🌞 What are you grateful for?

You’ll see that in today’s edition, we recommend an account called ‘Today, I’m grateful for…’ which is one man’s effort to highlight the mundane wonders of everyday life. It got me thinking…what are you grateful for today? Hit reply and let me know!

UNSW scientists have confirmed the recent reintroduction of platypuses to the Royal National Park in NSW has been successful, following surveys finding multiple puggles (platypus babies) born since 2023.

The Platypus Conservation Initiative was established to encourage platypus population growth, reintroducing them to the park in 2023. UNSW Researchers, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and Taronga Conservation Society Australia led the initiative, conducting population surveys.

Lead researcher and initiative founder Dr Gilad Bino says the birth of puggles across two breeding seasons means that the reintroduced platypuses have established themselves and are reproducing successfully.  

It’s the first successful platypus movement in NSW, and Dr Bino says it “gives us tremendous hope for future conservation efforts across Australia.” 

This past week was Diwali, or Deepavali, the Hindu festival of lights celebrated by more than one billion people.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has confirmed that Fiji has eliminated trachoma as a public health problem, becoming the 26th country to do so.

Trachoma is a preventable and infectious eye disease that can lead to blindness.

According to the WHO, trachoma “no longer poses a public health threat in the country.”

WHO Western Pacific director Dr Saia Ma’u Piukala said the outcome “is a beacon of what’s possible when communities, governments, and partners unite behind a shared goal. This is a celebration of the power of Pacific leadership”.

A UK patient with Parkinson’s disease has played the clarinet for the first time in five years, thanks to a procedure known as ‘deep brain stimulation surgery’. 65 year old Denise Bacon, a “keen clarinettist” underwent a four-hour operation at King’s College Hospital in London.

During the procedure, surgeons delivered an electrical current to her brain. Doctors suggested Denise bring her clarinet into the operating theatre to see whether the procedure would improve her ability to play.

The team saw instant improvements in Denise’s hand dexterity, giving her the chance to play her beloved instrument again. Denise said she was able to “move with much more ease once the stimulation was applied… which I was delighted with.”

Got something to share?

You might’ve noticed this spot looks a little different today – and there’s a reason for that. Usually, this is where we connect you with partners who bring something genuinely interesting and worth your morning scroll.

If you (or someone you know) has something meaningful for our Good Newsletter community, we’d love to hear about it.

Get in touch about partnership opportunities here.

The finalists for the Comedy Wildlife competition have been announced, and the photos are just the best.

The competition was co-founded by photographers Paul Joyson-Hicks and Tom Sullam. Paul was going through his photographs when he saw many that made him laugh, and realised humour could be a way to meaningfully engage with animals. 

Its mission is to increase awareness about sustainability “for the preservation of biodiversity and the health and enrichment of everyone on Earth.” 

Each year, they also choose a small grass-roots conversation organisation to support. This year, they’re supporting the Whitley Fund for Nature, a charity that supports wildlife conservation in the global south.

You can view them here.

This is one of my absolute favourite Instagram accounts.

David, who runs the account, starts every video by saying ‘Today, I’m grateful for’ and then fills the blanks with things most of us take for granted. His sincerity, gratitude and outlook on life is so, so refreshing and I always leave with a new appreciation for simple things.

David has taught me to be grateful for the mundane — carrots, giant trees, combs, and light bulbs.

Meet Reece.

The UK eight-year-old boy is running two kilometres every day in October to raise money for homelessness. According to the Manchester Evening News, Reece told his mum Lauren that “it’s not fair that not everyone has a house,” and after she suggested raising money, he decided to run.

Reece is raising money for his local homelessness organisation, The Wellspring. He’s smashed through his original goal of £200 (around $AU410) and upped his goal multiple times since then.