🌞 Good flight news

This week, we’re gearing up for one of the noisiest weeks in the news cycle…ever. As we head into the U.S. election, a reminder to practice responsible news consumption habits. That doesn’t mean turning off the news altogether, it just means reading what’s necessary and knowing when you’ve hit your limit. Sometimes putting down your phone and going outside is a necessary and important step.

See you all on the flip side!

This one is for anyone who has ever set foot on a plane.

This week, a new law came into effect requiring U.S. airlines to give passengers cash refunds if their flight is significantly delayed or cancelled.

That’s right, for Americans, gone are the days of sitting on hold for five hours trying to get some credit. Instead, refunds will now be automatically processed by an airline if a passenger’s flight is “cancelled or significantly changed, and they do not accept the significantly changed flight, rebooking on an alternative flight, or alternative compensation”.

According to the Department of Transportation, airlines are required to refund passengers within seven business days if they paid on a credit card and within 20 days if they used another form of payment.

Announcing the rule back in April, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said: “Passengers deserve to get their money back when an airline owes them—without headaches or haggling.”

Think of all the hours you could get back in your life!

One of Australia’s most preeminent mental health researchers has been recognised as the NSW Scientist of the Year.

Prof Helen Christensen is a mental health researcher who has worked in the field for decades.

In 2000, she developed one of the first digital intervention programs to reduce depression in young people. That program has now been used by millions of people across more than 160 countries.

Christensen then went on to become the Executive Director and Chief Scientist at the Black Dog Institute. Her work creating a model of suicide prevention has since been incorporated into national and state suicide prevention plans across the country.

Reflecting on her win, Christensen said: “It’s exciting to see this recognition for scientific work in mental health—an issue now seen globally as the leading health concern, even surpassing cancer, obesity and COVID.”

This week, more than 5,000 people marched along Brisbane’s Story Bridge before lying down and posing completely naked for a photo shoot for New York-based artist Spencer Tunick.

The artwork is part of the inaugural MELT festival, which is the city’s new festival celebrating queer art and culture.

The number of participants surpassed the 5,200 people who posed for Tunick’s photo shoot at the Sydney Opera House in 2010.

Speaking about the diversity of the turnout, Tunick said: "Different tonalities, different genders, we had trans participants and non-binary, people from the LGBTQIA+ community and their allies.” He called it ”the most diverse work” he’d done.

If you are someone who attended the Brisbane shoot or have previously partaken in a naked event, I am so keen to hear from you. What is it like?!!

Meet Phurba Sherpa: Everest Base Camp’s Award-Winning Guide

Ever dreamt of trekking to Everest Base Camp? With Intrepid, you might get the chance to be guided by Phurba Sherpa, an award-winning guide with over a decade of experience in the Himalayas.

Starting as a porter at 17, Phurba has risen to become Nepal’s first Wanderlust World Guide Award winner for Walking & Outdoor. “It’s a big thing for Nepal’s tourism sector,” he says. 

I thought I’d take this opportunity to introduce you to some of the TDA team, so that you know who you’re supporting when you tell your friends about us.

Pictured above are two of TDA’s superstars Billi and Tara. Both of these extraordinary thinkers are OG TDA-ers, and have been with us since the beginning.

Tara runs our partnerships (which means we get to do cool things like launch Good Newsletters with Intrepid) and Billi runs our editorial (the bread and butter of what makes us, us).

When you support TDA, you’re not supporting a nameless, faceless business. You’re supporting the next generation of thinkers, doers and game-changers.

Sending this newsletter to a friend helps to do that (thanks!), which you can do below:

Pictured above is a guide leading a horse in Cairo, Egypt in front of an art installation titled "I See I See" by Federica Di Carlo.

The pyramids in Cairo remain one of the most astonishing sites I have ever visited.