This year has been pretty uniquely horrible. Marked by the presidential election from hell, numerous heartbreaking celebrity deaths, devastating war, and widespread suffering, most of us can't wait for the clean slate of 2017.
But as we enter the new year, we can also look back and see that 2016 has brought some wonderful things too!
1. The world tiger count rose for the first time in 100 years (The Telegraph)
2. It was announced that Harriet Tubman will be added to the $20 bill, and other suffragists will be added to the $10 bill (PBS)
3. The Pan American Health Organization pronounced the Americas measles-free (NPR)
4. More than 90 countries gathered to pledge $5.3 billion for ocean conservation (Reuters)
5. Life expectancy in Africa increased by 9.3 years (Quartz)
6. U.S. High School graduation rates reached a record high (NPR)
7. Hillary Clinton was the first woman to garner a major party's presidential nomination (Daily News)
8. Russian infant mortality rates decreased and life expectancy increased (Sputnik)
9. Scientists at Harvard took a huge step towards overcoming antibiotic resistance (GEN)
10. Canada officially announced a ban on transgender discrimination (The Telegraph)
11. The Paris Agreement, a landmark climate change deal, was signed and ratified by landslide (PBS)
12. Global carbon emissions flatlined for the third year in a row (Scientific American)
13. More than 800,000 Indian volunteers planted 50 million trees in one day (National Geographic)
14. The Arctic ozone hole is shrinking and could be fully healed by 2050 (Sydney Morning Herald)
15. Norway became the first country in the world to commit to zero deforestation (Independent)
16. SeaWorld agreed to stop breeding killer whales in captivity (NPR)
17. Germany welcomed over 300,000 refugees (The Guardian)
18. U.S. ivory regulations were finalized that will cut down trade of illegal elephant ivory (WWF)
19. Twenty-five percent of Europe quit coal (EcoWatch)
20. Though still at risk, manatees, Columbian white-tailed deer, green sea turtle populations in Flordia and Mexico, most humpback whales, and giant pandas were removed from the endangered species list!
No matter what happens in the coming year and beyond, remember that there will always be good and if you choose to stay positive, the bad can't keep you down.
