Good News

Our top 5 good news stories of 2020

Because we could all use a little more cheer.

We can all agree that 2020 was a challenging year.


Good news feels hard to come by lately. And when you work in environmental news, it can seem even more rare.

Yet, the year was not without progress (yes, seriously!). Check out five good news stories from our newsroom that you may have missed below.

1. A Northeast US climate initiative has had a major side benefit—healthier children

Researchers estimate a climate effort in the Northeast U.S. helped the region reduce toxic air pollution and avoid hundreds of asthma and autism cases, preterm births, and low birth weights.

2. Roadmap points Europe toward safer, sustainable chemicals

EU Commission releases ambitious strategy for getting hormone-disrupting chemicals out of food, products, and packaging.

3. Solar power on the rise at US schools

Report finds an 81% increase in K-12 schools using solar power over the last 5 years.

4. Pittsburgh’s Black farmers work to grow a new future

A small group of new farmers have seeded a movement to change the local food industry.

5. Derrick Z. Jackson: A Rhode Island city gets serious about climate justice

In its climate action plan, Providence, Rhode Island, is giving frontline residents' health equal billing with carbon reduction. Other cities should pay attention.


Banner photo: Ebony Lunsford-Evans, owner of FarmerGirlEB in Pittsburgh, helps a customer. (Credit: Brian Cook)

Puerto Rico's coastline with buildings that are ruins in the distance

With Puerto Rico’s water crisis, climate change meets ineptitude

Puerto Rico's ongoing water crisis made national headlines last week, as many were left without water for days, and now the majority of the island is facing drought conditions.

Two men on a roof with overalls on installing a solar panel

‘The real challenge starts after sundown’: Europe’s heatwave boosted solar by up to 17% on hot days

A surge in solar power has helped meet heightened power demand from Europe’s blistering heatwaves, according to a new analysis.
White government building with large decorative pillars

What to know about the Supreme Court’s major climate case this fall

The decision could set a significant precedent for states and cities trying to hold fossil fuel companies accountable for climate impacts.
Wildland fire fighter, silhouetted  against flame-orange backdrop, training hose on wildfire.

Federal job cuts are making wildfires harder to fight

The Trump administration pushed out thousands of veteran U.S. Forest Service staff. An ‘extraordinary’ fire season is testing those who are left.
A Black woman putting her voting record into a box at a polling station

In Arizona, the thermostat is driving voters to the polls

Record heat, two rate hikes and a data center boom have turned utility bills — not climate — into the state’s most volatile issue.
A group of runners with numbered tags running on a city street

Hot weather forces marathons to consider changes to help runners

Marathon organizers are adjusting to warmer race conditions caused by climate change. Many races are shifting dates, starting earlier, or offering shorter runs.

From our Newsroom
Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have violated pollution laws are seeking permit renewals

Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have violated pollution laws are seeking permit renewals

One facility has emitted cancer-causing chemicals into waterways at levels up to 520% higher than legal limits.

Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

Regulators are underestimating health impacts from air pollution: Study

"The reality is, we are not exposed to one chemical at a time.”

Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro speaks with the state flag and American flag behind him.

Two years into his term, has Gov. Shapiro kept his promises to regulate Pennsylvania’s fracking industry?

A new report assesses the administration’s progress and makes new recommendations

silhouette of people holding hands by a lake at sunset

An open letter from EPA staff to the American public

“We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. We need to hold this administration accountable.”

wildfire retardants being sprayed by plane

New evidence links heavy metal pollution with wildfire retardants

“The chemical black box” that blankets wildfire-impacted areas is increasingly under scrutiny.

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