Inspiring News Stories
Excerpts of Highly Inspiring News Stories in Major Media
Below are one-paragraph excerpts of highly inspiring news stories from the major media. Links are provided to the original stories on their media websites. If any link fails to function, click here. The inspiring news story summaries most recently posted here are listed first. You can explore the same list with the most inspiring stories listed first. See also a concise list providing headlines and links to a number of highly inspiring stories. May these articles inspire us to find ever more ways to love and support each other and all around us to be the very best we can be.
Mushrooms could be used to filter out harmful waste and sewage in rivers, after a trial showed a certain fungi can destroy a type of bacteria that is a risk to human health. The fungi, called turkey tail mushroom, was used in part of a river in Devon and managed to filter out 80% of E. coli bacteria during the trial. During the trial, bags of turkey tail mushrooms were stacked across a riverbed, filtering water through their roots, which are called mycelia. The mycelia acted like a sponge, catching the E. coli bacteria to prevent it going into the river. Water industry regulator Ofwat has given Anglian Water Ł1.5 million to use fungi to clean up rivers because the trial worked so well. In another trial in Lincolnshire, a similar barricade caught 83% of phosphorus and 35% of nitrogen from rainwater running off farmers' fields. Farmers spread these chemicals as fertilisers, but when they wash into watercourses they can cause thick algae to form, starving fish of oxygen. The mushroom barriers could be placed near sewage overflow pipes to remove pollutants released during storms. Mushrooms can be used as a packaging material. Mycelium has been used by ... companies for packaging, because [it] breaks down naturally within weeks of use. And fashion designer Stella McCartney came up with a really fun-gi idea a few years ago. She created the first ever clothing made of mushroom leather, using the mycelium. Mushroom leather, unlike other fake leathers, is entirely natural and biodegradable.
Note: Explore more positive stories like this on healing the Earth and technology for good.
