• About
  • Advertise
  • Careers
  • Write for us
  • Contact
  • Terms of service
Sunday, June 26, 2022
The Millennial Source
TMS
Home WORLD

A bit of Good News for today to put world progress in greater perspective

byThe Millennial Source
June 25, 2019
in WORLD
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on Linkedin



Good News for today

With constant doom-and-gloom media reports surrounding us, it is easy to grow pessimistic. Honesty about life’s darker realities can spur us to action and progress, but too much negativity leaves us feeling paralyzed and completely helpless…. So let’s balance out our headline consumption and take a moment to appreciate some good news for today.

And yes, there really are good news stories of 2019, and here are just a few of them.With constant doom-and-gloom media reports surrounding us, it is easy to grow pessimistic. Honesty about life’s darker realities can spur us to action and progress, but too much negativity leaves us feeling paralyzed and completely helpless…. So let’s balance out our headline consumption and take a moment to appreciate some good news for today.

And yes, there really are good news stories of 2019, and here are just a few of them.

Extreme poverty is now the lowest it has ever been.

“Over the last 25 years, more than a billion people have lifted themselves out of extreme poverty, and the global poverty rate is now lower than it has ever been in recorded history. This is one of the greatest human achievements of our time.” –World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim

Good News for Today - According to the World Bank, the percentage of people living in extreme poverty is now at 8%, down from 10% in 2015 and the lowest level ever recorded.

According to the World Bank, the percentage of people living in extreme poverty is now at 8%, down from 10% in 2015 and the lowest level ever recorded. The World Bank defines extreme poverty as living on less than  US $1.90 a day, adjusted for cost-of-living differences across nations.

While every decrease in global poverty is a massive improvement, the data also shows that the majority of recent progress has occurred in South Asia, primarily India. Over the past few years, the number of people living in extreme poverty in some other regions, including East Asia, the Pacific and Sub-Saharan Africa, has actually grown.

So there is plenty of work left to do. Still, it is amazing news that if you are 29 years old, the proportion of people living in extreme poverty worldwide is now less than one-fourth of what it was on the day you were born.

New Zealand has launched a new “wellbeing” budget.

Good News for Today - Arden's quote - "we need to address the societal well-being of our nation, not just the economic well-being"

Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern is once again being applauded for her compassionate leadership. Under Ardern’s direction, New Zealand has become the first highly developed, capitalist nation to make well-being a central element of its national budget.

This innovative act officially recognizes that the well-being of people cannot just be measured in economic terms. Referencing a speech made by US politician Robert Kennedy 50 years ago, Minister of Finance Grant Robertson said that New Zealand has chosen “…to value and to measure all that makes life worthwhile.

The small Asian nation of Bhutan expressed similar goals in 1972, when King Jigme Singye Wangchuck stated that he valued his country’s Gross National Happiness more than its gross national product. Some US and Canadian cities now use “GNH” measures, but no country of New Zealand’s wealth and prominence has ever joined the movement before.

The priorities named in New Zealand’s budget plan include a commitment to mental health, improving child well-being and investments in a low-carbon future.

Large Amazonian region in Ecuador is now protected.

Good News for Today - Hundreds of Indigenous Waorani people march to the capital city of Quito to defended half a million acres of their Amazon territory

In early May of this year, hundreds of Indigenous Waorani people traveled to Ecuador’s capital city of Quito. With legal assistance from the nonprofit organization Amazon Frontlines, they successfully defended half a million acres of their Amazon territory from oil exploration.

“Our ancestors’ bones are buried under this earth,” the Waorani people stated in a letter to the Ecuadorian government. “Deer, boar and jaguar still roam free across this land. Our memory, our language, and our songs are born from the forest, and we will ensure that they live on, generation after generation.”

This ruling upholds the Ecuadorian constitution’s commitment to protecting Indigenous people and their right “to maintain possession of their ancestral lands”. Many countries have broken similar promises, so the ruling is a huge victory for Indigenous peoples’ rights worldwide.

Global commitment to “No More Plastic” is growing.

Good News for Today - More than a third of the world’s sea turtles have been found with plastic waste in their stomachs

As of May 2019, 187 countries have signed the United Nations pact to reduce plastic consumption. Created at a two-week meeting in Switzerland, this legally binding framework ensures that nations are transparent about regulating their plastic waste and toxic chemicals consumption.

A number of countries including Germany, Canada, France, Italy and the UK want to take it a step further, calling for a ban on all single-use plastics by as early as 2021. Gerd Mueller, the German Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, has spoken out for quicker action. Germany should “…not wait for Europe and immediately ban disposable plastic bags,” he declared, adding that at the current rate of plastic use, “…we will sink under the garbage.”  

In Australia, according to the National Retail Association, a plastic bag ban across major retailers has led to an “80% drop in the consumption of plastic bags nationwide.”


At The Millennial Source, we are committed to showing you the world as it is, both the bad and the good.

Related

ShareTweetShare

Latest Posts

Red Hare Analytics

Red Hare Analytics CEO Anson Kwok says it’s time to prepare to enter the NFT market

June 26, 2022
Blue Lotus Gallery

How Hong Kong’s Blue Lotus Gallery is exploring the city’s cultural identity

June 25, 2022
John Lee on Hong Kong travel

From John Lee’s comments on Hong Kong travel to the FDA banning Juul vapes – Here’s your June 24 news briefing

June 24, 2022

Chinese streamers need qualifications to talk about professional topics

June 24, 2022

Western Australia’s mining industry probe uncovers numerous cases of sexual abuses

June 24, 2022

Hong Kong’s incoming leader John Lee looks to reduce “inconvenience” for travelers entering the city

June 24, 2022

The US orders Juul vapes off the market. Here’s what you need to know

June 24, 2022

From Afghanistan’s deadly earthquake to the BRICS summit – Here’s your June 23 news briefing

June 23, 2022

Those pesky cameras aren’t the solution to a productive meeting

June 23, 2022

SUBSCRIBE TO THE TMS NEWSLETTER

By providing your email, you agree to our Privacy Policy

The Millennial Source Ltd. 2021

No Result
View All Result
  • Your daily briefing
  • About us
  • Explore
    • Startups
    • Climate change
    • Tech giants
    • Crypto
    • The future of work
    • Banking giants
    • Economy
  • Lifestyle
  • Human stories
  • TMS archives
  • Write for us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy & Terms

2022 The Millennial Source Ltd.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings.

 

Loading Comments...
 

    string(24) "jsonld single post debug"
    The Millennial Source
    Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

    Strictly Necessary Cookies

    Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

    If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.