🌞 Vienna still hears Taylor Swift, world's oldest person and wildfire discovery

Good morning!

My high of the week: the sunshine. Everyone I know has been slowly coming out of their winter hibernating shells this week. I made sure I caught the sunset last night - enough said!

My low of the week: Driving to Canberra with Sam to take meetings in Parliament and missing five successive turnoffs for McDonald’s. A McFlurry with extra Oreos (in Canberra, not on the way to Canberra) made up for it, though.

What about you?

Age old wisdom

For this first story, I wanted to highlight the sage advice we received from the world’s oldest person, Maria Branyas Morera, who passed away this week at the age of 117. She passed "peacefully and without pain" on Monday, but not before she had the chance to share some wisdom on why she believes she lived so long.

Morera attributed her long life to "order, tranquillity, good connection with family and friends, contact with nature, emotional stability, no worries, no regrets, lots of positivity, and staying away from toxic people". I, for one, will endeavour to stay away from toxic people this week (and every week!) as a tribute to Morera. That’s not all - she also added: “I think longevity is also about being lucky…Luck and good genetics.”

It’s clear Morera didn’t take herself too seriously. In reading about her, I stumbled upon her X account, which includes the bio description: “I’m old, very old, but not an idiot.” What a legend.

Wildfire breakthrough

We’re never short of good news from the science world, thanks to the incredible discoveries of researchers worldwide. This week, we’re spotlighting Stanford researchers who have developed a sprayable gel that protects buildings from wildfire damage.

Amid a warming climate, the gels can be “sprayed on homes and critical infrastructure to help keep them from burning during wildfires”.

The researchers have confirmed the gels aren’t bad for “people or the environment”, which is always a bonus. From here, the team says they’re still improving the product, but are hopeful that they can test the new discovery soon and ensure critical infrastructure can be better protected next time a wildfire hits.

Silver lining for Swift fans

Earlier this month, Austrian authorities thwarted a planned terrorist attack at a Taylor Swift concert. It was news that really rocked the world - the pure joy that can be easily identified at any Swift concert was shockingly undercut by those who wanted to harm.

However, this week, Coldplay, one of the biggest bands in the world, made sure Vienna still heard Taylor Swift’s music, even if her concerts could not go ahead.

To a packed stadium of adoring fans, lead singer Chris Martin performed ‘Love Story’, one of Swift’s biggest songs.

Preparing the audience, he said: “We sing this song with so much love for Taylor, with so much love for Swifties….This is only love for all people.”

In the face of such darkness, the light of music and of the industry coming together to support one another was a beautiful moment.

Message from our friends at Intrepid Travel

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Good trips only. Discover your next adventure with Intrepid.

Community Good News: Netball for good

For this week’s community good news, we’re back in Victoria, where I’ve just learned that the first Netball Marathon will be hosted. The event will see 24 determined players compete in a single, non-stop 84-hour match (ouch!). If that athleticism isn’t enough, the group will raise money for four prominent Australian charities: Beyond Blue, Disability Sports Australia, Foodbank Victoria, and the Peter MacCallum Cancer Foundation.

According to event director Ben Sabic, the event "embodies the true spirit of sport—pushing boundaries while giving back to the community…We look forward to showcasing the incredible dedication of our players while supporting causes that make a real difference in people's lives."

The event will be held later this year at Beaconhills College. We can’t wait to hear all about it - an amazing demonstration of athletic and charitable spirits coming together!

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Something that made me happy this week!

Anyone who knows me knows how important music is to me. That’s why the thing that brought me joy this week (and many other weeks!) was the account @trackstarshow on TikTok and Instagram.

The show's host, Jack Coyne, interviews random people on the street and asks them to name the song he’s playing them. Recently, his show has become littered with celebrities and powerful people (you’ll see Kamala Harris and Julia Louis Dreyfus in the last few) but mostly it’s just average people talking about the joys of music.

I strongly recommend checking out the page. My two recent favourites from the series are this and this.

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