Photo: Charbel Karam / Unsplash (CC0)
In today’s edition: Lebanon’s parliament has voted to abolish the death penalty as the first country in the Middle East, Niger has successfully re-greened five million hectares without planting any trees, and global solar capacity has passed three terawatts.
A majority in the Lebanese Parliament has voted to abolish the death penalty. The move makes Lebanon the first country in the Middle East to formally end capital punishment. The legislation follows years of campaigning by civil society groups and lawyers.
Source: BBC
As 33 African countries work to restore 129 million hectares of degraded land by 2030, Niger is offering something of a practical lesson: restoring land does not always mean planting trees. Protecting and managing natural grasslands means farmers have actively helped regenerate five million hectares of Sahel land, improving soils and restoring pastures.
Source: Denkstrom
Global solar capacity has passed three terawatts for the first time in human history, adding another terawatt in just 19 months. The rapid growth shows how quickly solar is scaling: the first terawatt took almost seven decades whilst the latest was added in under two years.
Source: Eciks
A year after the UK introduced its maternal respiratory syncytial virus vaccination programme, the number of babies admitted to intensive care with RSV has fallen by 50%. The result suggests that vaccinating mothers during pregnancy can help protect newborns during their most vulnerable first months of life.
Source: The Pharmaceutical Journal
From Monday, an Uber or Doordash delivery driver in Australia will earn at least $31.30 an hour – a milestone for gig economy workers who have struggled with low pay and lack of protections for more than a decade.
Source: The Guardian
New South Wales will begin a gun buyback in November, giving people a way to voluntarily surrender firearms in return for compensation. The scheme builds on Australia’s long-running approach to reduce the number of guns in circulation and could become its largest such effort since the country’s 1996 reforms.
Source: Reuters
Coral cover is increasing across parts of the Great Barrier Reef, with the strongest gains in northern and central areas. The improvement is a sign that reefs can theoretically recover when conditions ease, in turn giving damaged coral ecosystems a chance to rebuild themselves.
Source: ABC News
Söderåsen national park is one of Europe’s largest protected broadleaf woods, offering wild swimming, spectacular hiking trails and an inspiring story of regeneration.
Source: The Guardian
A language school in Blackburn is using gardening to support young migrants as they learn English and settle into a new community. The paddock-to-plate project gives students time outdoors to grow food and take a break from the demands of learning a new language, whilst also forming friendships with people in similar positions to their own.
Source: ABC News
When he saw a messy yard being criticised on social media, Stephen Jalland grabbed his trimmer and decided to help. An overgrown garden, he discovered, often hides an overwhelmed owner. “Me cutting the grass does not fix somebody’s mental health problems,” he continues. “But it can aid in making them feel a little bit better about themselves. It just takes away that little bit of stress.”
Source: The Guardian
