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Pollution Efforts in Lake Tahoe Have Cut Sediment and Algae Run-off to Preserve the Water’s Iconic Clarity

By
Andy Corbley
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Lake Tahoe - CC 2.0. Travis Wise, via Flickr
Lake Tahoe – CC 2.0. Travis Wise, via Flickr

Pollution control efforts kept over 727,000 pounds of fine sediment out of Lake Tahoe, protecting its water clarity and quality.

Revealed in a new California-Nevada environmental report, the efforts will help preserve the lake’s world-famous cobalt-clear water by harmful reducing algae blooms.

The partnership, called the Lake Tahoe Total Maximum Daily Load Program (TMDL Program) is managed by the California Environmental Protection Agency and the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection.

Founded in 2011, the TMDLP’s ultimate goal is the long-term downtrend of pollutants in the lake, such that by 2031 a visitor can see 78 feet down.

The partnership witnessed a 29% reduction in fine-grained sediment, a 23% reduction in phosphorus runoff, and a 17% reduction in nitrogen runoff in 2024 compared to 2023 levels.

Ironically, visibility in the lake was worse in 2024 compared to 2023, and even 2022, despite the higher levels of clarity-reducing particles. For this reason, Tahoe Daily Tribune reports, TMDLP is focusing on long-term trends rather than year to year variation, as it’s shown to be a poor indicator of particulate levels.

While it’s difficult to know for sure whether one is able to see 78 feet down compared to 62 feet down as was possible last year, the 29 dump trucks it would theoretically take to move all the pollutants that didn’t enter the lake offer a much clearer image as to the partnership’s progress.

CLEAN WATER NEWS: From Sewage-Filled Waters to Crystal Blue: Switzerland Rivers and Lakes Offer Hope for Cleaning Up Other Countries

“Protecting Lake Tahoe’s iconic clarity requires long-term commitment, collaboration and innovation,” said Jason Kuchnicki, chief of the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Water Quality Planning.

“These results reflect the strength of the bi-state partnership and the dedication of local agencies implementing proven, science-based strategies to reduce pollution at its source. As we continue adapting to new challenges, this program remains a cornerstone of our efforts to safeguard one of Nevada’s—and the nation’s—most treasured natural resources.”

AMERICAN LAKES: After 50 Years, Trout Population Is Restored to Historic Numbers in One of the Largest Lakes in US

Local governments and highway authorities on both sides of the lake are required to reduce the amount of clarity-harming contaminants from reaching the lake. Local industry and businesses can receive credits from the TMDLP based on the success of their own, holistically implemented initiatives, rather than by a top-down, one-size-fits-all approach.

This could include, for example, hiring one of Lake Tahoe’s Candela hydrofoil ferryboats for employee commuting, which would reduce the particulate matter from internal combustion engines.

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The ‘Most Colorful Home in Queens’ Hits the Market for $3 Million in New York City

By
Andy Corbley
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By Nahid Mollah for SWNS
– credit, Nahid Mollah for SWNS

New York City real estate is famous for many reasons; color not typically among them.

Now though, the “most colorful home in Queens” has hit the market with a $3 million price tag.

– credit, Nahid Mollah for SWNS

Britain’s Southwest News Service reported on the house, located on 36th Avenue, and spoke with the realtor handling the sale of the property.

“In more than two decades of selling homes across Queens, Long Island, Manhattan, and Brooklyn, I’ve had the privilege of marketing many remarkable properties, but this home stands apart,” said Nahid Mollah from Nest Seekers International.

The extravagant six-bedroom, four-bathroom property features floor-to-ceiling windows, hand-selected chandeliers that double as sculptural art, and bold, floral-themed finishes that feel like living in an eternal spring.

As you step through the front door, you immediately step into a candy-colored wonderland. Every room bursting with different colors and themes.

The property, called “Jasmine House” is currently used as a duplex with a third-floor rental.

The listing states the ground level is ideal for a doctor’s office, but is currently a full residential setup.

New owners can convert the ground level into a thriving medical practice or creative studio while enjoying the luxury of a private, custom-designed residence above.

– credit, Nahid Mollah for SWNS
– credit, Nahid Mollah for SWNS
– credit, Nahid Mollah for SWNS

A brick duplex-style home, the property also features a private garage currently used as storage, and a side yard perfect for garden parties or outdoor dining.

“Its design isn’t just different; it’s a true statement piece, crafted with a vision that defies the ordinary,” said Mollah.

“For the buyer who wants more than a home, but a conversation starter, this is a rare find.”

WATCH Mollah tour the property… 

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“We may give without loving, but we cannot love without giving.” – Bernard Meltzer

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Good News Network
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Getty Images for Unsplash+

Quote of the Day: “We may give without loving, but we cannot love without giving.” – Bernard Meltzer

Photo by: Getty Images for Unsplash+

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quote of the Day page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

Getty Images for Unsplash+

Good News in History, August 17

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Good News Network
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80 years ago today, Animal Farm was published by George Orwell. Though most famous for his seminal dystopian fiction work, Nineteen Eighty-Four, this satirical novella carries similar socio-political allegorical heft. Centered around anthropomorphic farm animals rebelling against their human farmer in hopes to create a society where all animals can be equal, free, and happy away from human interventions, things go wrong in a very human way. READ more about this great book… (1945)

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These Trees Survived Hiroshima: Group Plants Their Seeds Worldwide to Preserve Their Memory

By
Andy Corbley
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The Hiroshima Castle Eucalyptus, an atomic bomb survivor - public domain
The Hiroshima Castle Eucalyptus, an atomic bomb survivor

In Japan, an organization is planning how to help ensure the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings are remembered for thousands of years, rather than hundreds.

Its plan revolves around the hibakujumoku or the A-bomb-surviving trees of Hiroshima.

With the 80th anniversary of the bombings having just concluded, it’s worth taking a moment to learn about the trees that survived one of our nation’s darkest decisions.

The giant fireball that proceeded the detonation of the atom bomb, if it can believed, couldn’t wipe out all the trees in the blast zone. This eucalyptus tree, for example, was only half a mile from the epicenter.

Called Green Legacy Hiroshima (GLH) and launched in 2011, the organization works to cultivate seeds of peace and hope from these woody survivors, and transport them around the world to be planted and raised in memorial peace gardens not unlike the World Peace Pagodas of the inspirational Buddhist leader Fuji Guruji.

When the roots of the idea that would become GLH were first planted, there were 170 hibakujumoku, but like the human A-bomb survivors, called hibakushi, time was beginning to reduce their number.

Some died of natural causes; others were cut down by accident. Organizers Nassrine Azimi and Tomoko Watanabe realized that they had to act faster than they had realized, and so sprouted GLH to try and protect the trees which at that point had no official protection whatsoever.

They were outside the bounds of the UNESCO World Heritage Site that encompasses the bombing site and other related memorial infrastructure, so any protection had to come through awareness raising.

They accomplished this in part by taking GLH global, and as of 2025, 41 countries around the world have received and planted seeds from the hibakujumoku, ensuring their legacy continues, even if they don’t.

GLH is a volunteer project supported by the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and out of respect for the fundraising efforts channeled by the stories and advocacy of the hibakushi, the project does not fundraise from the public.

PEACE FIRST:

Part of that awareness raising is the notion of a 1,000-year memorial project, to eclipse the small, year by year anniversaries of today.

“I’ve been taught Hiroshima peace education since I was a kid,” says the Hiroshima native, 27-year-old Mariko Kikuchi, an expert in UNITAR’s Division of Prosperity, “but didn’t know about the trees… It should be more publicized that they are survivors, too.”

MORE SPECIAL TREES: Grove of 100 Giant Trees Discovered in 2019 Are Tallest in the Amazon–and Now Protected by State Park

One of the flagship stories is from a tree closest to the epicenter of the blast: a weeping willow; eerily appropriate for the job. This tree’s trunk was splintered and turned to ash in the explosion, but by 1947, while Hiroshima mayor Shinzo Hamai was surveying the blast damage, he found the trunk had already sprouted again—a sign of hope as he took it.

Later that year, the first annual Hiroshima peace festival was held, and crowds of thousands gathered from around the world. Many of those old photographs feature stoic faces, and behind them in the background stand the hibakujumoku, damaged, but alive and slowly regrowing.

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Scientists Identify a New Manta Ray Species, Just the Third Known in the World

By
Andy Corbley
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Study co-authors collect measurements from a specimen that would confirm the species' discovery - credit - Bethany Augliere, released via Marine Megafauna Foundation
Study co-authors collect measurements from a specimen that would confirm the species’ discovery – credit – Bethany Augliere, released via Marine Megafauna Foundation

Usually when scientists announce the discovery of a new species, it’s some small brown frog, a gnarly spider in a rainforest you’ll never visit, or a new sea-something.

But Earth still has some curveballs to throw at us—like a new species of manta ray, just the third known in the world.

These large fish belong to the suborder Elasmobranchii, which contains sharks, rays, and skates. Graceful and curious, the genus was thought to just contain two species: the giant oceanic manta (Mobula birostris) and the reef manta (Mobula alfredi).

Dr. Andrea Marshall is the world’s foremost expert on manta rays, and has spent over a dozen years diving with and photographing them. In 2009, it was a landmark paper of her observations that brought about the first separation between the giant and reef mantas, as they had previously been thought to be the same.

At the same time she predicted a third might exist. Since then, she has hand-drawn rays in minute detail from countless photographs, until she could practically differentiate the two species while blindfolded.

So when she was diving with manta rays in Mexico, and a specimen appeared that looked like neither, she knew her prediction had come true. Now she just had to prove it.

“It had taken me 6 years to differentiate the first two species and I knew them inside out at this stage: this manta didn’t look like either of them,” Dr. Marshall said in a statement announcing the discovery on the website of her conservation nonprofit, the Marine Megafauna Foundation.

Dr. Andrea Marshall the first person to ever receive a PhD on manta rays – credit, released via Marine Megafauna Foundation

Mobula yarae, named after a mythical mermaid-like figure from Brazilian mythology, can grow as large as 16-20 feet in length—as much as the giant oceanic manta, but so far Dr. Marshall and colleagues have only observed juveniles.

Between 2010 and 2017, she was mostly working with still images trying to detect the differences between this mysterious third manta and the two she knew so well. That period of study ended when a dead individual washed up on a beach, and genetic testing was able to confirm the existence of a third manta.

In the study published on the discovery in the journal Environmental Biology of Fishes, Marshall and co-authors share some photographs showing the clear differentiating marks between the three species. M. yarae shows distinct grey wing tips, and a strong, fat, ‘V’ shape on its shoulders.

The other two species have the same markings but to different intensities and placements. Underbelly spots were important as well for identification.

MORE FROM THE SEA: Thriving Ecosystem of Deep-Sea Creatures Discovered After Iceberg Detached Serendipitously from Antarctica

“In 2009, it was one of the largest species discoveries of the last 50 years. It was huge for me as an early career scientist and such a privilege to go through every step of the process. Did I ever expect to do something like that again? Hell no. Not a chance,” Dr. Marshall said on her Instagram. “So it was one of the shocks of my life to jump into the warm waters off the Yucatán in Mexico about a year later and come face to face with what I instantly knew was a third species of manta ray.”

Photo credits – Leo Francini a; Guy Stevens Manta Trust b, e; Rawany Porfilho c; Mauricio Andrade d; and Nayara Bucair f

The discovery of the M yarae, or the Atlantic manta offers scientists a rare glimpse into evolution in action. As one of the most recently evolved lineages of sharks and rays, manta rays provide a window into ongoing speciation, with genetic evidence suggesting M. yarae diverged relatively recently from other manta ray species.

“We’re probably still watching speciation occur!” study co-author Jessica Pate said in the statement. “This species has very recently evolved from the giant manta—it’s rare to see a new species like this, and even rarer to watch the process behind it.”

MORE MARINE LIFE STORIES: First-Known Sighting of a ‘Massive’ Antarctic Squid is Caught on Camera During Nat Geo Expedition

The relatively recent divergence makes the M. yarae particularly valuable for understanding how large marine species adapt and evolve. The species represents evolution in motion, providing insights into the processes that drive biodiversity in marine environments.

“Kids often ask me if, in this day and age, there is really anything left to discover,” wrote Dr. Marshall on Instagram. “I always laugh and end up telling my story, because I am living proof that there is. The only barrier we face is being close-minded and assuming we know it all, when in fact we have barely scratched the surface.”

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Nike Co-Founder Phil Knight Gifts Record $2 Billion to US University for Their Cancer Center

By
Andy Corbley
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Phil Knight, wife Penny, and Knight Cancer Institute Director Dr. Druker - credit, OSHU, released
Phil Knight, wife Penny, and Knight Cancer Institute Director Dr. Druker – credit, OSHU, released

Co-Founder of Nike Phil Knight has opened his bank account and his heart in order to set a record for the largest charitable gift ever handed to an American university.

$2 billion was given to a cancer institute bearing his name at the Oregon Health & Science University, a gift that will allow the institute to double in size and continue producing lifesaving breakthroughs in cancer diagnosis methods and treatment.

The Sultan of Swoosh is known for giving large philanthropic donations, and in the same way that Nike has impacted and shaped sport, Phil and his wife Penny have supported a revolution in the fight against cancer through that support.

The Knights had previously pledged to donate $500 million to OSHU if it could match that total in fundraising, a pledge which launched the ambitious Knight Cancer Challenge, which amassed donations from all corners and all sectors of America. The resulting $1 billion was used to fund research into early cancer detection screenings, leading to a panoply of blood tests.

Knight Cancer Institute Director Brian Druker, M.D., was the lead developer of Gleevec, a drug that transformed the survival of patients with chronic myeloid leukemia from less than five years to a diagnosis for which a normal lifespan can be expected.

The Knights’ investment of $2 billion was inspired by Dr. Druker’s vision to integrate the benefits of scientific discovery they have supported in the past with unmatched cancer care. This fully integrated cancer care model will expand and accelerate diagnostics, ensure access to innovative clinical trials informed by Knight researchers and simplify the experience for patients and families.

Every patient will have access to a full range of much-needed support resources, including nutritional support, psychological, genetic and financial counseling; symptom management; survivorship care and support; and other complementary therapies.

GENEROSITY AND GIVING: Thank-You Cards Pile Up with Nowhere to Go After School District Receives Anonymous ‘Transformative’ Donation

“Penny and Phil Knight have always challenged us to do what no one else is doing,” Dr. Druker said. “It can seem impossible to navigate the health care system after being diagnosed with cancer. We’re going to change that. We have revolutionized the way we detect and treat cancer. Now we are going to transform the way we care for patients while continuing to develop innovative treatments.”

Lastly, the gift being as large as it is, has given the institute the chance to transform into a self-governed entity within OSHU.

MORE INSPIRING PHILANTHROPY: Charles Barkley Keeps $1M Promise After 2 New Orleans Students Solve Pythagorean Theorem

“We are grateful for the opportunity to invest in the next stage of the Druker-led revolutionary vision of cancer research, diagnosis, treatment, care, and some day, eradication,” the Knights said in a statement. “We couldn’t be more excited about the transformational potential of this work for humanity. We are confident that establishing the Knight Cancer Institute as a self-governed entity within OHSU will help the Knight and OHSU reach these goals.”

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Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny

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Good News Network
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Our partner Rob Brezsny, who has a new book out, Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicated weekly column appearing in over a hundred publications. He is also the author of Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How All of Creation Is Conspiring To Shower You with Blessings. (A free preview of the book is available here.)

Here is your weekly horoscope…

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY – Week of August 16, 2025
Copyright by Rob Brezsny, FreeWillAstrology.com

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
In medieval Europe, pilgrims traveling to the shrine of Saint James in Spain often wore scallop shells. These were badges to signify they were on a sacred path in quest of divinely inspired transformation. The shell also had practical uses. It was a scoop for food and water, underscoring the humility and simplicity embraced by wayfarers on the road. I invite you to acquire and wear your own equivalent of this talisman, Leo. You have begun a new chapter in your self-perception, and life is asking you to proceed without pretense. You don’t need definite answers. You don’t have to rush to the end of the journey. The becoming is the point. I hope you seek out inspirational symbolism and generous companions to help nurture your brave transformations. (PS: Your best conversations may be with people who will lovingly witness your evolution.)

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
In ancient Greek drama, the peripeteia was a term for the moment when everything turns. The pivot doesn’t happen through force, but through the revelation of what was always true. I see the coming weeks as your peripeteia, Virgo. There may be no fireworks or grand announcements. Just a soft spiraling crackle that signifies a realignment of the system, a cathartic shift of emphases. Confusion resolves. Mysteries solve themselves. You might say, “Oh, yes, now I see: That’s what it all meant.” Then you can glide into the future with a refined and more well-informed set of intentions.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
In coastal Portugal, there’s a lighthouse called Farol do Cabo da Roca. Built on a cliff where land ends and the Atlantic Ocean begins, it marks the westernmost edge of continental Europe. We might say it’s a threshold between the known and unknown. I believe you will soon be poised at a metaphorically similar place, Libra. An ending is at hand. It’s not catastrophic, but it is conclusive. And just beyond it are shimmers, questions, and a horizon that’s not fully visible. Your job is to finish your good work, even as you periodically gaze into the distance to see what’s looming.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
I Invite you to channel the spirit of Kali—not in her form as the destroyer, but as the fierce liberator. She has the power to burn away stagnation, neutralize the poison of old lies, and slice through illusion with a sword of compassion—and so do you. I believe you are ready to sever a bond that has secretly (or maybe not-so-secretly) limited you. Don’t be afraid of the emptiness that results. It may appear to be a void, but it will quickly evolve into a fresh sanctuary. Into this newly cleared room, you can pour your strongest longings and most rebellious love. What are the wildest versions of your truths?

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
In some early maps of the cosmos, Sagittarius wasn’t just an archer. Your sign was symbolized by a centaur with wings: part horse, part bird, part god. I bring this to your attention because I suspect your own hybrid nature is extra wild and strong these days. A part of you wants to roam, and a part wants to ruminate. A part wants to teach, and a part needs to learn. How should you respond to the glorious paradox? I say, don’t force harmony. Let contradiction become choreography. Maybe liberating joy can arise through a dance between apparent opposites.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
In Sardinia, there are tombs carved into rock called Domus de Janas—“houses of the fairies.” People once left offerings there to court the help of beings they couldn’t see. They truly believed that fairies are real and can exert effects in this world. In modern times, fewer Capricorns actively consort with invisible presences than any other zodiac sign. But I hope you will take a short break from your usual stance. Mysterious and mythic influences are gathering in your vicinity. You’re being nudged by forces that defy explanation. What do you have to lose? Why not have fun making room to be delighted and surprised by miracles and wonders?

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
Thou shalt embrace the confounding contradictions, Aquarius. That’s the first commandment. Here’s the second commandment: Thou shalt caress the tricky incongruities. Third: Thou shalt whisper endearments to the mysterious ambiguities and invite the mysterious ambiguities to whisper endearments to you. Fourth: Thou shalt rumble and cavort with the slippery paradoxes. Commandment number five: Thou shalt chant spicy prayers of gratitude to the incongruities, paradoxes, contradictions, and ambiguities that are making you deeper and wiser and cuter.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
In early medieval gardens, there was sometimes a space called the hortus conclusus. It was a walled sanctuary that protected plants and herbs from harsh weather and predation by animals. It comprised a microclimate and provided a private, peaceful space for contemplation, prayer, and study. Sometime soon, Pisces, I would love for you to create your personal equivalent of a hortus conclusus—even if it’s metaphorical. You will harvest maximum benefits from surrounding yourself with extra nurturing. The insights that would come your way as you tend to your inner garden would be gently and sweetly spectacular.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):
Rama is the star of the ancient Hindu epic story, the Ramayana. I love him! He’s one of my favorite legends! His heroic journey isn’t fueled by a greed for power or personal glory. Unlike 90 percent of modern action heroes, he’s not pumped up with anger or a lust for vengeance. Instead, he is animated by a sense of sacred duty. Against all odds, and in the face of bad behavior by weird adversaries, he acts with exemplary integrity and calm clarity. During your upcoming exploits, Aries, I invite you to be inspired by his exalted and unwavering determination. As you proceed, ask yourself, “Is this in rigorous service to my beautiful ideals? Are my decisions and words in alignment with my deepest truths?” Be motivated by devotion as much as by hunger. Aim not just for novelty and excitement, but for generosity of spirit.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
In the Mexican festival of La Noche de Rábanos—Night of the Radishes—giant radishes are carved into elaborate altars and scenes. Humble roots become fancy art. I think you’re engaged in a metaphorically similar process, Taurus: sculpting with uncommon materials. Something you’ve regarded as modest—a small breakthrough or overlooked strength—is revealing unexpected value. Or perhaps a previously latent or indiscernible asset is showing you its neglected magic. Celebrate your subtle but very tangible luck. Take full advantage of half-disguised treasures.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
In Zen archery, the aim is not simply to hit the target. Instead, it’s to align one’s body, breath, mind, and bow so fully that the arrow releases itself naturally and effortlessly. It shoots itself! I would love for you to adopt this breezy attitude in the weeks ahead, Gemini. See if you can allow an evolving project, relationship, or vision to reach a new maturity, but not through pushy effort. Rather, trust life to bring you the precise guidance exactly when you need it.

CANCER (June 21-July 22):
In ancient Rome, the priestesses known as the Vestal Virgins tended an eternal flame. They never let it be extinguished, not even for a moment. Their devoted focus on nurturing the fire was both a religious practice and a symbol regarded as essential for the well-being, prosperity, and survival of the Roman state. I propose, Cancerian, that you engage in your own version of Vestal Virgin-like watchfulness. Assign yourself the role of being the keeper of a sacred promise or resource. What is it, exactly? Identify this repository of spiritual wealth and dedicate yourself to its sustenance.

WANT MORE? Listen to Rob’s EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES, 4-5 minute meditations on the current state of your destiny — or subscribe to his unique daily text message service at: RealAstrology.com

(Zodiac images by Numerologysign.com, CC license)

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“The cultured person is an artist, an artist in humanity.” – Ashley Montagu 

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Good News Network
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By Constantinos Kollias (public domain)

Quote of the Day: “The cultured person is an artist, an artist in humanity.” – Ashley Montagu 

Photo by: Constantinos Kollias

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quote of the Day page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

By Constantinos Kollias (public domain)

Good News in History, August 16

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Good News Network
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A sketch of Vincent Lingiari; charcoal on paper, by Frank Hardy - CC 4.0. Peter Ellis.

50 years ago today, Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam symbolically handed over land to the Gurindji people after the eight-year Wave Hill walk-off, a landmark event in the history of Indigenous land rights in Australia. Though initially interpreted merely as a strike against working and living conditions, the primary demands of the 200 or so Gurindji stockmen and house servants who had downed tools in the summer of 1975 were for the return of some of the traditional lands of the Gurindji people, which had covered approximately 3,250 square kilometers (1,250 sq miles) of the Northern Territory before European settlement. READ more about this historic day… (1975)

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Stroke of Luck as GoFundMe Raises $100k for Baby’s Brain Surgery and Family Wins Appeal for Insurance to Cover

By
Andy Corbley
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Alyssa, Cameron, and Brad Casacci - credit, GoFundMe
Alyssa, Cameron, and Brad Casacci – credit, GoFundMe

In a story that will stretch and strain every heartstring, an East Coast infant is set to undergo a complex brain surgery that will disconnect the left side of his brain from his right side.

This “hemispherotomy” was going to bring financial ruin upon parents Brad and Alyssa Casacci, whose son Cameron was born with a litany of health issues that eventually landed them in the position of needing to basically abandon their son’s left brain half to save the right.

It was going to bring financial ruin because Independent Health, the primary insurer of the Casaccis denied coverage for the surgery.

The story began in September 2024, when Cameron suffered from a blood clot and stroke after exhibiting seizure-like symptoms at just one day old. At Oishei Children’s Hospital in the Buffalo area, he was cared and attended to for 19 days before being discharged with a permanently damaged left brain hemisphere.

It would limit his motor, executive, and speech abilities, but at least their son was alive. Fed via tubes, and subject to intense post-traumatic therapies, Cameron began to meet major milestones until his seizure-like symptoms returned, and he was diagnosed with a form of treatment-resistant infantile epilepsy.

Cameron’s doctor recommended a rare and drastic surgery known as a hemispherotomy. The seizures were occurring in the damaged, left-half of his brain, and they risked damage to his intact right side.

Before the age of 4, the brain’s right side is capable of picking up almost all functions typically done in the left side, among which is language. For this reason, the surgery seemed like their best shot to give their son—not even a year old—any sort of decent future.

The likelihood of medication curing his seizures was only 5%, whereas there was a 92% chance the surgery would bring major quality of life of developmental relief. But there was a problem. Insurance denied their claim because the surgical option they had elected to pursue was out of state in Pennsylvania.

Pediatric neurosurgeons don’t tend to operate on children younger than 18 months old, and the only one prepared to do so was based in the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.

A GoFundMe organized by friends of the Casacci family galvanized people from all around the world, who, according to the organizers, wrote the New York State legislators, wrote to news stations, and shared the story and fundraiser around the globe. Donations piled up until 98% of the $100,000 goal was raised.

Just as Cameron’s stroke and epilepsy seemed like lightning striking the same person twice, the incredible generosity of strangers was just the first in a double stroke of luck.

INSPIRING GOFUNDMES: Heroic Divemaster Rescues Cozumel Divers–and Public Raises $50k to Treat His Injuries

A second appeal letter filed on behalf of the Casaccis succeeded in getting the denial overturned: Independent Health would pay for the surgery.

“The GoFundMe truly exceeded all expectations,” the organizers wrote in an August 12th update. “We knew people would want to help Brad, Alyssa, and Cameron, but nothing could have prepared us for this outpouring of support. The real journey is only beginning, and while the surgery is the first major step toward a seizure-free life for Cameron, the family has years of therapies and treatments following the surgery.”

OTHER STORIES LIKE THIS: Preschool Teacher Spots Symptoms and Tells Parents, Leading to Child’s Early Diagnosis With Rare Disease

The Casaccis have consulted their lawyers and are using the GoFundMe to set up a medical trust for Cameron that will pay for intensive therapy programs, treatments, and home adaptations in the years to come while being protected from taxation.

No one knows what the future holds for this boy who has tottered on the brink for his earliest days, but at least the financial burden on this traumatized family isn’t something they need to carry with them as they face that uncertain, yet far more hopeful, future.

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Chemical Process Produces Critical Battery Metals from This Unloved Mineral with No Waste

By
Andy Corbley
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Megan Danczyk, Aspiring Materials’ lead chemical engineer, holds a scoop of magnesium hydroxide - credit, Aspiring Minerals, released to Spectrum
Megan Danczyk, Aspiring Materials’ lead chemical engineer, holds a scoop of magnesium hydroxide – credit, Aspiring Minerals, released to Spectrum

A startup venture in New Zealand has discovered a way to extract critical battery minerals from rocks piled up as waste in mining operations.

Olivine is of little value beyond a smattering of niche uses like the semi-precious peridot production, sauna rocks in Finnish saunas, and a substitute for dolomite in steel works.

Aspiring Materials, however, has identified this silicate as a font of nickel-manganese-cobalt hydroxide, a component that’s used in high-density lithium ion batteries needed all over the world for electric vehicles, power tools, and energy storage solutions.

Cobalt is almost exclusively mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where issues such as violence, slavery, and human rights abuses have been well-documented. Nickel is produced mostly in Indonesia, and manganese in South Africa—both of whom export almost all of it for refinement to China.

Concerns among Western nations over critical minerals and the security, or lack thereof, in the supply of them has led entrepreneurs and engineers to look in non-traditional, potentially circular sources, for shoring up supply.

Enter olivine: which if pulled out of the ground during large-scale mining is typically piled up and sold as gravel. This unloved mineral can have nickel-manganese-cobalt hydroxide (NMH) leached out of it through a low-temperature, ambient pressure method that is powered by renewable energy.

According to a review of Aspiring Materials methods and strategy published in Spectrum, their small pilot plant in Christchurch, NZ, puts olivine sand into a series of vats and machines similar to those found in a dairy.

The sand is mixed with sulfuric acid until it becomes a sticky soup of elements. Several more steps of particle size and temperature control, along with a dash of caustic soda, produce three useful products.

50% of the extracted materials can be an analog to Portland cement, the most common building material in the world. 40% is a magnesium product that has a variety of uses, all of which are more valuable than the olivine itself.

THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY: This Home Siding Made from Rice Husks Saves Thousands of Trees and Diverts Crop Waste from Landfills

10% is a mixed metal product, of which 1% is the valuable NMH that governments around the world are trying to get their hands on.

The liquid remaining is funneled through electrolysis to recreate the acid needed to cause the reactions: a neat and tidy circular production method using widely available scrap material.

This kind of recovery and recycling is increasingly being valued for its dependability and low environmental impact.

MORE STORIES LIKE THIS: Chinese Scientists Produce ‘Impossible’ Steel to Line Nuclear Fusion Reactors in Major Breakthrough

Jim Goddin—who sat on the UK government’s expert committee that developed the country’s Critical Minerals Strategy in 2023—told Spectrum that while the high-acidic environment needed to extract NMH from olivine might result in a higher-cost end product, Western markets are progressively seeing cleaner production methods as worth the extra cost in the face of potential negative press from organizations that conduct reviews on sustainability.

SHARE This Story With Your Friends Who Work In Circular Markets…

Minnesota’s Largest Native American Reservation Celebrates First Home-Born Bison Calf

By
Andy Corbley
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released from the White Earth Nation Agriculture Department
released from the White Earth Nation Agriculture Department

The White Earth Nation was surprised and overjoyed as a bison calf was born out of season, a sign the band said demonstrates “resilience, healing, and hope.”

It’s the first bison calf born on the White Earth Reservation since it started a buffalo harvest and breeding program two years ago through the Inter-Tribal Buffalo Council.

Bison typically give birth in the spring, and the tribe’s bison foreman, Jack Heisler, said it’s an example of how wildlife “doesn’t follow a script.”

“This bison calf being born, it didn’t follow a script either, because the mama is so young,” Heisler told MPR News.

The White Earth Band is the largest of the six band which make up the Minnesota Chippewa, and their reservation is the largest in the state by land area. Its bison herd numbers 10, a number the nation hopes to grow to 44 by next year.

The Inter-Tribal Buffalo Council is an association of 80 tribes and nations that organize the return of bison to native lands all across North America for spiritual, cultural, and nutritional enrichment.

As GNN has reported before, bison herds are native grazers, and have a “keystone” effect  on the land they graze—generating a cascade of secondary and tertiary benefits that create a resilient and biodiverse prairie landscape.

BISON NEWS: Bison Return to Manitoba First Nation Lands for First Time in 100 Years – (WATCH)

“This historic birth marks a new chapter in our ongoing efforts to restore the bison to Anishinaabe lands, reconnecting with a sacred relative that once roamed freely across our homelands,” the tribe posted on Facebook. “The calf’s arrival is more than just a moment of joy. It’s a sign of resilience, healing, and hope for future generations.”

CELEBERATE With The Tribe The Birth Of Their First Buffalo (Bison) Calf…

Virtual Reality Experiences Can Beat Painkillers for Relief, New Study Using Oregon Waterfalls Finds

By
Andy Corbley
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Credit: Professor Habits

Virtual reality goggles and headsets absolutely exploded in the late twenty-teens, with products like the HTC Vive and Oculus offering incredible ways to experience video and gaming.

Now, scientists are using VR experiences to study how the brain reacts to pain by showing  participants breathtaking natural scenery while shocking them in the arm.

Conducted at Britain’s University of Exeter, the observed effects were as strong as painkillers, and even lasted longer than the 45-minute VR experience. They were also twice as effective, as calculated through questionnaires, than 2D video and sound experiences of the same scenery.

While the hype and interest in VR has died down a little with a fall in the devices’ novelty, the study shows that they perhaps have a broader role to play in society than previously thought.

“We’ve seen a growing body of evidence show that exposure to nature can help reduce short term, everyday pain, but there has been less research into how this might work for people living with chronic or longer-term pain,” said Dr. Sam Hughes, Senior Lecturer in pain neuroscience at the University of Exeter, and leader in the study.

Not everyone is able to get out for walks in nature, however, particularly those living with long term health conditions—like chronic pain.

The experiment was funded by the Academy of Medical Sciences, and involved 29 healthy participants who were shown two still images of nature after having pain delivered on the forearm via electric shock. On the first visit, they measured the changes in pain that occur over a 50-minute period following the electric shocks.

On the second visit, they immersed the same participants in a 45-minute virtual reality 360-degree experience of the waterfalls of Oregon to see how this could change the development of pain sensitivity. The scene was specially chosen to maximize therapeutic effects.

In the second visit, they explored the same scene, but on a 2D screen. Patients were then examined via fMRI scans.

The researchers found that the immersive VR experience significantly reduced the feelings of pain associated with the pricking stimuli of the electric shocks, and that these pain-reducing effects were still there even at the end of the 45-minute experience.

The more present the person felt during the VR experience, the stronger this pain-relieving effect, reports Science Daily.

ALSO CHECK OUT: Young Adults Joining ‘Offline Clubs’ Across Europe–to Replace Screen Time with Real Time

The fMRI brain scans also revealed that people with stronger connectivity in brain regions involved in modulating pain responses experienced less pain. The results suggest that nature scenes delivered using VR can help change how pain signals are transmitted in the brain and spinal cord during long-term pain conditions.

Dr. Sonia Medina, of the University of Exeter Medical School and one of the authors on the study said the clear hypothesis is that VR experiences are so stimulative and immersive that it had a greater effect in reducing pain.

HI-TECH FOR BASICS: This Bracelet from Meta Translates Hand Movements into Computer Actions

“It really created that feeling of being present in nature—and we found the pain-reducing effect was greatest in people for whom that perception was strongest,” Dr. Medina told the Univ. of Exeter press.

“We hope our study leads to more research to investigate further how exposure to nature effects our pain responses, so we could one day see nature scenes incorporated into ways of reducing pain for people in settings like care homes or hospitals.”

SHARE This Cool New Use For VR With Your Friends Who Own A Headset… 

“Nature is the master of talents; genius is the master of nature.” – Gilbert Holland

By
Good News Network
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Albert Einstein in 1921 pubdomain on wikipedia

Quote of the Day: “Nature is the master of talents; genius is the master of nature.” – Gilbert Holland 

Photo by: Alexander Mass

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quote of the Day page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

Albert Einstein in 1921 pubdomain on wikipedia

Good News in History, August 15

By
Good News Network
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GNN editor Andy Corbley with his Fiancee in Capri for Ferragosto 2020.

Today is Ferragosto, one of the most important public holidays on the Italian calendar. It is a unique institution, in which working people, typically professionals, take trips to the mountains/hills, the sea, or the cities for leisure, and will stay away between one and two weeks on either side of August 15th. Inaugurated by Caesar Augustus, declared holy by the Church as the date of the Assumption of Mary, and turned into a national unity exercise by the Fascists, it is one of the oldest continual public holidays in Europe. READ more about this unique holiday… (18 BCE)

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Teen Workers Saved Their Boss’s Restaurant During Months of Her Absence After Serious Hospital Diagnosis

By
Andy Corbley
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Carol Trainer, employee Lilly, and her husband Chad -credit, family photo
Carol Trainer, employee Lilly, and her husband Chad -credit, family photo

A family-owned restaurant was saved by a gaggle of teenagers after the owner’s wife fell into a coma.

From Hudson, Minnesota comes the story of the team at the heart of Urban Olive & Vine, and their dedication to a woman they’d come to know and love, Carol Trainer.

Along with husband Chad, Carol founded the restaurant and recruited from the 14-18 year-old-age bracket, enjoying the opportunity to pass on critical work experience, and life experience besides, to the “sponge”-like minds of the eager recruits.

But the tables were turned when Carol had a seizure, and entered a comatose state at the hospital that lasted for months. Chad, dutifully at her bedside, says he never asked one favor of his staff: they did it all themselves.

What exactly did they do?

“Without them the restaurant would not exist,” Chad tells Boyd Huppert’s Land of 10,000 Stories at KARE 11. “These kids became adults and ran our business, and took care of me.”

One particular teen adult was 17-year-old Acacia Kunkle, who started coming to work at 5:30 a.m. on her own volition to help open Urban Olive & Vine. She became a leader that others, like 15-year-old Joe Stephenson, looked up to.

Joe and Acacia were among the homeschoolers who kept things going during the day, while the public-school kids were in class.

“Me and Tori mainly, we’d go shopping for Chad,” 16-year-old Lainey Dombrovski says. “I have pictures of like huge carts of stuff and my car would be full of stuff.”

According to an extraordinary story from KARE 11, each teenager took on new roles and new responsibilities. They trained themselves, supported each other, came up with new specials, and, when the time came for it, found time to grieve.

On May 5th, Carol died in the hospital, and Chad closed the restaurant for the staff to attend the funeral.

Afterwards, they slowly, and as surely as before, got back to work; a testament to the discipline and strength they developed during the long months.

WATCH the story below from Boyd Huppert…

SHARE This Heart-Wrenching Story With Your Friends… 

Chinese Scientists Produce ‘Impossible’ Steel to Line Nuclear Fusion Reactors in Major Breakthrough

By
Andy Corbley
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CHSN01 (China high-strength low-temperature steel No 1) - credit, press handout
CHSN01 (China high-strength low-temperature steel No 1) – credit, press handout

China has forged a type of steel that can withstand the extremely low temperatures and magnetic fields needed to sustain nuclear fusion reactions.

Creating such a material with steel is a feat previously thought impossible by experts working on the famous ITER project in France, of which the leader of this new steel project was a part.

The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) project brought together experts from 35 nations to build the world’s largest nuclear fusion reactor in southern France.

Nuclear fusion is considered the ideal future energy source. It works by creating a thermonuclear reaction, the same process that powers our Sun, and containing it via superconducting magnets for brief periods of time to generate zero-emission energy in vast quantities.

It’s one of a handful of truly era-defining technologies humans are working towards, and physicists have faced numerous challenges in developing it. At the heart of a fusion reactor are superconducting magnets coated in a jacket of cryogenic steel. The steel must be capable of protecting the magnets from near absolute zero-temperatures, but also of withstanding the incredible forces generated by them.

Li Laifeng, at the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ (CAS) Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry in Beijing, observed how this steel could withstand the pressures of ITER, but future, more powerful—also more compact reactors—would need more advanced steel.

This took Li on a 12-year journey to create what ITER experts thought was impossible.

Reporting on those early days to a Chinese science outlet, Science Daily, Li said that Western experts in the field thought that ‘316LN austenitic stainless steel,’ a specialized alloy designed for extreme conditions and used in ITER and capable of withstanding 11.8 Tesla magnetic fields, would be sufficient for future fusion projects.

Li doubted that, and allied with top scientists in the field of cryogenics and materials sciences, believed it was worth pursuing a better alloy.

In 2021, the CAS Institute of Plasma Physics in Hefei province set the benchmark for what the country’s own national fusion program would require to be successful—benchmarks that 316LNa steel could not meet.

Eventually, Li Laifeng was in charge of the High-Strength Steel Research Alliance, comprising 4 scientific institutes and 13 enterprises. According to South China Morning Post, “China high-strength low-temperature steel No. 1 (CHSN01) successfully met the institute’s benchmarks, showing the capability of resisting 20 Tesla fields, 1,300 megapascals of stress, and the low temperatures which protect the device from the heat generated by nuclear fusion.

OTHER IMPRESSIVE PROJECTS: World’s First Diamond Battery Could Power Spacecraft and Pacemakers for Thousands of Years

500 tons of this steel is now in production for China’s Burning Plasma Experimental Superconducting Tokamak, slated for completion in 2027 to replace its older fusion system.

Nuclear fusion has come on leaps and bounds over the last 5 years, with multiple milestones being set in several different countries. There’s more than one way to generate power through nuclear fusion, and the distributed work going on in Japan, China, Australia, the EU, and multiple locations in the US is leading to distributed advancements not only in the materials reactors are built with, but also in the efficiency of power generation, which until recently was always less than the energy required to operate a reactor.

MORE CHINA NEWS: Mercury Emissions Fall 70% Over the Last Four Decades Thanks to UN Treaty, Coal Phase-Out

Unlike nuclear fission—the splitting of atoms—fusion produces no radioactive waste. The tens of millions of degrees of heat present inside the fusion chamber require immense physical forces to generate and contain them. Any malfunction that results in the interruption of those forces has the result more akin to the blowing out of a candle rather than the detonation of an H-bomb.

Time will tell whether CHSN01 is successful in shielding fusion into real-world efficacy.

SHARE This Impossible Feat Seemingly Achieved With Your Friends… 

A Jamaican Student Invented a Self-Disinfecting Door Handle for Hospitals: ‘Design that fits reality’

By
Andy Corbley
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- Rayvon Stewart, released as a courtesy
– Rayvon Stewart, released as a courtesy

A Jamaican university student has invented a self-cleaning door handle that’s been described as a “life-saving design that fits” the reality of the Caribbean.

Using ultraviolet light, similar to various automatic cleaning devices invented and deployed during the COVID-19 pandemic, it kills 99.9% of pathogens while being safe for humans and animals.

Bacteria multiplies and spreads fast in the tropical climate of the Caribbean, so it’s the ideal product for hospitals and other public buildings.

Inventor Rayvon Stewart won Jamaica’s Prime Minister’s National Youth Award and the Commonwealth Health Innovations Awards in the process of seeking a patent under international intellectual property law.

His story would be that of the classic second-generation immigrant to America: if he were one. But since he isn’t, Stewart and others view it as an outgrowth of the Caribbean’s growing science and engineering talent pool.

He and his cousin were the first in his family to attend university, having grown up in rough agricultural conditions on Jamaica’s Mount Prospect.

“Even though times were tough, we never really thought about that. We knew that we had something to do as a family,” Stewart told the Guardian.

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At Jamaica’s University of Technology he fell in love with inventing. He worked on a software that allowed people to virtually try on clothes, before a stint of volunteering in a hospital revealed the need for better sanitation.

Called Xermosol, the door handle is shaped a little like Pac-Man. About two-thirds of the circular handle houses the technological components beneath a grey shell, while the part you grab to open the door is under a set of ultraviolet lights that activate via a touch sensor. It takes about 30 seconds to disinfect the handle.

MORE INVENTORS: Pee From Runners at the London Marathon is Going to Be Turned into Fertilizer for Wheat

Dr. Camille-Ann Thoms-Rodriguez, a University of the West Indies consultant microbiologist, said of Stewart that “we’re very proud of him.”

“A lot of the innovation that we see in healthcare is often from a first-world country where there are more resources … but it doesn’t mean that we don’t have good ideas here,” she added.

SHARE This Young Inventor From The Caribbean And His Great Design… 

150,000 Sq. Miles to Be Protected in Canada’s Northwest by Coalition of First Nations

By
Andy Corbley
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Signatories to the NWT Our Lands Our Future agreement - photo Supplied by Angela Gzowski Indigenous Leadership Initiative
Signatories to the NWT Our Lands for the Future agreement – photo supplied by Angela Gzowski / Indigenous Leadership Initiative

In the far northern reaches of Canada, an agreement has been made to give stewardship over an area twice the size of Florida to a coalition of First Nations.

For the purposes of conservation, $375 million will help build sustainable, resilient local economies not based on extraction that will see 150,000 square miles of land and fresh water protected in the long term.

Penned in Yellowknife, the largest settlement in the Northwest Territories, it’s called the NWT: Our Land for the Future Trust, and is the largest agreement of its kind in North America.

“This document we signed today has been a long time in the making. It reflects years of collaboration and commitment from indigenous leaders across the North,” said Chief Ernest Betsina of the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, one of 21 that are included in the agreement.

“It reflects our shared understanding that indigenous people have always been the stewards of the land. And it’s time for that responsibility to be recognized and supported.”

The land area of the Northwest Territories is roughly equal to that of France, Portugal and Spain combined, although its overall area is even larger because of its vast lakes. Over 12,000 members of various First Nations’ people lived there as of 2021, making up over 40% of the territory’s population.

The Canadian government wrote that the agreement will help protect new and existing conserved areas in the territory including some of the world’s most intact boreal and tundra ecosystems.

LAND BACK STORIES:

Over time, it aims to conserve and steward up to 150,000 square miles of lands and inland waters in the Northwest Territories, and will be a significant contribution to Canada’s goal of conserving 30% of lands and waters by 2030, a goal which many nations are pursuing following an agreement at the UN made four years ago.

Several nations are significantly pursuing this goal, with Australia well on their way to achieving it by the 2030 deadline.

SHARE This Major Progress To Protect 30% Of Canada’s Lands And Waters… 

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