For a lot of people, 2016 has been a difficult year, but don’t let all of the negatives make you forget all of these good things that happened.

1. The Presidential Election

A presidential election can be filled with annoying ads, fighting between people voting for different candidates, and painful losses for those whose candidates didn’t win. All of this happened in the 2016 presidential election, but the election was still a good thing. Presidential elections remind people of how important politics and government is. Millions of youth voted for the very first time, and millions more involved themselves through campaigning for their candidate(s). Whether your ballot matched the results or not, you still got to participate in democracy and have your voice heard in some way.

2. Pokemon Go

The game that revived Pokémon! And the good kind too! As a Pokémon lover, Pokémon Go is pretty cool. While it is absolutely nothing like actual Pokémon battling, the game connects the fictional and nonfictional in a magical way. Players can wander and capture Pokémon, and it’s so easy to use that practically anyone can use it.

Other than being a great game, Pokémon Go has made other significant impacts on the world around us. It has forever changed the way we view technology and video games in the “real world”. Instead of a video game keeping the player cooped up inside, Pokémon Go requires them to move around and go outdoors. It has connected people young and old and has brought about a new community. One of the best connections it has brought about has been the outside world to sick children. Pokémon Go players have been dropping lures around children’s hospitals so that they can play as well.

3. The Gene For ALS Has Been Found

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ASL) or Lou Gehrig’s disease attacks the motor neurons of about 6,000 new people in the United States each year. After diagnosis, life expectancy is about two to five years. Using the funds from the popular ice bucket challenge of 2014 and 2015, one of the contributing genes, known as NEK 1, has been found. This means that treatment can be more effective in helping those with ALS. This is a great accomplishment for researchers and everyone who participated in the ice bucket challenge and donated (you can still donate to more research) and the first step to creating a better life for those with the disease.

4. The Great Barrier Reef Is Not Dead & More Animals Moved Off The Endangered Species List

After social media blew up with news that the Great Barrier Reef in Australia was dead, scientists came forth to clarify. Not a lost cause, the Great Barrier Reef is, in fact, alive. The reef is dying by “extreme coral bleaching” which isn’t good news, but the online obituary brought serious attention to it and environmental issues. Such attention also came for animals whose numbers have improved: the giant panda, Arabian Oryx, Greater One-horned rhinoceros by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). In the US, manatees (fun fact: manatees are my favorite animal) have been removed from the endangered species list. While all of these animals are still classified as “threatened” or “vulnerable”, the species have each made very significant improvements, proof that an environmental crusade isn’t hopeless.

5. More Attention for Police Brutality

It seems that 2016 was a year full of instances of police brutality. However, every year leading up to 2016 was likely a year full of instances of police brutality. 2016 is different, though, in that it brought large amounts of attention to the issue. For people who haven’t directly experienced or witnessed it, the media attention to racially charged violence has opened the eyes of many and inspired them to get involved. It has brought about thoughtful discussion about racism, public safety, the role of police, and our criminal justice system. While police brutality in itself is most definitely not a good thing, for action to happen, awareness must first happen.