It would be easy to write off 2019 as being a bad year, what with another 4 years of Tory government (this time with Boris at the helm) to look forward to, climate change bizarrely not being considered a priority by many world leaders and that sausage rolls song reminding me that LadBaby is still a thing. However, like any year, there have been many positives to 2019 as well. Here are a few of them (let me know what I missed out):
#1 - School climate strikes.
Back in September, millions of young people went on strike around the world to promote action on climate change. This is great for two reasons: firstly because it promotes climate change as an issue we should all agree on (after all, it is just science) and secondly because it shows that the next generation of adults are hopefully much more prepared to tackle this issue.
#2 - EU bans single use plastics.
Again, on the theme of looking after the planet, the EU has agreed to ban single use plastics after 2021. It is not difficult to see the damage that single use plastics have on the environment (you literally only need to watch a David Attenborough documentary) so this is a great step in the right direction.
#3 - Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.
Baby Archie became the first dual heritage person to be born into our royal family (please correct me if I'm wrong) which shows the royal family becoming just a little more representative of the diversity in our country. Also, most people just love a royal baby.
#4 - Greta Thunberg.
I think most people like her, some people seem to bloody hate her, but Greta has definitely helped raise the profile of climate change around the world.
#5 - Women's World Cup.
As far as I could tell, the Women's World Cup was promoted this year as being much more of a big deal than it ever has been in the past. This helps to not only promote the sport but is hopefully a push in the right direction for women eventually achieving equality in football and maybe even sport in general.
#6 - Children's lives being saved.
According to 'Beautiful News' many of the main healthcare issues that have killed children in the past are now heavily in decline. These include: respiratory diseases, diarrhea, measles, malaria, meningitis, tetanus and AID's.
#7 - Black female beauty being celebrated.
Don't get me wrong, beauty pageants hardly seem to be a way of looking towards the future although I've never actually watched one so I might be wrong. However, in 2019, for the first time ever, five black women now hold the top pageant crowns. You only need to watch this video to see how much this can mean for other women.
#8 - More trees.
Many organizations and governments are increasingly realising the importance of planting more trees to help protect the future of the planet. This includes he Arbor Day Foundation which has committed to planting 100 million trees in the hopes of removing 578,000 tons of chemical pollution from the air.
#9 - Humpback Whales return.
From there being just hundreds of Humpback Whales in the 80's, there are now over 25,000 of them. This is largely due to bans on whaling.
#10 - Baby Yoda.
Despite me knowing nothing about The Mandalorian, Baby Yoda seems to have made many people very happy. Plus, he has spawned some pretty good memes.
Have a great rest of the year and here's hoping for lots more positives to come in 2020.
