Five good things that happened in 2020 so far
Letter from New Delhi
By Niyam Bhushan
Had typed this on a FB friend’s timeline where her daughter wanted to know if there were 5 things that were good that had happened in 2020. Children get quite upset with the amplified barrage of bad news from mass media. Yet good news makes no headlines. So here goes:
- Humans went into space in a private spaceship, signalling a new era of space-travel with a planned landing on the moon, which will later be followed by a trip to Mars. Exciting times to be alive.
- Tiny forests are springing up around Europe, inspired by Japan to help restore biodiversity. About time.
- The longest continuous race of humans discovered among Australia’s aboriginals. Spanning 75,000 unbroken years. You can imagine all the pandemics, natural calamities, wars, locusts, earthquakes, erupting volcanoes that must have happened. And yet humans survived and thrived. The Design of life is based on resilience. So don’t worry about this pandemic too much.
- A cure for almost all cancers may have just been discovered. Accidentally. By a group of scientists at Cardiff University. They published a paper.
- Hundreds of elephants freed from chains after 85 years in Thailand.
I spend an hour a day searching not just for good news, but news that shows people working quietly in the background, solving real world challenges, making new discoveries, inventing new things, pushing our world forward. It’s about time we stopped feeding OUR energy and attention to mainstream media.
HAL for Medical Use (Lower Limb Type) is the world’s first robotic treatment device that allows a patient to walk in a supported environment using their own internal signals to help improve walking upon the completion of the HAL treatment program Photo – brooksrehab.org
They only want to peddle negative news to us so they can get our eyeballs and sell their advertisers’ wares to us. The world will continue to be here. That is its Design.
I hope this brings some good cheer to you and your children. If so, please request them to consider compiling their own list of 5 pieces of good news they actively search for and discover, say over 5 days, and share here with all of us please. We could all do with a network of good people, searching for good news, and sharing among us.
Please add your energy to this. Maybe you could compile your own list of 5 good things that happened in 2020 so far, and share on your timeline. And encourage your friends to do the same. After all, your gift to the world is your ability to transform the gestalt of people.
Over to you!
* * *
Response from Bernda – Nairobi, Kenya:
Your message of this morning on 5 good things was circulated to our team in the office. One of our team members has come with following good points of 2020. Read on:
- Last Ebola patient is discharged in the Democratic Republic of Congo
The end of the Ebola outbreak may be in sight as the last victim from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) was discharged last March 3, 2020. Hospital staff sang, danced, and drummed against cans to celebrate the beginning of Africa’s recovery from the 19-month-old outbreak.
A vaccine for Ebola, called Ervebo, had also approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last December 19, 2019. The Ebola virus has an average fatality rate of about 50%, which is significantly higher than that of the novel coronavirus.
- Cures and vaccines against covid-19 are underway
While the political and social climate regarding the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) remains relatively unstable, we must remind you that breakthroughs are occurring every day. For example, Fabian Dayrit, a Filipino scientist from the Ateneo de Manila University, and Dr Mary Newport, from Spring Hill Neonatology have recently submitted their proposal to test virgin coconut oil derivatives as a cure for Covid-19. Their hypothesis will be tested in laboratories in Singapore.
- A few wins for our animal friends
African black rhino populations have increased and there is evidence for a comeback of the giant blue whale. Meanwhile, the first cheetah cubs born from a surrogate via in vitro fertilisation were finally brought into the world last February 19, 2020. This marks an exciting passage in conservation efforts worldwide for all kinds of animal species. With a growing global interest in sustainability and development, these breakthrough wins for the animal kingdom are just a few of the reasons we can be more optimistic for the future.
- New technologies are available to help paralysed patients
A new system called the Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL) has recently been tested in Brooks Cybernic Treatment Center in Jacksonville, Florida. Created by Japanese roboticist, Yoshiyuki Sankai, HAL utilises actual brainwaves to create movements on cyborg-like exoskeleton. Inspired by Japan’s aging population, HAL aims to help make life easier for the elderly (of which there will be 2 billion by the year 2050) and for the sick.
- People are supporting each other through art
As the world faces stringent lockdown or quarantine measures to control the spread of the novel coronavirus, a common theme has been emerging within the art world: a shared love. Plenty of organisations big and small have devoted their time to share art online for those under lockdown. Museums have made virtual galleries readily available and easily accessible, Broadway plays, opera performances, e-books, home concerts — everyone has been doing their part to help make these trying times a little easier.
Niyam Bhushan is a multipreneur and multi-disciplinary creative professional with over 33 years of vast and diverse experience in Design and Design-Thinking. He is the founder of DesignRev.in and he is driven by the vision and passion to transform India into the superpower of Design in the world. He has helped and mentored over 200 startups, and worked with top global, international, and prestigious clients and enterprises.
* Published in print edition on 7 July 2020
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