitat, anchors sediment to the sea floor, regulates ocean acidity, helps to dissipate wave energy and also holds 35 times more carbon per cubic inch of root stock than tropical rain forest. In fact, it has been estimated that seagrass on a planetary scale accounts for 1/10 of global carbon sequestration. 

The challenge is that seagrass ecosystems are easily destroyed by human activity, especially by trawling boats. Now if you are not familiar with trawling it is a fishing practice that basically consists of rototilling the ocean floor, which means it is scrapped of any existing life forms. This of course destroys entire ecosystems. 

Now the fun part of this story is that some scientists and conservationist are working with the Med Sea Foundation on the coastline of the island of Sardinia, Italy.  The goal of this project is to plant 1 million seagrass plants by the year 2050. In conjunction with that the Med Sea Foundation is installing anti trawling barriers, which are nothing more than concrete blocks or stone that will destroy the trawling nets and anchors of any boat that attempts illegal fishing. The end game of this project is of course to restore and protect the shoreline. 

8) Plastic waste can now be turned into soap

My next fun story is about plastic waste. A scientist at Virginia Tech in the United States has discovered a way to turn plastic into soap. 

It turns out that Polyethylene, which is one of the most common plastic material used today, is very similar in structure to the primary fatty acid in soap. However, the fatty acid chain in plastic is much longer than that in soap. This scientist figured out a way to convert the polyethylene into short fatty acid chains that can be used in make soap, detergents, and much more. 

We now have a potential new route for up cycling plastics.  

9) There is a humming bird hospital in Mexico City

My next great story is about a woman that has started a hummingbird hospital in Mexico City. There is an elderly woman in Mexico City that decided to open her heart and doors to injured, orphaned and sick hummingbirds. She started this project after recovering form cancer. 

At any given time she has about 60 hummingbirds flying around her apartment while they are recovering.  

10) Acts of Kindness are Actually Good For You

An my last good news story is about acts of kindness.  And this is something that I think is vital to our well being as humans. I was thinking about this the other day while sitting on the deck of my cabin enjoying the quiet. Despite the fact that I love the relative isolation of the cabin I am not socially isolated by any means. 

I have a close group of family and friends, people who have been in my life for decades. This forms a very dependable social support network. Granted these are people that I do not see everyday but if I ever need anything or have an emergency all I have to do is ask. 

That type of social connection is a vital link to our mental health as humans that so often gets thrown under the bus because of our addiction to technology which has a tendency to promote social isolation. 

But there are things we can do to counteract this trend. And one of those things is simple acts of kindness. In fact, studies have shown that performing random acts of kindness was more effective in reducing symptoms of depression than specifically planning activities for the sake of enjoyment. 

Numerous studies have proven that if you take the time to be kind to others it actually pays for itself. You also benefit from the emotional upside because kindness has been shown to reduce stress and improve our emotional wellbeing. Furthermore, those who are kind and compassionate may even live longer. The reason is that acts of kindness necessitates a connection with other people. This connection reduces your risk of social isolation which is actually a high-risk factor for survival, the same as smoking 15 cigarettes per day. 

Believe it or not, with all that is going on in our world today, simply being kind is a great way to help others as well as yourself. And as with most other things having to do with health, wellbeing, and sustainability the small things do make a difference. 

Summary

At the end of the day folks, the entire purpose of these last two episodes is to simply bring you good news about our environment as world as a whole. It is estimated that 95% of the news media is focuses on bad news and 90% of that focuses on sensationalism. If that is all we ever hear about it gets to the point that we never expect any sort of good outcome. 

But just the opposite happens if we focus on nothing but good things. We are happier, healthier, and we even live longer. With all that is going on in our world it is more important than ever just to be positive minded and kind to others. So, that is your challenge for this week. Perform one act of kindness every day, even some thing as simple as a kind word. 

And I have also decided that being kind and hearing good news is so important that I am going to change the format of my podcast. From now on at the beginning of each episode, I am going to give you one good news story. 

Well, folks that is about it for this week. I truly hope you will join me again next week for another exciting episode. Until then, this is your host Patrick signing off. Always remember to live sustainably because this is how we build a better future.