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Man Posts The Best Stories Of 2017 To Remind Us It Hasn’t Been All S**t

Man Posts The Best Stories Of 2017 To Remind Us It Hasn’t Been All S**t

While there have been some truly awful moments this year, there have been plenty of good things that will help make the world a better place

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

Most people closed out 2016 mourning all the treasured celebrities we lost, in what felt like a record year for big name deaths. Perhaps you even chuckled, 'surely 2017 can't be any worse.'

Unfortunately, this year also saw more than its fair share of pretty awful moments. For a quick recap, the last twelve months saw the Las Vegas massacre, the Harvey Weinstein saga, the London, Manchester and Egyptian terror attacks, the Grenfell Tower fire, and the deadly hurricanes Irma and Harvey - to name but a few.

But there was also a shitload of good things that happened, that might have been overshadowed at the time by more weighty news items. Jacob Atkins wanted people to be reminded of these positive moments and posted a thread on Twitter that went viral.

Here's a handful...

While Blue Planet II showed just how depressing coral bleaching can look, researchers have been hard at work to reverse the devastating effects of sea temperature increases. Scientists in Florida have found a way to rapidly grow coral in a laboratory before they're taken to the sea to be planted.

Dr David Vaughan told the New York Times: "It used to take us six years to produce 600 corals. Now we can produce 600 corals in an afternoon."

Hopefully this avenue will restore places like the Great Barrier Reef back to their former glory.

Credit: PA

Another depressing part of programmes like Blue Planet II and Planet Earth is that it highlights species that are on the brink of extinction - with humans sometimes to blame. But 2017 was a major win for the snow leopard, which was finally taken off the endangered list and is now registered as vulnerable.

The beautiful animal has been at risk for years due to poaching and habitat destruction, according to the BBC. Dr Tom McCarthy told the UK national broadcaster: "The species still faces 'a high risk of extinction in the wild', and is likely still declining - just not at the rate previously thought."

The rarely-sighted cats are found in central Asia around 3,000-4,500m elevations and can kill prey up to three times their own weight.

It's hard to imagine a region that has been hit harder by HIV/AIDS than Africa. Even decades after the virus spread, the continent was struggling to prevent further infections due to lack of awareness and contraception.

Before this year, HIV/AIDS was the leading cause of death, claiming a million lives in 2010.

However, it has dropped off the top spot, due to an increase in public health initiatives.

honey bee
honey bee

Credit: PA

If you haven't heard, honey bees are pretty essential to keeping the entire world alive. People have been jumping and shouting about the declining bee populations around the world, with little fanfare.

Incredibly, 84 percent of the foods we eat, like almonds, apples, apricots, avocados and blueberries are pollinated by bees, according to Chain Bridge Honey.

So you can understand that the number of bees rising in the US from the amount in 2016 is pretty decent news.

According to PRI, there are 100,000 tons of rubber tires thrown out in Argentina every year. So instead of leaving it up to authorities to get rid of the excess rubber, one organisation is repurposing a portion of the rubbish to make shoes.

But the trio who started this venture, Alejandro Malgor, Ezequiel Gatti and Nazareno El Hom wanted to make sure it was unemployed, single mothers from their hometown of Mendoza who were getting the work.

Alejandro told PRI: "We like people and companies who buy our products to know they are helping empower women and people excluded by the system."

rainforest
rainforest

Credit: PA

Most people are aware of that shocking statistic that every second an acre of forest in the Amazon is ripped down. But finally, if everything goes according to plan, that deforestation will be reversed somewhat.

Over the next six years, Brazilian authorities are aiming to plant 73 million trees. That's the equivalent of 915 days' worth of deforestation, according to Scientific American.

On top of that, New Zealand is promising to plant a whopping 100m trees every single year.

You wouldn't be alone in thinking the world was more unsafe than it used to be - but figures show the crime rate in the US actually dropped.

The Washington Post found that violent crime declined by 2.7 percent from 2016 - which isn't a lot, but a reduction is a reduction. There was also a 10-12 percent drop in murder rates in Detroit and Chicago.

Post journalist Jennifer Rubin was savage when writing: "In major urban centers where President Trump has tried and failed to scapegoat illegal immigrants and threatened to cut federal support for local law enforcement, it seems the crime rate is going in the right direction."

No one likes getting a parking ticket, especially if it was because you were only there to dash into the shops for 30 seconds. Sometimes the fine can be pretty pricey and paying it back could make a big dent in your finances.

But in Lexington, Kentucky, a system was trialled where you can become debt-free by bringing in canned goods, which would be passed onto God's Pantry Food Bank.

It's a brilliant way of getting the community to fashion something positive good out of a shitty situation.

There are so many more stories that could have been included, but at least it gives you an idea that 2017 wasn't just filled with awful moments.

Many people flocked to the comments section of Jacob's post to thank him for providing a small snapshot of positivity.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: World News, UK News, News, Inspirational