5 Recent Positive Events
With the recent coronavirus outbreak and quarantine protocols, everything seems gloomy nowadays. Many worry about the virus and protecting themselves, negative thoughts and ideas cloud people’s vision and can’t see the good in their environment. However, not everything is in the downs in the rest of the world. Let’s see what’s going on in other countries!
Electric Boats in Amsterdam
The rumbling sounds of the boats in Amsterdam’s canals are one of the iconic traits in the Dutch city. But the new mayor that is “going green” oriented is pushing to transform the second-most popular means of transportation in the city to an all-electric powered commute. The city is planning to get rid of all diesel-powered boat engines by 2025 and go all-electric. The town expects there to be 100 more charging stations for said boats by 2021. Going all-electric can make the canals in the city a lot cleaner.
Saving Endangered Languages
There are about 7 thousand languages in the world, and some of them are at risk of being forgotten. But a man named Daniel Bögre Udell made an online library called Wikitongue, where more than a thousand volunteers contribute to adding language content to the page by interviewing people in their native language. Udell stated that the organization’s volunteers had recorded more than 400 native languages, and continues to increase by the day.
Desserto
Recently two men created an animal leather substitute made out of cactus. Adrián López Velarde and Marte Cázarez created an eco-friendly fabric that comes from the nopal cactus after two years of research. The designed material is to be both biodegradable and able to breathe easily while still maintaining durability. It is now being used to make anything from bags to car seats, shoes, and jackets.
King of Bhutan
On February 21st, King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck of Bhutan turned 40 years old and asked his people to celebrate his birthday in an honorable way. The king asked his people to plant a tree, adopt an animal, or clean their neighborhood. But this isn’t the first time the king had asked for such favors. On the day his firstborn, he and his wife asked everyone in the nation to plant one tree sapling, which resulted in nearly 200,000 trees. The king and queen are expecting a second son somewhere in spring, and the country is waiting for a similar green ritual.
Grateful Penguin
Five years ago, 71-year old fisherman Joao Pereira de Souza, who lives on an island outside Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, found a penguin covered in oil, washed it off, and fed it. After a week, Joao attempted to release the penguin back into the wild, but the penguin came back and stayed for more time, Joao later named him Din DIn. One day, Joao noticed Din Din was gone. Several months later, Din Din came back to stay with Joao. This process has been continuing for the past five years. This year, the Din Din left in February, and according to Joao, it’ll be coming back in June.