no. 113: I visited the State Department

Hey friend,

This week I had the honor of being selected as one of eight environmental creators to attend the first Climate Change Open House at the US State Department.

One day I started reporting on stories of environmental progress to help feel less overwhelmed & more empowered to protect our planet, and the next thing I know I'm learning about global diplomacy from the very people that sit at the negotiation table.

It's a wild journey and the privilege of a lifetime to be able to do it along with all of you.

Getting to hear from various departments about their priorities (and learn what the State Department actually does) offered valuable insight into how we can keep the pressure on and the momentum going.

Now time to distill these learnings into more progress for my partners, you all, and mother earth... 🌍🌎🌏

But that's not the only good news! Here's 17 more stories of progress along with several community wins directly from you...

Friday, August 2

The only mammal in the world covered in scales who curls into a ball when threatened is called a pangolin and being protected in a Mozambique wildlife center by vets like Mércia Angela who are working to prevent poaching of these truly unique animals (Patrick Greenfield|The Guardian)

An underwater robot named Ran took unprecedented photos of an Antarctic ice shelf’s underside to give critical clues into how ice is thinning and sea levels may rise, helping scientists create better forecasts (Raymond Zhong|NYT)

More power was generated by wind and solar than fossil fuels in the EU for the first half of 2024 per a new report showing all renewables are now making up about half of their energy (Ajit Niranjan|The Guardian)

And today’s community win comes from Bree & Tae whose parents kicked off a community composting program with plans to grow and convince the city to provide composting options.

Monday, August 5

24 new UNESCO world heritage sites were just announced that have “outstanding universal value” for cultural or natural significance and are now legally protected by 195 countries, bringing the total number of sites up to 1,223 (Wanderlust Mag and IUCN)

80% fewer plastic bags line the UK’s beaches compared to a decade ago when a new fee was added to disposable bags, with a survey finding 1 bag every 100 meters of coastline on average, showing these fees work and should probably extend to other single use plastics (Yale e360)

Following the longest tropical storm ever recorded, some families in Malawi received cash from the loss and damage fund established at the UN COP27 to literally build a new roof, repair flood damage, and get clothes as the nation strives to build further extreme weather resilience (Kang-Chun Cheng|The Guardian)

And today’s community win comes from Carly whose city is now allowing native vegetation to be planted on city property boulevards to help insects and probably make things prettier.

Tuesday, August 9

The Grand Canyon is set to be the first National Park to eliminate single use plastic waste for the 300 million visitors each year by teaming up with nonprofit Upstream to create a reusable system that will scale to all National Parks if successful (Francesca Benson|IFL Science)

Cindy Ngamba is the first person to ever win an olympic medal for the Refugee Olympic Team filled with athletes that have been forced to flee their country and against the odds continue to thrive in their sport, showing the incredible resilience of humans (UNHRC)

Curtis Shuck, a former oil and gas executive, has now made it his life mission to cap the abandoned wells across the nation that leak methane, so far capping 45 wells across 14 states, immediately preventing millions of tons of emissions (Michaela Haas|RTBC)

And today’s community win comes from @slothywaffle who started Mental Health Hump Day at their workplace posting resources to help with stress and anxiety during their busy season.

Wednesday August 7

Elina Pipa looked into adding energy-generating workout machines to the gym at Brown University for a class project, which was pitched to the athletic department, then successfully tested and now her school will have 25 pieces of equipment powering the gym just by people using them (Kristin Toussaint|Fast Company)

Soni Pradhanang spent 7 years developing an affordable floating platform made from trash and topped with plants that filter out water pollutants like nitrates, heavy metals, and phosphorus in Nepal, India, and Bangladesh (Hannah Richter |WIRED)

High school students just released 50,000 oysters into Jamaica Bay in New York which will filter the water, make the shore more resilient, and help the marine ecosystem as the Billion Oyster Project continue their mission to restore and educate (Giulia Heyward|Gothamist)

And today’s community win comes from Cyrus whose city made recycling and composting mandatory to reduce trash going to the landfill and creating methane.

Thursday August 8

Four dogs are now turtle conservationists thanks to their exceptional sense of smell as the Boykin spaniels named Ruger, Skeeter, Yogi, and Penny sniff out threatened box turtles much faster than humans can for researchers to record their health and movements (Nature Conservancy)

Coral is being successfully grown on land in Florida by conservationists attempting to study and reproduce the coral that survived a massive heat wave to identify how species can survive extreme heat and disease, while they also push to stop climate change as the only long term solution to save these animals (Amy Green|ICN)

Lab grown meat is now approved for pet food in the UK as they become the first European nation to allow the extraction of cells that are fed nutrients and turned into meat without needing to kill any animals while initial studies show this saves land and could reduce emissions (Harrison Jones|BBC)

And today’s community win comes from Craig who successfully removed an invasive bush from his in-law’s yard without using harsh chemicals to protect the area.

Bonus stories

🦇 Fruit bats are smarter than we thought

🔥 Check out these giant billboard blaming heat waves on the true villains (Big Oil)

What's your good story this week? Let me know in a comment or by replying to this email!

P.S. if you're not following me on YouTube yet, watcha you waiting for?