Tacoma becomes first WA city to ban nontherapeutic cat declawing. (www.seattletimes.com)
The Tacoma City Council voted Tuesday to ban cat declawing, except when conducted by a licensed veterinarian for a therapeutic purpose.
US sets policy to seize patents of government-funded drugs if price deemed too high (www.reuters.com)
The Biden Administration on Thursday announced it is setting new policy that will allow it to seize patents for medicines developed with government funding if it believes their prices are too high.
St Kitts and Nevis to ban use of styrofoam, plastic products - Jamaica Observer (www.jamaicaobserver.com)
BASSETERRE, St Kitts, (CMC) – The St Kitts and Nevis government has launched a plastic ban campaign to raise public awareness and support for its agenda towards banning, phasing out and replacing sele...
More states are banning plastic bags. (floridaphoenix.com)
Starting in January, most stores in Colorado won’t be allowed to provide single-use plastic carryout bags to customers without charging them a fee. Polystyrene containers, also known as Styrofoam, also will be banned at restaurants and wherever prepackaged, package foods are sold. Rhode Island’s ban on plastic bags also will...
England to get new national park as part of nature plan (www.bbc.com)
Sites under consideration could include the Chilterns, the Cotswolds and Dorset.
Biden administration to forgive $4.8 billion in student loan debt for 80,300 borrowers (www.cnbc.com)
The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it would forgive an additional $4.8 billion in student loan debt, for 80,300 borrowers.
Child and teen cancer deaths fell 24% in the last 2 decades, CDC says (www.nbcnews.com)
Cancer death rates dropped among children in the U.S. from 2001 to 2021. The decline was strongest after 2011 for white and younger kids.
Colombia creates biodiversity fund aiming to manage nearly $1 bln (web.archive.org)
BOGOTA, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Colombia's government has launched a new Fund for Life and Biodiversity to help protect ecosystems in the country, the environment ministry said on Thursday, adding that it will manage close to $1 billion by 2026.
Roaming Finland's 'health forests' is boosting patient well-being (www.euronews.com)
Finland has since 2015 established forests next to national healthcare centres as part of the so-called "health forest" project to bolster well-being.
New HIV Survey Highlights Progress and Ongoing Disparities in South Africa’s HIV Epidemic (hsrc.ac.za)
Johannesburg, Monday, 27 November 2023 – The Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), in collaboration with its partners, today announced key findings from the Sixth South African National HIV Prevalence, Incidence, and Behaviour survey (SABSSM VI), which highlight progress toward ending HIV in South Africa – the country with...
Welcome to a golden age for workers (web.archive.org)
How jobs are being transformed for the better
Transgenders to get free education in public varsities, affiliated colleges in Maharashtra (indianexpress.com)
The meeting also discussed the status of NAAC accreditation status of universities and affiliated colleges.
Historic ruling in Ecuador returns ownership of ancestral land to the Siekopai people (english.elpais.com)
The Ecuadorian justice system has recognized that this Amazonian community is the rightful owner of 42,360 hectares in Pë'këya, an area that contains the tribe’s most important sacred places
Togo introduces human papillomavirus vaccine to protect adolescent girls from the leading cause of cervical cancer (www.gavi.org)
The Government of Togo will introduce the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine its into routine immunisation system to prevent cervical cancer on Monday, 4 December 2023. Several other local partners, and the private health sector, are supporting this high impact immunisation milestone.
Egypt Wiped Out Hepatitis C. Now It Is Trying to Help the Rest of Africa. (web.archive.org)
Effective drugs that have made the disease curable have yet to reach most of the region.
Detroit on pace to have lowest homicide rate in 60 years this year (www.fox2detroit.com)
"This is the day we’ve been waiting for, for a long time," said Mayor Mike Duggan.
City Creeks See Explosion in Spawning Salmon Population in San Jose After 10 Years of Habitat Cleanup (www.goodnewsnetwork.org)
Creeks in San Jose like Los Gatos and Guadalupe nearly lost their native salmon populations as trash piled up on the gravel beds.
Brazil launches $204 million drive to restore Amazon rainforest (www.reuters.com)
Brazil's national development bank (BNDES) on Saturday launched an effort to restore degraded or destroyed woodland amounting to 60,000 square km (23,160 square miles) - an area nearly the size of Latvia - in the Amazon rainforest by 2030.
How West African hairdressers offer mental health support and a pathway to healing (www.optimistdaily.com)
Beyond beauty: hair salons' transformational role in wellness and mental health access.
Couple Plants 2 Million Trees in 20 Years to Turn Destroyed Forest Back Into a Wildlife Haven (www.goodnewsnetwork.org)
Today, the property is officially titled Private Reserve of Natural Heritage Bulcão Farm, and hundreds of animals have returned to area
New feature at Virginia Beach parks helps children with speech difficulties communicate (www.pilotonline.com)
The communication boards installed at 11 city parks feature symbols and words in English and Spanish that help children who are nonspeaking or have speech difficulties feel included by providing a …
Canadians facing suicide crisis can now call 988 for help | CBC News (www.cbc.ca)
Canada's 988 hotline, which gives people access to suicide prevention services via call or text, is now available in all provinces and territories, 24/7 and free of charge. Its goal is to prevent suicide.
UK Biobank releases half a million whole-genome sequences for biomedical research (www.science.org)
The release more than doubles the size of an earlier data set and will help reveal new links between DNA, health, and disease, geneticists say.
The Winnemem Wintu won land back for their tribe. Here’s what’s next. (www.vox.com)
They hope to solidify the connections among Indigenous rights, nature, and wildlife.
How scientists and a community are bringing a Bornean river corridor back to life (news.mongabay.com)
SABAH, Malaysia — Although it’s early in the day, the sun is already beating down fiercely as we step off the boat onto the muddy banks of the Kinabatangan River in the Malaysian state of Sabah. Amaziasizamora Jumail strides ahead into a patch of degraded forest, weaving her way through a tangled web of spiky […]
