butterfly

Our top 5 good news stories of 2021

It's not all doom and gloom.

As we reflect on the past year, let's remember the good — the people, communities, ideas, and science that are creating a more healthy and sustainable planet.


The environment can be a depressing beat. But here are the top five good news stories from our newsroom over the past year that remind us there is hope.

1. The pesticide ban movement gains momentum

pesticide ban

Cities and counties are increasingly banning toxic pesticides—and some are taking aim at fertilizers.

2. A Listen Into Landscape

good news podcast

A series of audio postcards spotlighting peace, place, and connection to landscape from the perspective of those working in nature.

3. How artificial intelligence can help save us from air pollution

artificial intelligence

Researchers find AI may outperform traditional models, which could give more advance warning of bad air days, and reduce harmful exposures and hospital visits.

4. From butterfly wings to shrimp claws: Mimicking nature on the nanoscale

green chemistry

Innovators look to biomimicry to address sustainability challenges.

5. Planting a million trees in the semi-arid desert to combat climate change

planting trees

Tucson's ambitious tree planting goal aims to improve the health of residents, wildlife, and the watershed.

Have a good news story tip? We want to hear about it, write us at feedback@ehn.org.

Banner photo: Metalmark Butterfly. (Credit: Andreas Kay/flickr)

Black and orange oil pump jack in the middle of a field

New order weakens protections for public lands and wildlife

President Trump’s Interior Secretary Doug Burgum issued a directive making it easier to develop fossil fuels on public lands, reversing conservation efforts and threatening migratory birds, national monuments and endangered species.

Lisa Sorg and Wyatt Myskow report for Inside Climate News.

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Senator Whitehouse & climate change

Senator Whitehouse puts climate change on budget committee’s agenda

For more than a decade, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse gave daily warnings about the mounting threat of climate change. Now he has a powerful new perch.
Two men carrying a solar panel

Trump’s climate funding freeze leaves rural businesses in limbo

The Trump administration’s freeze on climate and energy funding has disrupted businesses, nonprofits and local governments, with rural projects in conservative-leaning states facing stalled reimbursements and financial strain.

Jeff St. John reports for Canary Media.

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Elon Musk gesturing and speaking at an event

Musk-backed effort threatens USAID’s climate programs

A freeze on USAID funding, supported by Elon Musk and the Trump administration, has halted key climate initiatives, potentially jeopardizing disaster preparedness and clean energy projects worldwide.

Chico Harlan reports for The Washington Post.

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Person in fingerless gloves using macbook pro

Researchers fight to save  environmental data erased from federal websites by Trump's administration

The Trump administration has swiftly deleted climate and environmental justice data from federal websites, prompting scientists and advocates to scramble to preserve critical resources.

Naveena Sadasivam reports for Grist.

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Curved facade of the Environmental Protection Agency building in Washington DC.

EPA partially unfreezes environmental funding after court ruling

A federal judge’s order has prompted the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to lift a spending freeze on some programs under the bipartisan infrastructure law and Inflation Reduction Act, though major climate-related funds remain paused.

James Bikales and Zack Colman report for POLITICO.

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Aerial photography of icebergs on body of water during daytime.

Polar ice melt may collapse key ocean current by 2050, scientists warn

Global warming has accelerated since 2010, raising concerns that a critical Atlantic Ocean current could shut down within decades, leading to extreme sea level rise and disruptive climate shifts.

Bob Berwyn reports for Inside Climate News.

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Map showing the Gulf of Mexico.

Greg Grandin: Renaming the Gulf of Mexico while oil drilling and pollution surge

Donald Trump’s push to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the "Gulf of America" draws attention away from decades of offshore drilling, pollution and environmental devastation affecting marine life and coastal communities.

Greg Grandin writes for The Guardian.

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From our Newsroom
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.

People  sitting in an outdoors table working on a big sign.

Op-ed: Why funding for the environmental justice movement must be anti-racist

We must prioritize minority-serving institutions, BIPOC-led organizations and researchers to lead environmental justice efforts.

joe biden

Biden finalizes long-awaited hydrogen tax credits ahead of Trump presidency

Responses to the new rules have been mixed, and environmental advocates worry that Trump could undermine them.

Op-ed: Toxic prisons teach us that environmental justice needs abolition

Op-ed: Toxic prisons teach us that environmental justice needs abolition

Prisons, jails and detention centers are placed in locations where environmental hazards such as toxic landfills, floods and extreme heat are the norm.

Agents of Change in Environmental Justice logo

LISTEN: Reflections on the first five years of the Agents of Change program

The leadership team talks about what they’ve learned — and what lies ahead.

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