5 good-news stories from 2015

Take a quick look at the headlines from the past few weeks, and it seems that the year 2015 is finishing as bleakly as it started: Europe on high alert after terrorist attacks in Paris; conflict in the Middle East, with no end in sight; mass shootings in the US; economic instability.

It’s true that we tend to remember negative events more than the positive ones – it’s a “basic and wide-ranging principle of psychology” one expert told the New York Times. But while there is cause for pessimism as the year draws to a close, let’s not forget some of the biggest success stories of 2015.

A banner year for LGBT rights

“By all measures, 2015 will be remembered as a banner year for LGBT rights in the United States,” Time magazine wrote just a couple of days ago. They’re not wrong. In June, buildings from the Empire State to the White House lit up in rainbow colours after the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage. Research from Pew also showed that public attitudes to marriage equality were changing, with 73% of those born after 1980 saying they were in favour.

But it wasn’t just a banner year in the US. In May, Ireland became the first country to legalize same-sex marriage through a popular referendum. A few months later, Mozambique became one of the few African countries where same-sex relationships are legal, after it decriminalized homosexuality. And in August, Nepal issued its first gender-neutral passport. As the Independent wrote, “2015 has been a stellar year for the LGBT community”.

Diplomatic milestones

One of the last remaining traces of the Cold War was wiped out in July, when the US and Cuba resumed diplomatic relations after 54 years. We shouldn’t, of course, overestimate the work that is still to be done. “This milestone does not signify an end to differences that still separate our governments,” US Secretary of State John Kerry said at the time. But last week both governments announced they were resuming commercial flights between the two countries, ending the year on a high note.

The same year saw a historic deal with Iran. After agreeing to limit its nuclear activities, Western powers said they would lift the economic sanctions that have been crippling the Middle Eastern country since 2002. While it’s still not clear what the deal will mean for Iran’s relations with the rest of the world, particularly the US, commentators at the time recognized how important it was: “The opening of Iran is a way to really make changes in the political landscape that could – underline could – somehow, possible bring the Middle East to restabilizing,” one expert told Al Jazeera at the time.

Today is a new chapter to work towards growth & development of our dear #Iran; a day for our youth to dream again for a brighter future.

— Hassan Rouhani (@HassanRouhani) July 14, 2015

A climate deal, at last

The thousands of world leaders gathered in Paris just a few weeks ago knew there was a lot riding on them: previous attempts at reaching a binding deal to tackle climate change had been disappointing failures. But as Philips Lighting CEO Eric Rondolat wrote on this blog, this time the public was expecting more.

The negotiators delivered. After two weeks of back and forth, they reached what’s been described as “the world’s most significant agreement to address climate change since the issue first emerged as a major political priority decades ago”.

Of course, now is where the real work starts. But as one commentator observed, “the negotiators’ success in converging on a plan that offers hope of practical progress is an unambiguous triumph”.

An action plan for people, planet and prosperity

“This agenda is a plan of action for people, planet and prosperity.” The preamble to the Sustainable Development Goals sounded as ambitious as the attempt to get all UN members states to agree on the 17 goals and 169 targets. They covered everything from female genital mutilation and child marriage through to corruption and bribery.

On September 25, after months of drawn-out negotiations, the UN formerly adopted the goals. Some people remain skeptical as to the impact these goals could have. But take it from Bill Gates, someone who knows a thing or two about development, they’re a big deal: thanks to the goals, he wrote in Quartz, “we may see some extraordinary advances in human well-being over the next 15 years”.

Source: Jakob Trollbäck 

Slowly but surely, progress for women’s rights

In some parts, this year’s Global Gender Gap Report made for a depressing read: in 24 countries, the education gender gap has either stagnated or widened since 2006; women today earn on average only the same as men did 10 years ago; and it will be another 118 years before we close the gender gap entirely.

But this year, in some of the most unexpected places, we’ve seen some good-news stories.

In Saudi Arabia, women were for the first time given the right to vote and stand in elections. Nearly 1,000 women ran, and 21 of them were elected to office. In Tunisia, a new law passed in November allows women to travel without their husband’s approval. And just a few weeks ago, India’s government announced it would be introducing “comprehensive” legislation to criminalize marital rape.

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Author: Stéphanie Thomson is an editor at the World Economic Forum

Image: The White House is illuminated in rainbow colors after today’s historic Supreme Court ruling legalizing gay marriage in Washington June 26, 2015. REUTERS/Gary Cameron