Giving Compass' Take:

• From unwavering climate strikers to billions of trees planted, Eco-Business highlights 8 stories of 2019 that gave the planet—and us—hope.

• How can reading these stories help spark social causes and human rights activism? 

• See inspiring photos of advocacy and action.

More bad than good. That sums up news related to the environment and sustainability.

This year, scientists warned that about 1 million species of plants and animals are at risk of extinction. They warned that the world is on track to warm by more than 3°C by the end of this century. It may have crossed a series of climate tipping points, or thresholds beyond which certain impacts, such as the melting of ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica, become unstoppable.

But readers in search of positive developments need not despair.

  1. Climate strikes have jolted the world awake
    In just one year, Greta Thunberg has gone from the lone teenager on school strike at the Swedish parliament to a global symbol of climate resistance, inspiring people from all corners of the world to hold their own climate strikes and demand that governments act on global warming.
  2. Countries bid farewell to plastics
    Plastics are a growing global concern as they pile up on beaches, clog rivers and choke oceans. In 2019, governments stepped up their efforts to address the problem.
  3. We can fix things: The ozone hole is healing
    Many of us are too young to remember, but history shows collective action can mend environmental ills. This year, the ozone hole, a man-made weakening of the earth’s protective ozone layer, was the smallest it’s been since its discovery 40 years ago.
  4. Big banks ditched coal
    2019 was a big year for sustainable finance as lenders backed away from funding the single biggest contributor to man-made greenhouse gas emissions, sending a clear signal that the end of the fossil fuel age is in sight.
  5. The European Green Deal is to become reality
    The European Green Deal—the EU’s answer to the climate crisis—is here, and could help turn the tide in humanity’s favour in the climate change fight.
  6. Meatless meat is on the rise
    Meatless products designed to taste like real chicken, beef and pork are taking the culinary world by storm.
  7. The pope speaks up for the climate
    Pope Francis was outspoken about climate change politics this year, lamenting global climate inaction and calling on businesses and nations to commit to more ambitious targets.
  8. Countries are planting trees
    Everyone knows trees are vital to combat global warming. Forests not only suck carbon from the atmosphere; they also provide food and jobs, clean up dirty air, prevent soil erosion and safeguard water resources, making them key to freshwater supply.

Read the full article about stories that give us hope by Tim Daubach at Eco-Business.