Every day the Good Good Good team collects the best good news in the world and shares it with our community. Here are the highlights for this week!
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The Best Positive News We’re Celebrating This Week —
Nurses in Pennsylvania fought to secure the nation’s first countywide 12-week paid parental leave policy
After watching parents return to work while their babies were still in intensive care, Pittsburgh nurses joined with a coalition of working parents, advocates, and some elected leaders to draft a proposal for a paid leave program in Allegheny County.
And they just won — the Allegheny County Council voted 11 to 4 to pass 12 weeks of paid parental leave — the first county-level paid leave policy in the nation.
Both birthing and non-birthing parents will receive three months of paid parental leave within the first year of childbirth, adoption, foster placement, or a stillbirth, with job and health benefits protection.
Why is this good news? The United States is the only industrialized nation in the world that doesn’t offer any parental leave. The policy these nurses and advocates just got passed could serve as an inflection point for others to do the same.
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EV sales in the US are rising again. Here’s why the recovery is set to last
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China’s first national parks have already dramatically improved the surrounding environment
In October 2021, China officially established its first five national parks. And new data shows they’ve achieved incredible progress in improving key ecosystems and rising populations of flagship species.
The parks cover a combined area of 230,000 square kilometers, integrating more than 120 protected areas. The parks have helped speed up the restoration of mountains, rivers, forests, lakes, and deserts, restore habitats and ecological corridors, and more.
Wildlife conservation has seen significant improvements: Wild Siberian tigers rose from 27 to 72, and the wild Amur leopard population has risen from 42 to 115.
A personalized mRNA-based melanoma vaccine significantly reduced the risk of cancer recurrence or death
In a new clinical trial, a personalized mRNA-based melanoma vaccine reduced the risk of recurrence or death within two years by 42%.
The vaccine is custom-made to target the unique genetic mutations of each person’s melanoma, and is the first of its kind to show positive results in a phase III trial.
Of the trial patients who received the vaccine alongside an immunotherapy treatment, 82% were alive and recurrence-free after two years, compared to 70% who only received the traditional melanoma treatment.
Why is this good news? The vaccine’s success could have positive implications for other types of cancer, too, and one doctor said the findings were “a foundational shift in our approach to cancer” that had “not been achieved before in the history of cancer drug development.”
Oregon Zoo shares footage of rescued sea otters playing basketball with pumpkins: ‘It plays a critical role in their well-being’
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A record number of women are running for state legislatures in the US this year
In the 2026 midterm elections, a record 3,824 women are running for state legislatures across the 46 states with seats on the ballot, up from the previous record of 3,621 women candidates in 2022.
Women make up just over one-third of all state legislative candidates this midterm election cycle, and more than two-thirds of the candidates are Democrats.
While the U.S. currently has a record level of representation in state legislatures, about one-third, it’s nowhere near parity. Republicans also lag significantly behind, as about 64% of women in state legislatures are Democrats.
A record two-thirds of car sales in China are now electric vehicles
For the first time, new-energy vehicles — including battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids — made up 67% of new car sales in China in September.
In 2020, NEVs made up just 6% of new car sales in 2020 — and have risen dramatically since, to 58% so far in 2026, and a record 67% in September alone.
Analysts point to the rising fuel costs due to the Iran war and say the rapidly growing fleet of electric vehicles in the country has offset demand for 143 million barrels of oil since the Hormuz crisis began.
Why is this good news? Denmark recently achieved the historic milestone of electric vehicles accounting for 97% of new car sales — but critics said that figure is highly achievable in such a small country. China is one of the largest countries in the world — both in terms of land area and population, showing that significant progress in EV adoption is possible anywhere.
Plus, these EVs will increasingly be powered by renewables.
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15-year-old makes it easier to access someone’s medical info in a crisis with a simple QR code scan
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Battery storage is now cheaper than open-cycle gas in 43 markets globally
Of the 43 markets modeled globally, a new report found that the levelized cost of electricity for four-hour battery storage “crossed a critical threshold” and is now cheaper than open-cycle gas in every single one.
The report showed that single-axis tracker solar — panels that rotate to follow the sun — are the cheapest new-build power source in nearly all markets modeled, and battery storage “decisively” beat gas.
While progress is lagging in North America due to tariffs, shifting clean energy policies, and demand from data centers, the cost of storage and solar are declining exponentially everywhere else thanks to supply chain integration.
Airbnb launched an initiative to provide 1 million free nights of emergency housing every year for people in crisis
Effective immediately, Airbnb announced it will donate 10 cents from every booking to Airbnb.org, its nonprofit arm that houses people affected by everything from natural disasters to wars.
The initiative will provide the nonprofit with $500 million over the next five years and enable it to offer 1 million free nights of emergency housing every year.
Since it was established six years ago, Airbnb.org has provided 1.6 million free nights of emergency housing to over 250,000 people, including after the 2025 LA wildfires, the 2023 earthquake in Turkey, and refugee crises.
What’s the nuance? Airbnb has come under criticism, including a lawsuit from the City of Los Angeles, for price gouging in the aftermath of the LA wildfires, when hosts allegedly violated California law for inflating prices above 10%. Airbnb says it took action and sent error messages to any hosts inflating prices by more than 10%.
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Honey bee hives have their own ‘immune system.’ Here’s how tens of thousands of bees stay healthy together
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Solar energy and storage accounted for nearly 1 million jobs in the EU in 2025
In 2025, the solar photovoltaic and battery storage industries provided 982,000 full-time jobs in the European Union, with solar alone accounting for 874,000 jobs.
Germany led the way in solar employment, with 165,000 full-time jobs, followed by Spain and Italy. For the first time since the reporting began, utility-scale solar jobs were slightly higher than rooftop solar, making up 50.2% of jobs.
The rise in employment coincided with growth in deployment, as the EU added 69 gigawatts of solar capacity last year, and 27 gigawatt-hours of batteries.
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More than 600 households have raised $1.2 million for St. Jude with Halloween yard displays
Since 2020, Skeletons for St. Jude has encouraged families to decorate their homes for Halloween and raise awareness for children’s cancer research.
The tradition started when Jeff Robertson of Holly Springs, North Carolina went “a little overboard” with his spooky yard display — people drove for hours to see it. His family turned it into a fundraising opportunity, and now, over 600 households across the United States participate annually.
It’s since raised nearly $1.2 million total, and this year, participants embark on their next goal: $2 million.
Why is this good news? Celebrating holidays like Halloween is even more fun when it can also give back to others. Whether helping families access food or raising money for childhood cancer research — the things we already love, like going all-out for Halloween, can also be a force for good.
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To help families struggling with food insecurity, here are some other items you can offer trick-or-treaters
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A man in Texas has thrifted all year long to give away thousands of free Halloween costumes this year
When he was growing up, Christophe Waggoner’s family didn’t have the money to purchase fancy, expensive Halloween costumes, though he dreamt of having something special. When he noticed some kids in his neighborhood having a similar experience, he did something about it.
In 2017, he started collecting costumes to give to kids for free who couldn’t afford them and established his charity, October’s Child.
For the first five years, he thrifted costumes, masks, and accessories and stored them in his garage. Now, they take up multiple storage units, and he’s donated more than 8,000 costumes total — he expects to give away around 4,000 costumes this Halloween alone.
→ Read more
More good news of the week —
New York City is getting a new fleet of electric school buses. It’s part of an ongoing initiative showing how the city can replace thousands of its polluting diesel buses with cleaner models in a way that benefits the stressed-out urban grid rather than overwhelming it.
In a major conservation milestone, hilsa fish returned to a region of India they’d not been seen in for decades. Officials called it a significant milestone in river restoration and aquatic biodiversity conservation.
Angelina Jolie’s foundation has spent two decades removing 4.8 miles of wire snares from a forest in Cambodia. The more than 150,000-acre forest is home to elephants and pangolins, and the foundation “started with one aim: to work alongside local communities to clear the most heavily mined land in Cambodia.”
More than 200 Wikipedia employees voted overwhelmingly to join a labor union. Workers across departments, including software engineering, finance, and communications, at the Wikimedia Foundation are now part of the Communication Workers of America labor union.
A teen became the first person to have a testicular tissue transplant in the United Kingdom. The teen received the transplant following chemotherapy, which can permanently damage the cells needed to produce sperm, leaving children who undergo it at risk of infertility in adulthood.
Scientists are transferring and storing U.S. climate data in Germany. The move comes amid fears that the Trump administration could meddle with the data ahead of the next critical United Nations climate assessment.
A free Turnstile benefit concert raised more than $209,000 to support humanitarian work in Palestine, Sudan, and Lebanon. An estimated 60,000 people attended the free concert, held on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., reaching capacity as some fans watched from outside the event barricades.
A Florida city is paying residents to replace their grass lawns with drought-resistant native plants. Tampa’s Florida-Friendly Landscaping Incentive Program gives homeowners rebates for replacing portions of their lawns with Florida-friendly plants, saving them money on their water bill and providing habitat for critical pollinators and native species.
Volunteers just planted more than 109,000 trees to create a new forested area. (May require login) The volunteers have planted more than 500,000 trees in the last two growing seasons to “support wildlife, help tackle climate change, and improve wellbeing.”
Tech giants in Finland announced a plan to help Ukraine build its own sovereign satellite system. The country currently relies on Starlink, run by U.S.-based SpaceX, but it’s not reliable and has seen repeated, ongoing disruptions in recent weeks.
A breakthrough PTSD treatment achieved a 68% remission rate in a clinical trial. The newly FDA-cleared personalized brain stimulation treatment also reported a 52% reduction in symptoms, and it could pave the way for more precise treatments for other mental health conditions.
Kenya secured a $160 million conservation program to protect 173,000 square kilometers of land. The Thamani Asili initiative, which means “value of nature” in Kiswahili, will focus on key biodiversity hotspots, protecting some of the most complex and least disturbed natural environments on Earth.
New data shows that “nature-based” solutions could save insurers and policyholders billions of dollars. Wetlands restoration and wildfire prevention can drive down insurers’ costs and skyrocketing home insurance premiums.
New York City is offering free pet food at 22 food pantries across all five boroughs. The new city-funded program aims to relieve financial strain on pet owners and help them avoid surrendering their animals to shelters.
A German startup is testing a cooling system that uses magnets, water, and metal alloys instead of refrigerants. Magnetic cooling could offer a new alternative to conventional refrigeration technology — the industry alone accounts for around 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Macklemore kicked off his Free Palestine tour, featuring a virtual appearance by a Palestinian journalist and activist. On the first night in Dublin, renowned journalist and activist Bisan Owda made a virtual appearance, along with a screening of Palestinian children singing in Gaza.
Six baby dolphins were born in Cambodia this year, bringing one of the world's rarest dolphins to 118. Irrawaddy dolphins, the Mekong River’s sole cetaceans, are viewed as sacred animals by Mekong communities and are also an important source of tourism revenue.
A new report shows the US energy grid has plenty of capacity to accommodate widespread adoption of heat pumps. The report found three-quarters of U.S. homes — around 109 million — could adopt the technology, which would significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions and dramatically reduce electric bills.
The first electric, solar-powered refrigerated trailer just made its first delivery in Australia. Refrigerated trailers are critical for hauling fresh food from the farm to the supermarket, but they are powered by extremely polluting diesel generators with lots of carbon emissions.
India has restored 21.76 million hectares of deforested land between 2011 and 2020. The country has reached nearly 84% of its Bonn Challenge target of restoring 26 million hectares by 2030.
The Netherlands pledged $500 million to help Brazil conserve tropical forests. Brazil launched the Tropical Forest Forever Facility in November 2025 as a partnership between tropical countries that need funding to protect their forests, investors, and donor countries that want to mitigate deforestation.
Chappell Roan raised over $2 million for trans youth at her two-night Super Graphic Spectacular benefit concert. The benefit, which featured appearances from artists like MUNA and PinkPantheress, supported her Midwest Princess Project, which supports the LGBTQ+ community, specifically trans youth.
Smithsonian scientists recreated the first 2 billion years of the universe. Called Lumina, the groundbreaking simulation recreates the universe’s first 2 billion years, showing how dark matter, gas, and radiation interacted to give rise to the earliest stars, galaxies, and black holes.
NJ Transit is expanding a program that puts art exhibitions in bus and train stations. The TRANSITional Art Project includes murals and photography from New Jersey-based artists featured in temporary visual art exhibitions at bus and train stations across the state.
Cincinnati has given out nearly $1 million to residents fighting climate change. The city’s Seeds of Change program is funding community gardens, composting efforts, solar installations, a bike repair program, and more.
