2025 C.E.

Holding hands

Pancreatic cancer vaccine eradicates deadly disease in more than half of targets in early trials

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The pioneering work from Cleveland’s Case Western Reserve University researchers targets pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma, the most common cancer that plagues the organ. While not the most common form of cancer, pancreatic cancer is particularly insidious, often remaining undetected until it metastasizes. The five-year survival rate is just 13.3%. In preclinical trials, the vaccine eliminated the cancer in more than half of the targets.

Close-up of jaguar eyes

Once on the brink of local extinction, jaguars across the Brazil-Argentina border have more than doubled since 2010

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In the 90s, the Green Corridor, a 457,000-acre stretch of protected land that links Argentina’s Iguazú National Park and Brazil’s Iguaçu, was home to between 400 and 800 jaguars. By 2005, that number had dropped to 40. Today, thanks to coordinated conservation efforts between the two countries, the population has grown to at least 105. Women-led economic initiatives and formal institutional support, like “Jaguar Friendly” certification for the local airport, have proven vital to strengthening human-wildlife connections and bolstering conservation efforts.

Depiction of viruses

Breakthrough in search for HIV cure leaves Australian researchers ‘overwhelmed’

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The virus’s ability to conceal itself inside white blood cells is a core challenge for scientists looking for a cure. It means there is a reservoir of HIV in the body, capable of reactivation, that neither the immune system nor drugs can access. Now, researchers from the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection & Immunity in Melbourne have found a way to make the virus visible, paving the way to fully clear it from the body. UNAids estimates that one person died of HIV every minute in 2023.

School meal

Free school meals to be extended to half a million more of England’s poorest children

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Since 2018, children in England have only been eligible for free school meals if their household income is less than £7,400 per year, meaning hundreds of thousands of children living in poverty have been unable to access them. Now, from the start of the 2026 school year, every child whose household is on universal credit will be entitled to free school meals. The major policy expansion is expected to offer free meals to an additional 500,000 children across, lift 100,000 children out of poverty, and put an extra £500 in parents’ pockets.

Aerial view of river

The Yurok Tribe reclaims 17,000 acres of stolen land in California’s largest-ever landback deal

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The Yurok people have lived along the Klamath River in Northern California for millennia. But when the California gold rush began, the tribe lost 90% of its territory. For the last two decades, the tribe has worked with the nonprofit Western Rivers Conservancy to get its land back. The 17,000 acres compose the final parcel of a $56 million, 47,097-acre land transfer that effectively doubles the tribe’s land holdings. The tribe has already designated the land as a salmon sanctuary and community forest and plans to put it into a trust.

Sea turtle underwater

Samoa establishes nine new marine protected areas covering 30% of its ocean

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The Samoan government has enacted a law establishing a plan to sustainably manage 100% of its ocean by 2030. The plan creates nine new marine protected areas that cover 30% of Samoa’s ocean, an area roughly the size of Taiwan. The MPAs mean that Samoa meets its 2020 agreement to protect 30% of Earth’s land and ocean by 2030. They ban activities that harm marine life or habitats, including fishing, mining, and drilling.

Person repairing a smartphone

Five U.S. states have passed Right to Repair legislation in 2025

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Right-to-repair bills allow consumers to fix broken products and replace missing parts, boosting consumer rights, affordability, and waste reduction. In May, Washington Gov. Ferguson signed two bills, covering consumer electronics, appliances, and wheelchairs. Then, the Oregon and Nevada legislatures passed their own wheelchair bills, while Texas and Connecticut passed consumer electronics measures. 2025 is now already the most productive year ever for Right to Repair.

Pride celebration with pride flag in foreground

Italy extends legal recognition to same-sex mothers in major court ruling

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In a landmark move bringing Italy in step with many of its European peers, the Constitutional Court has ruled that both women in a same-sex couple who conceive a child abroad via medically assisted reproduction must be legally recognized as parents. This decision marks a significant stride toward legal parity and stability for LGBTQ+ families across the country.

Indian Railways train

Indian Railways to achieve net zero targets in 2025 – 5 years ahead of schedule

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Indian Railways operates roughly 12,000 trains daily, carrying over one billion tons of goods and more than 8.5 billion passengers annually. Now, over 90% of the nationwide railways’ traction energy comes from electric rather than fossil sources, with plans to increase this to 95% by 2030. This shift has led to a substantial decrease in operational costs and direct greenhouse gas emissions, with a reduction of 2.2 million tons of CO2 expected by the end of 2025.

Wolf pack

Wolves continue remarkable comeback in Northern California with three new packs

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Though native to California, after 1924, a gray wolf was not documented in California until 2011, when a wolf known as OR-7 famously crossed the state line from Oregon. Since then, wolves have steadily reclaimed a presence in the state. In 2015, wildlife officials documented the first pack in California in nearly 100 years. Now, three new packs have been discovered in a remote region where the Sierra Nevada meets the Cascades.

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