Good News Headlines 2/16/2026

Large vigil after ICE Agent kills in Minneapolis. Photo courtesy Chad Davis/Flickr

“The Nation” Nominates Minneapolis For The Nobel Peace Prize

by The Nation

The editors of The Nation magazine are in the process of formally nominating the city of Minneapolis and its people for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize. The following nomination statement, which is addressed to the Norwegian Nobel Committee, the five-member body that is charged by the Parliament of Norway with selecting the recipient of the Peace Prize, has been prepared for submission on Friday.

Trump Border Czar Tom Homan Announces Minnesota Immigration Surge Is Ending

by Gigi Douban, NPR

The Trump administration will end the immigration enforcement crackdown in Minnesota that prompted widespread protests and claimed the lives of two U.S. citizens, border czar Tom Homan announced Thursday. “I have proposed, and President Trump has concurred, that this surge operation conclude,” Homan said at a news conference in Minneapolis. “A significant drawdown has already been underway this week and will continue to the next week.”

Polly Cooper, An Oneida Woman Who Helped Save Washington’s Army, Is Honored On $1 Coin

by Savannah Peters, Yahoo! News

The reverse side of the U.S. Mint’s 2026 Sacagawea $1 coin will feature Polly Cooper, a woman from the Oneida tribe known for helping George Washington’s Continental Army during the Revolutionary War. The release of the coin this week coincides with celebrations of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. It recognizes Cooper’s role in a 1778 relief expedition from Oneida territory in what is now central New York to the rebel troops’ winter encampment in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, where they were facing a food and supply crisis.

More Than 5,000 Acres Surrounding Shenandoah National Park To Be Protected

by Kate Nuechterlein, 29 News

Thanks to a deal between Virginia and private landowners, more than 5,000 acres of forestland surrounding Shenandoah National Park will be protected under five different conservation easements. Through the Shenandoah Borderlands Project, a joint effort between the Virginia Department of Forestry, the Piedmont Environmental Council, the USDA Forest Service, and private landowners, land in Albemarle and Nelson Counties that is indistinguishable from the Park will be conserved.

Monks Arrival After 15 Weeks Of Walking Fills DC Streets With Peace And Compassion

by Andy Corbley, Good News Network

It was a day that some locals said was unlike any other they had ever seen when the party of Buddhist monks arrived barefoot on the steps of the National Cathedral. “This is the moment I will remember for the rest of my life,” said the leader of the band of monks, Venerable Bhikkhu Pannakara. “And I hope you do the same.” For months, the nation has been captivated as some 19 senior monks, known as Bhikkhus, left the Hương Đạo Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth, Texas, and walked 2,300 miles to the nation’s capital for the sake of peace.