Six new calves boost Cambodia's sacred Mekong river dolphins
The latest calving season brought six baby Irrawaddy dolphins to a stretch of the Mekong River in northeastern Cambodia, lifting that population to 118. Many people along the river see the snub-nosed dolphins as reincarnated ancestors, and it is now the largest river-dwelling group of the species anywhere. Conservationists say the births show the dolphins can bounce back when threats like gillnet fishing are kept in check.
Source: Good News Network →
A commuter named Service cleans up a Brooklyn dumping site himself
Queens resident Joshua Service posted a video calling out a pile of trash dumped under a rail bridge in Crown Heights, and commenters told him to go clean it himself. So he did, showing up with gloves and a rake and filling 10 trash bags while the city's process was still waiting on required site visits. Neighbors called his effort exactly the kind of thing the city needs more of.
Source: Good News Network →
A tiny Scottish island crowdfunded a dig and rewrote its history
Residents of Lismore, a 170-person island in the Inner Hebrides, chipped in to fund excavations around their medieval cathedral. Archaeologists hired by the local historical society found strong evidence that the site was the 6th-century monastery of Saint Mo Luóc, a major early center of faith and crafts. The finds suggest little Lismore once rivaled famous Iona in importance.
Source: Good News Network →
Shanghai's new opera house invites everyone up its spiral staircase
Designed by the Norwegian firm Snøhetta, Shanghai's Grand Opera House has opened on the banks of the Huangpu River with three auditoriums seating 4,200 people. Its standout feature is a sweeping, fan-inspired outdoor staircase that anyone can climb, ticket or not, to reach a viewing platform over the city. The architects wanted a cultural landmark that welcomes the public instead of walling it off.
Source: Good News Network →
Everyday residents are filling the local news gap, and it's bringing people together
In Akron, Ohio, hundreds of ordinary residents are paid to sit in on public meetings like school board sessions and write up what happened for the local outlet Signal Akron. The program, called Documenters, lets small newsrooms cover far more ground. Reasons to be Cheerful reports that the citizen-written notes also help restore nuance to local conversations that often turn heated.
Source: Reasons to be Cheerful →