Good News Headlines 5/1/2023
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, center, stands between Indigenous Peoples Minister Sonia Guajajara, left, and National Indigenous Foundation President Joenia Wapichana at the closing of the annual Terra Livre, or Free Land Indigenous Encampment in Brasilia, Brazil. (Eraldo Peres / Associated Press)
Brazil Recognizes 6 Indigenous Areas In Boost For Amazon
by Carla Bridi and Fabiano Maisonnave, AP News
Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva on Friday granted official recognition of nearly 800 square miles of Indigenous lands, most of it in the Amazon, in a move that seeks to safeguard critical rainforest from the unchecked exploitation that marked his predecessor’s administration. Lula’s action was partial delivery on his promises to the Indigenous supporters and environmentally minded voters who lifted him to a narrow victory last year over far-right President Jair Bolsonaro, who had encouraged widespread development of the Amazon — both legal and illegal — and pledged not to grant “one more inch” of land to Indigenous peoples.
Sign Of Hope: ‘Extinct’ Lion Spotted In National Park In Chad
by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes, EcoWatch
In a sign of hope for lions, conservationists from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the Government of Chad were overjoyed when a remote camera captured the majestic image of a healthy female lion in Chad’s Sena Oura National Park, where not a single lion had been spotted in almost 20 years. Today, with around 23,000 African lions estimated to be living in the wild, the big cats are classified as “Vulnerable” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. The conservation team described the female lion as, “A beautiful lioness, in her prime and clearly in great health,” a press release from WCS said.
US Adult Cigarette Smoking Rate Hits New All-Time Low
by Mike Stobbe, AP News
U.S. cigarette smoking dropped to another all-time low last year, with 1 in 9 adults saying they were current smokers, according to government survey data released Thursday. Meanwhile, electronic cigarette use rose, to about 1 in 17 adults. The preliminary findings from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are based on survey responses from more than 27,000 adults. Cigarette smoking is a risk factor for lung cancer, heart disease and stroke, and it’s long been considered the leading cause of preventable death. Last year, the percentage of adult smokers dropped to about 11%, down from about 12.5% in 2020 and 2021.
NICU Nurse Adopts 14-Year-Old Teen Patient With Triplets, To Keep Their Family Together
by Andy Corbley, Good News Network
Sometimes there are no limits to what a person will do for their family, and in the case of a NICU nurse that was true, seemingly, for one of her patients as well. Nurse Katrina Mullen cared for a 14-year-old teen mom of premature triplets, named Shariya Small, and feared that the three babies would all be sent into foster care based on Small’s economic and familial situation. “I am very familiar with how scary it is to be pregnant at a young age like that,” Mullen told Small, per the Washington Post’s report on the story. “If you need anything, if you need to talk, I’m here.”
Recycle Any Device For Free: Apple, Google, Staples, Walmart, Best Buy Are E-Cycling Heroes—Even Paying For Shipping
by Good News Network
“You make it, you recycle it.” A new poll found that half of Americans believe major companies need to be accountable for the waste their products generate—and five of the biggest corporations on the planet are doing just that. One company leading the way is Apple. Since 1994, Apple has operated its own green gadget recycling program and soon began collecting devices, computers, and printers in many countries—even Android models and Windows computers, not just iPhones and Macs—diverting tons of electronic waste from landfills, and saving precious materials. By 2010, they were recycling 19 million pounds of e-waste annually.
