What went right this week: the good news that matters

After the Cop30 climate summit concluded with zero mention of fossil fuels in the draft text, Colombia and the Netherlands pledged this week to establish their own roadmap for abandoning oil, gas and coal – with the backing of 22 other nations, including the UK. 

While there was a lack of global consensus on fossil fuels at Cop30 – a victory for petrostates – around a third of nations backed phasing them out. Colombia and the Netherlands were among them, and announced after the summit that they would independently establish a roadmap for abandoning fossil fuels. The two nations also agreed to co-host the first ever International Conference on the Just Transition Away from Fossil Fuels, scheduled for April 2026. 

“There is a clear momentum to phase out fossil fuels, and now is the time to capitalise on it,” said Sophie Hermans, the Dutch minister for climate. “We must begin to materialise what this phaseout could look like and start a concrete roadmap that allows us to incorporate the new and leave the old behind.”

The breakaway conference comes as critics question whether the Cop process is fit for purpose, having struggled to enact significant change since the Paris agreement was signed at Cop21 in 2015. 

Image: Indigenous groups protesting at Cop30 in Belem, Brazil. Credit: Xuthoria

The UK has become the first major economy to call time on new fossil fuel exploration, confirming that no more licenses for oil and gas drilling will be issued in the North Sea. 

“Britain has just made history,” said Greenpeace UK’s co-executive director, Areeba Hamid. “Closing the door to new exploration marks the beginning of the end of oil and gas in this country. The government has shown genuine global climate leadership. This is a major milestone.”

Under the North Sea Future Plan, small amounts of fossil fuels will still be able to be extracted at or near existing wells. The government argued that this would support the UK’s energy transition. Campaigners said that it will result in relatively small amounts of fossil fuels being extracted.  

Despite welcoming the announcement, Hamid said that “the current plan – and cash – to support North Sea workers doesn’t go far enough”. She added: “It’s vital they are at the heart of Britain’s transition to a clean-energy superpower, not left behind by it. A £20m jobs package doesn’t cut the mustard.” 

Image: Markus Spiske

People who take daily steroid tablets for severe asthma could soon have a new treatment option available after a new jab showed “incredibly encouraging” results in a trial.

For the trial, King’s recruited more than 300 people with severe asthma from 11 countries. Researchers found that 90% of participants who received a monthly tezepelumab injection were able to reduce or stop taking their daily steroid tablets, without any impact on their symptoms. Tezepelumab is an antibody which targets parts of the immune system, reducing lung inflammation.

Scientists are eager to find alternative treatments for managing severe asthma, as long-term daily steroid use can lead to serious health problems, including osteoporosis, diabetes, and increased vulnerability to infections. 

“This is an incredibly encouraging development for the future of asthma care that could transform the lives of people with severe asthma,” said Dr Samantha Walker of the charity Asthma + Lung UK. 

The study was funded by pharmaceutical companies AstraZeneca and Amgen. Further research is planned. 

Image: Kristine Wook

Businesses that employ ex-offenders to work on environmental projects, train homelessness people to be baristas, and support Palestinian farmers were among the winners of this year’s UK Social Enterprise of the Year award, held on Wednesday.  

The annual gong recognises the growing contribution that social enterprises make to the economy and wider society, and celebrates “Britain at its best”.  

The Skill Mill was among the winners. It provides environmental jobs for young people involved in the criminal justice system. Other winners included Change Please, which helps lift people out of homelessness by training them to be baristas, and Zaytoun CIC, which supports Palestinian farmers producing food in the West Bank. 

“Every year brings its challenges, but 2025 saw a difficult economic trading environment alongside a sometimes unsettling national conversation on what it means to be British which dominated the political landscape,” said Peter Holbrook, Social Enterprise UK’s chief executive.

“It is therefore truly heartening to celebrate businesses built on care and compassion that support the most vulnerable members of our communities, representing Britain at its best.”

Image: Brent Gorwin

Being multilingual could help slow brain aging, new research has found, adding to a growing body of evidence which suggests speaking more than one language boost cognition. 

The international study of more than 86,000 people observed only a small gap between brain age and biological age in those who spoke just one language. A “modest” advantage was noted for bilingual participants, with major gains seen among those speaking three or more languages.

The study did not assess level of fluency. However, the findings echo the results of similar studies, including one from 2019, which concluded that learning a second language in old age can improve cognition. 

Image: Vitaly Gariev

Solar farms and agriculture are often billed as rivals when it comes to land use. A new study supports a growing consensus that the opposite is true. 

Canadian researchers found that the partial shading provided by agrivoltaic systems – solar arrays with crops growing under them – can actually boost food production, while improving soil health and encouraging nutrient cycling. 

The benefits increase when the solar panels are not in use, the study found, meaning decommissioned solar farms could still provide an economic boost to farmers at the end of their working lives.

Using yield modelling, the study estimated that agrivoltaic shading could boost farm income from potato production by $3.9bn (£2.95bn) in Germany alone. Other studies have reached similar conclusions. 

“This agrivoltaic crop yield bump has been shown for dozens of other crops and solar panel combinations all over the world, including basil, broccoli, celery, corn, grapes, kale, lettuce, pasture grass, peppers, potatoes, tomatoes and more,” lead researcher Prof Joshua Pearce from Western University, Canada, wrote for The Conversation.

The panels, he added, help mitigate climate extremes, such as heatwaves, “delivering meaningful value for farmers”.

Image: Lewis Clarke

In the race to make cities more cycle friendly, there’s a clear winner: Utrecht. 

The Dutch city was this week crowned the world’s best for biking. The Danish capital, Copenhagen, and the Belgian city Ghent ranked second and third respectively, begging an obvious question: what makes a city cycle friendly?

According to those behind the study (the consultancy Copenhagenize, and EIT Urban Mobility, an active travel initiative), it’s not just about safe and connected cycle infrastructure. Researchers also assessed how equitable and accessible cycling is, and the political support behind biking. 

The latest index was dominated by nations in northern Europe. The highest ranking UK city was London (33rd), while Portland, Oregon, (35th) was the best performing US city. 

Utrecht’s high ranking came as little surprise to Positive News, which road tested its cycle network last year. Here’s how the Dutch city is stepping green living up a gear. 

Image: Matt Mutlu

A new literary award celebrating refugee and migrant writers launched this week, offering a cash prize and publishing deal to the winning scribe. 

The Footnote x Counterpoints for fiction will spotlight writers whose work has been shaped by migration. It’s open to people currently living in the UK and Ireland.

“Refugees and migrants make hugely valuable contributions to our arts, culture and society,” said Counterpoints Art, which launched the award with Footnote Press. “Within the context of rising xenophobia, it is vital to keep platforming and amplifying these othered narratives in order to emphasise our shared humanity.” 

The Footnote x Counterpoints award is the latest literary prize to showcase writers on the margins. Last year, the Bridport Prize launched its Never Too Late Award to tackle ageism in publishing. It’s open to writers everywhere aged 60 or over. 

Image: Alexis Brown

A chimpanzee relaxing in a tree has scooped top honours in a photography award spotlighting conservation issues. 

The sleepy primate was caught on camera in Uganda, home to one of the largest chimpanzee populations. There are estimated to be around 5,000 of the animals in the country, a number that looks set to be revised after Uganda launched its first ever chimp census this year. 

The snap, caught by photographer Federica Cordero, is one of a clutch of winners of the Nature in Focus awards. The India-based competition aims to “reveal fresh perspectives on the natural world and shed light on urgent conservation challenges,” said Rohit Varma, the awards’ co-founder. 

See the other winning images here. 

Image: Federica Cordero

It’s Black Friday which means bargains galore, right? Er, no. Fresh analysis by the UK consumer group Which? found that most deals offered on Black Friday are cheaper or the same price at other times of the year.

No wonder there’s a growing backlash against it, most notably Buy Nothing Day, which launched in Vancouver in 1992 but is catching on. 

Here are seven other ways to quietly rebel against hollow consumerism. 

Image: Markus Spiske
Main image: Taiga/Shutterstock