46 Positive Environmental Success Stories — October 2025
The media has an important role to play in combatting climate doom. Therefore, this monthly news round up of positive environmental and climate change news, is designed to spark joy and show that progress is being made. We pick two positive headlines a day, ranging from renewable energy and preservation to eco-innovation, and arrange the articles according to their publication date. We also include some dates related to nature and wildlife for your calendar.
Environmental and Animal Awareness Days In The Next Month
Buy Nothing New Month – (1st — 30th November) See if you can go a whole month making the most of what we already have. The exceptions are necessities like food and medication.
National Tree Week – (22nd — 30th November) National Tree Week is the UK's largest annual event promoting tree planting to launch the winter planting season.
Buy Nothing Day – (28th November) If a month of buying nothing is too long, perhaps try this instead, which lands on Black Friday in the UK and America.
Positive News Round up — Wednesday, 1st October
Brazilian biologists have recorded the longest known jaguar swim, which was an estimated 2.3 kilometers (1.4 miles) across an artificial reservoir in the Cerrado savanna. (Mongabay)
The Government will introduce legislation to ban new onshore oil and gas licenses in England, including those that could allow fracking, according to Energy Secretary Ed Miliband. (Edie)
Positive News Round up — Thursday, 2nd October
According to the Welsh Government, beavers will soon be officially recognized as a native species in Wales. (ITV News)
A group of women in Uganda have transformed a significant environmental issue into a workable way to combat unemployment and homelessness. They constructed an environmentally friendly plastic bottle shelter that offers jobs and skill development to underserved women by gathering 18,000 plastic bottles from their neighbourhood. (Happy Eco News)
Positive News Round up — Friday, 3rd October
In Nigeria, solar power is becoming more mainstream in rural areas due to the cost of running diesel generators soaring. (Yale E360)
The removal of a single invasive pest, rats, has resulted in the return of seabirds, the regeneration of forests, and the recovery of coral reefs on Bikar Atoll and Jemo Islet in the Marshall Islands. (Mongabay)
Positive News Round up — Monday, 6th October
The market increased by 13.7% in September, with over half of all new cars registered in the UK being either hybrid or pure electric, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). (Edie)
Using only polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), which are organic materials made by bacteria that consume carbon dioxide, methane, or food waste, OXMAN Design Lab has introduced the O° shoe, a "fully biodegradable" shoe that is a sustainable substitute for plastics derived from petroleum. (Positive News)
Positive News Round up — Tuesday, 7th October
Researchers from Rice University have created the first environmentally friendly method to quickly detect and eliminate harmful "forever chemicals" (PFAS) in water, working with partners from around the world. (Phys)
The final coal-fired power plant in New England has shut down three years before its scheduled retirement date. (Canary Media)
Positive News Round up — Wednesday, 8th October
79% of British citizens support their pension being used for renewable energy projects, according to a YouGov survey that was commissioned by the UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association (UKSIF). (Edie)
Panatere, a Swiss company, has patented and has now inaugurated the world's first two solar foundries for the remelting of steel for reuse. (Good News Network)
Positive News Round up — Thursday, 9th October
Workers have been constructing America's largest offshore wind farm at an unprecedented pace, approximately 30 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach, Virginia. The development is expected to produce grid power within six months. (Canary Media)
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), more than 100 nations have reduced their reliance on imports of fossil fuels and saved hundreds of billions of dollars by continuing to invest in renewable energy. (Carbon Brief)
Positive News Round up — Friday, 10th October
A recent study offers hope for bumblebees, which might be able to find homes in solar power farms. (Euro News)
More than £35 million has been announced by the UK government to help 80 local projects protect the environment in 36 developing countries and 12 UK Overseas Territories over the next five years. (Edie)
Positive News Round up — Monday, 13th October
According to Aldi Süd, over half of its food selection is now plant-based. (Plant Based News)
Iran has inaugurated 250 MW of new solar plants. (PV Magazine)
Positive News Round up — Tuesday, 14th October
As a result of Ed Miliband's approval, the UK's largest solar farm will be built in a county where Reform UK's anti-renewables agenda is becoming more popular. (The Guardian)
One of the first wind farms in the nation and among the first worldwide to employ floating foundations rather than fixed ones is called Provence Grand Large. Built in France, the project was made possible by a committed group of engineers, technicians, and local labourers. (Happy Eco News)
Positive News Round up — Wednesday, 15th October
With a particular emphasis on sustainability and long-term resilience in the United Kingdom's food system, Lidl GB has declared a £30bn investment in the British food and farming sector over the next five years. (Edie)
The Philippines' energy regulator, ERC, has given the world's biggest solar-plus-battery project permission to build and own its transmission network. (PV Magazine)
Positive News Round up — Thursday, 16th October
According to a new IEEE report, solar dominated new generation in 2024, accounting for 70% of the world's added capacity and setting records for installations in China and the US. (PV Magazine)
According to German researchers, digital brokerage and shared-use models have the potential to increase supermarket EV charging station profitability and usage by up to 255%. (PV Magazine)
Positive News Round up — Friday, 17th October
According to the Federal Network Agency's most recent preliminary data, Germany added 92 MW of new PV capacity in September. (PV Magazine)
Ireland has expanded the eligibility criteria for its Solar PV Scheme for Medically Vulnerable Customers to encompass all homeowners who are registered with their energy supplier as relying on electrically powered medical equipment, such as respirators and dialysis machines. (PV Magazine)
Positive News Round up — Monday, 20th October
Plastic bags will be removed from all Californian supermarkets and retail stores by the end of 2025. (Phys)
Fungi might be a viable option into the future of sustainable construction. (The Optimist)
Positive News Round up — Tuesday, 21st October
Merrimack Station's closure, after decades of operation, signifies the region's ultimate departure from coal and the beginning of a new era in the development of renewable energy. (Inside Climate News)
The significance of preserving Indonesia's seagrass ecosystems and marine life has been brought to light by the remarkable sighting of a baby dugong off the coast of Alor in East Nusa Tenggara. (Mongabay)
Positive News Round up — Wednesday, 22nd October
In the third quarter of 2025, the French distribution network operator Enedis reported 1,507 MW of new PV capacity that was connected to the grid, including 82 MW that had storage. (PV Magazine)
Energy storage technologies like pumped hydro and lithium-ion batteries have the potential to lower the average cost of the Brazilian electrical system by as much as 16% by 2029. (PV Magazine)
Positive News Round up — Thursday, 23rd October
The power regulator in Bangladesh has begun to accept bids for 17 rooftop solar systems with a combined capacity of 72.5 MW. (PV Magazine)
Here is how vets are helping to shape a more sustainable future. (Edie)
Positive News Round up — Friday, 24th October
As part of an expanded government initiative to lower energy costs and lessen dependency on fossil fuels, dozens of NHS locations throughout England are scheduled to install solar panels. (Edie)
Here are five charts that are showing that deforestation is starting to decline. (Carbon Brief)
Positive News Round up — Monday, 27th October
Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, has allocated £1.1 billion annually for offshore wind power developers to invest in new projects. (The Guardian)
By replacing grass with wildflowers, developers are producing solar energy and providing habitat for birds, butterflies, and bees. (Yale Climate Connections)
Positive News Round up — Tuesday, 28th October
Between 2010 and 2023, wind-generated energy lowered UK energy costs by over £100 billion. (Edie)
To support ocean conservation, Spain created six new marine zones, adding an impressive 17,000 square kilometres of protected waters: five of these zones are marine protected areas (MPAs), and one is a seabird sanctuary. This strategic expansion brings Spain's total marine protection to 22.45 percent, narrowing the gap between it and its 2025 goal of 25 percent. (The Optimist Daily)
Positive News Round up — Wednesday, 29th October
The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) has predicted that India's coal power generation could reach its peak by 2030 if it achieves its 500 GW non-fossil capacity objective. (PV Magazine)
In the far reaches of the Southern Ocean, scientists have found 30 new species, including carnivorous "death ball" sponges and iridescent scale worms. (Yale E360)
Positive News Round up — Thursday, 30th October
The first white Iberian lynx ever photographed by a Spanish photographer. (Euro News)
The record-breaking solar panel mural in Edmonton shows that building-integrated photovoltaics can be both aesthetically pleasing and economically viable. It turns a high-rise façade into a public artwork and energy generator, lowering 150 tons of carbon emissions annually. (Happy Eco News)
Positive News Round up — Friday, 31st October
In the past year, the number of chargers in the public electric vehicle (EV) charging network of the United Kingdom has increased by 23%, according to recent government data. (Edie)
To aid the recovery of seagrass and marine environment, scientists have mapped Italy’s entire coast. (Mongabay)
