Good News

BULLETIN 10 October 

Good afternoon, here is your Good News:

# Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has been awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for her courageous fight to restore democracy in her country. Global attention around this year’s prize also followed speculation about US president Donald Trump’s long-standing pursuit of the honour. The Nobel Committee’s Jorgen Watne Frydnes described Machado as a unifying leader who champions ballots over bullets in the fight for free and fair elections:

# The City of Johannesburg is one of the finalists for the 2025 Bloomberg Philanthropies Local Leaders Awards. The awards recognise innovative policies, projects, and programmes led by local leaders that have effectively addressed climate change over the past three years. Mayor Dada Morero says this recognition is a powerful validation of the metro’s Just Transition approach. He says they are pioneering a decentralised, climate-resilient, and inclusive energy system that will bring dignity, social benefits, and a brighter, low-carbon future to marginalised communities.

# Marnus Botha from Somerset West is the winner of the City of Cape Town’s inaugural Wear the Hope Challenge. It encourages members of the community to contribute ideas that reflect the metro’s resilience, cultural diversity, and spirit of togetherness. Botha’s winning concept stood out to the judges for its heartfelt symbolism and ability to weave together iconic elements of the metro’s heritage, landmarks, and natural beauty. Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis says Botha’s design represents the heart and soul of Cape Town.

# This year’s Eskom Expo International Science Fair saw the awarding of six full bursaries worth five-million-rand, for studies in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. The fair brought together the brightest young scientists from across South Africa and various countries around the world, including Lesotho, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Ireland, India and Russia. Winners of the full bursaries came from KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, and the Free State. Meanwhile, engineering and technology giants Babcock International and Siemens Energy also awarded six full bursaries worth a combined 6.2-million-rand.

# And finally: Doctors in China have transplanted a genetically modified pig liver into a 71-year-old man who lived 171 days after the procedure. Experts say the new study suggests pig-to-human liver transplantation shows promise for use as a bridge to help a human with a serious liver condition live long enough for their own liver to recover, or for a donor human liver to became available. Scientists have been exploring alternatives for decades, including pig organs because of their similarity to human organs.

Stay tuned for more news………….