Good News for the Environment

Sustainable stories of progress for the planet

Close-up of a wet sidewalk with raindrops visible on its surface, blurred vehicles and street lights in the background.

As climate change worsens flooding, some places are becoming 'sponge cities'

Across the continental U.S., intense single-day precipitation events are growing more frequent, fueled by warming air that can hold increasing levels of moisture.

Aerial view of a blue and yellow basketball court with multiple hoops surrounded by brick apartment buildings, railroad tracks, and trees in an urban neighborhood with a city skyline in the distance.

These new NYC basketball courts double as massive sponges that mitigate flooding

The courts can hold 330,000 gallons of water, half the volume of an Olympic-sized swimming pool.

Cross-stitch embroidery on light blue denim fabric showing a pattern of small crosses in white thread on the upper section and dark navy thread on the lower section, with a wooden needle, thread spool and tan thread visible on a wooden surface.

Visible mending: Why you should give your clothes a second life — and show off the repairs

Extending a garment’s life by just nine more months can reduce its carbon, water, and waste footprints by up to 20%.

A golden-crowned sifaka with a tan-colored head and black face sits on a tree branch surrounded by green leaves. A circular inset photo in the upper right shows a man, Leonardo DiCaprio, in a brown shirt.

Leonardo DiCaprio launches effort to bring 100 of the world's most endangered species back from the brink

DiCaprio’s Re:Wild is joining with the Bezos Earth Fund to recover critically endangered species across the globe.

Map of Washington state in green with a dark green heart shape in the upper right portion.

GoFundMe launches hub of verified Spokane wildfire relief fundraisers

Firefighters from eastern Washington and around the country have been responding to contain the fires since they began on Saturday.

A small dark-colored salamander or newt on wet sandy ground, with a prominent dark eye and smooth skin glistening with moisture.

A small New Hampshire city is building tunnels just for salamanders. They're already saving lives

In the neighboring state of Vermont, salamander crossings constructed in 2015 have reduced the number of amphibian deaths at that site by 80%.

A photo collage of a person with a bug on their finger, an aerial view of the edge of an island, a woman with tattoos of various sharks on her back, a person inserting an EV charger into their vehicle, and a chart shows how solar power has risen in the EU

Good News This Week: August 1, 2026 - Bearcats, Tattoos, & Bug Hunts

Your weekly roundup of the best good news worth celebrating...

A clouded leopard walks across rocky ground with sparse vegetation at night, its spotted coat illuminated against a dark background.

Trail cameras capture rare footage of elusive leopard species, dubbed 'the ghost of the forest'

Footage was gathered over the course of 16 years, making it the longest study of this elusive species on record.

Two people sit in chairs in a wooded area, each working on a laptop computer.

5 ways to add more time in nature to your routine — even during work hours

Getting outside despite your 9‑to‑5 job can improve your mental health. Here are some expert-backed tips to spend more time in nature.

White and yellow vehicle with "TUe" branding on its side, driving on a dirt road with trees and vegetation in the background.

University students invent first-ever solar-powered ambulance. It provides fully off-grid care in rural areas

In addition to using clean energy, the ambulance aims to close healthcare gaps in some of the world’s most remote regions.

A photo of a robin perched on top of a branch

New study finds listening to birdsong in a forest lowers stress — more than any other setting

Both the natural setting and the birdsong helped independently, and the benefits were largest when combined.

A woman coffee cherry picking in the Southern Ecuadorian Amazon

This year, the EU will prohibit the sale of products linked to deforestation. These coffee farmers aren't worried

At the end of this year, the European Union Deforestation Regulation is set to go into force, prohibiting products linked to deforestation from entering the EU market. Coffee is among the target commodities.