Meanwhile in D.C....

🏞️ Lawmakers are doing their part to help national parks, too: four Senators just reintroduced a bipartisan bill to extend critical maintenance funding for national parks and public lands across the country.

🏳️‍⚧️ Heartbreakingly, the U.S. Supreme Court said the Trump administration can begin immediately enforcing a ban on transgender military members. Trans military members are more than qualified to serve and are keeping us safer and stronger as you read this.

Climate Action

Two major scientific societies are reviving a cornerstone federal report on the impact of climate change in the U.S.

The American Meteorological Society and the American Geophysical Union announced they would work together to provide peer-reviewed research that assesses the current and future impacts of climate change on the U.S.

The announcement comes after the Trump administration dismissed about 400 scientists working to produce the National Climate Assessment, required by law every four to five years by a 1990 federal law, putting the publishing of the next report in jeopardy.

One climate scientist said that the two groups stepping in to fill these scientific research gaps “is a testament to how important it is that the latest science be summarized and available.”

Why is this good news? This comprehensive report forecasts 25 to 100 years into the future, which helps people, communities, governments, and more understand how climate change is impacting decisions made today — from the size of sewer pipes to install or preparing for extreme heat.

→ Read more​

More Good News

​A major tuberculosis vaccine trial completed its enrollment faster than expected. For what could be the world’s first new tuberculosis vaccine in a century, the Phase 3 study is taking place at 54 sites across four countries, and it’s already recruited the 20,000 participants needed.

​After three years of war in Ukraine, Europe announced its plan to ban all gas imports from Russia within two years. The European Union has been slowly reducing its reliance on Russian gas, which some argue has long compromised EU sovereignty and funded the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine.

​A new tech startup is looking to modernize and streamline the way people donate to charities. On the platform, users set a monthly giving amount, and then funds are automatically distributed across vetted charities for a cause they care about, such as the climate crisis, LGBTQ+ rights, ending animal suffering, and more.

​Thanks to medical advancements, stomach cancer is increasingly being diagnosed earlier. One of the deadliest types of cancer, stomach cancer is typically difficult to catch early and tends to be discovered at an advanced stage when cancer cells have spread — earlier diagnoses are offering hope for improving survival rates, too.

Environment

A ‘self-fueling ocean cleaning factory’ turns ocean garbage into hydropower

→ Read more​

National Parks

Charitable foundations that support U.S. national parks have seen an increase in donations and volunteers

Shenandoah National Park Trust, which raises money for Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park, has received “more than 150 inquiries about volunteering in just the past two months” — ​​more than triple the number it received in all of 2024.

And it’s a similar story at national parks across the country, from Acadia to the Grand Canyon, with people looking to offer in-person or monetary support for their favorite outdoor spaces in the face of funding and staffing cuts threatening the stability, conservation, and protection of the parks.

While the NPS is funded by the federal government, nonprofits pay for a wide array of programs, from trail maintenance and educational classes for kids to seasonal staff inside the park.

→ Read more​

More Good bits

🍄 Your next home could be made out of fungi.​

👏 OpenAI is staying in the hands of its nonprofit arm.

🎙️ Debate class is canceled. Dialogue class is in session.​

☀️ Solar power is the new cash crop.​

👚 Protesters are holding retailers responsible for the full life cycle of their products.

What’s good?

Okay, I absolutely love that classes centered around dialogue are taking the place of debate.

What was your favorite class in high school?

It probably won’t surprise you to learn mine was newspaper and yearbook. 😉

— Megan