The Birds and the Bees
Everyone loves honey bees! They’re essential to our lives — much of food we eat is pollinated by bees. Unfortunately, pesticides, habitat loss, and other factors have contributed to population declines. That’s why we were excited when we heard that the Obama administration had put together a plan to protect bees — and other pollinators.
Good news! The Obama administration has announced a plan to save bees and other pollinators: http://t.co/jRG1OAuA9L pic.twitter.com/vKRgS99Owz
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) May 19, 2015
The good news continued in May when an insecticide that was harming our striped friends was banned.
Victory for bees! An appeals court just revoked approval of an highly toxic insecticide: http://t.co/d3I2TtVIQG pic.twitter.com/ntGmiCSEQd
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) September 11, 2015
Monarch butterflies have been facing problems with their migration and populations dropping, but a report out in November suggested that their population may be on the increase.
Struggling monarch butterflies have found some hope in California's drought. https://t.co/XHagobyZEe via @CBSNews pic.twitter.com/Lfqu9GZV3j
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) October 22, 2015
The graceful whooping crane has faced challenges over the years, but there’s an intense, dedicated program that’s helping these birds make a comeback.
An intimate look at how conservationists are trying to save the endangered whooping crane https://t.co/FgrP807e6Z pic.twitter.com/BD5mjZjeX5
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) October 1, 2015
Under the Sea
Our oceans are under threat from a variety of factors, but this year saw so much good news, from increasing wildlife populations to the protection of large swaths of the seas. In March, the world’s largest marine reserve was announced around the Pitcairn Islands in the Pacific Ocean, protecting an area bigger than the state of California.
Did you hear? Today the UK announced plans to create the world's largest marine reserve in the Pacific! pic.twitter.com/T1bxbMnK4p
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) March 18, 2015
A few months later, right during Shark Week, another new marine sanctuary was announced in the Philippines:
Great #SharkWeek news! The Philippines just created a new marine sanctuary for sharks & rays: http://t.co/jq1tQCBnm8 pic.twitter.com/3uk9ICzUTN
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) July 7, 2015
In October came news of two new nations protecting oceans around them, Chile and Palau.
This week in #OceanOptimism: Chile has created the largest marine reserve in the Americas! http://t.co/vVe9luMk1q pic.twitter.com/azofZehDof
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) October 6, 2015
Way to go! Pacific island Palau to create huge Pacific marine sanctuary. https://t.co/xJOCickmne pic.twitter.com/arPtXmqRbg
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) October 22, 2015
There were some great wildlife victories as well, starting with the growing population of orcas in Puget Sound — there were many babies born this year, starting with this one in February:
A new baby #orca sighted in the Puget Sound brings new hope to endangered pod http://t.co/IU4gem9S59 @nbc pic.twitter.com/gufw4ELth5
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) February 19, 2015
In some good news for animals in captivity, California placed a ban on captive breeding of these intelligent mammals. This only affects SeaWorld in California, so we hope more states will follow suit.
Victory for the orcas! California bans captive breeding: http://t.co/YkU0u8zBgZ via @guardian #SeaWorld pic.twitter.com/S7hFZmu6un
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) October 10, 2015
Sharks may be feared by humans, but it’s really the sharks that have more to fear from us. This year, there was some good news for our finned friends, especially when it came to shark finning. In June, Texas became the tenth state to ban shark finning.
Did you hear the good news? Texas became the tenth state to ban the shark fin trade! http://t.co/g6W9zIixWF pic.twitter.com/Tw2PHX0uWb
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) June 23, 2015
Even a corporation joined in — UPS banned shark fin shipments in August!
UPDATE: After pressure from conservationists & people like you, @UPS has banned shark fin shipments! Learn more: http://t.co/r9JcFS9N9L
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) August 19, 2015
Comeback stories are the best and loggerhead turtles wanted a turn this year:
Loggerhead turtles are staging a comeback in Georgia after population declines for decades! http://t.co/RBA6WP0cEs pic.twitter.com/mjskmqz6nb
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) September 5, 2015
Terra Firma
It wasn’t just the oceans — forests, and mountains, and many other places were home to good news! A census of tigers early in the year revealed that India’s tigers were doing well:
GRRREAT news for tigers: India’s tiger population increased 30% over the last four years! http://t.co/yCY2zDzH4k pic.twitter.com/rK3qr8oO2M
— Greenpeace UK (@GreenpeaceUK) January 20, 2015
Not to be outdone, the wild panda population in China was also on the rise.
Good news on #WorldWildlifeDay – the endangered giant panda population is on the rise! http://t.co/CC3DYOgXvR pic.twitter.com/H4PSr6Bh3M
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) March 3, 2015
Rhinos haven’t been doing well lately because of illegal wildlife trafficking, but a daring operation featuring the world’s largest rhino airlift was meant to give these iconic creatures a better chance at survival.
Great news! 10 rhinos have been released safely as part of the world's largest rhino airlift: http://t.co/FLS3ymnI85 pic.twitter.com/XL6JPZq9Ry
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) May 10, 2015
Wildlife trafficking is a problem for many species, unfortunately. The unique-looking pangolin is the world’s most trafficked animal. Not surprisingly, it’s critically endangered. In November, a whole bunch of these scaly critters were rescued and released back into the wild.
Good news—these critically endangered rescued pangolins were released back into the wild. https://t.co/ckG5kbBevf pic.twitter.com/KznLrGtocx
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) November 12, 2015
And back in the United States, endangered gray wolves, vital to the environment but threatened by poaching, habitat loss, and diminishing protections, thumbed their noses to all of that as they expanded into new (old) territory:
Great news! Endangered gray wolves were spotted in California for the first time in 90 years! http://t.co/HL3oWBQDJw pic.twitter.com/IVimDKQ9sh
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) August 21, 2015
This is just some of the great conservation news we shared on social media this year. Want to know more about these kinds of stories as they happen? Follow us on Twitter or Facebook and get your fix!