What if it all Works Out?
It's easy to feel overwhelmed by bad news. Climate change, war, politics, everything! That's what inspired me to write this song. An antidote to all the anxiety. Just to focus on the possibility that things might all work out.
"What if it all works out?"
It's possible right?
It seemed like a good thought to have and so I set about doing some research to see if it might be a possibility. That's when I discovered the massively inspiring plethora of positive people, projects, charities and events all over the world that were quietly trying to make "What if it all Works Out" a reality.
Here are just a few of the positive stories that I found. Happy reading!
Activist who led grassroots campaign to save Europe’s largest saltwater lagoon wins ‘Green Nobel’
Teresa Vicente, 61, led a grassroots campaign to save Spain's Mar Menor from ecological collapse. Her efforts helped a new law to be passed in 2022, giving the lagoon the legal right to conservation, protection and damage remediation.
Vicente is one of this year's seven winners of the Goldman Environmental Prize, known as the 'Green Nobel'. Well done Teresa, that's amazing!
Seven times the size of Manhattan: the African tree-planting project making a difference
Trees for the Future (TREES), has been awarded with a World Restoration Flagship status by the United Nations. TREES has planted tens of millions of trees annually across nine African countries, restoring over 41,000 hectares (enough to cover Manhattan seven times), including part of the Great Green Wall initiative. This is amazing and brilliant! So inspiring! Read more here.
Disused mine in Finland is being converted into a gravity battery
One of Europe’s deepest mines is being transformed into an underground energy store. It will use gravity to retain excess power for when it is needed.
The remote Finnish community of Pyhäjärvi is 450 kilometres north of Helsinki. Its more than 1,400-metre-deep zinc and copper Pyhäsalmi mine was decommissioned but is now being given a new lease of life by Scotland-based company Gravitricity.
The firm has developed an energy storage system that raises and lowers weights, offering what it says are “some of the best characteristics of lithium-ion batteries and pumped hydro storage”. Amazing! What a phenomenal idea!
Bands and artists from around the world come together to create new Green Music Program
I recently discovered this fantastic project. I was so inspired by what they were doing I decided to join them. Bands and musicians each complete green actions each month in order to raise awareness and inspire their listeners. Created by musician Dan Friedman, the Green Music Program is also planning a music festival later in 2024 to help raise awareness and funds for environmental causes.
I started the Little Free Trees project a few years ago and so this project seemed like a great fit for me, my music and my ethos. Here's what Dan had to say about the project:
"I founded this project under the growing realization that there is a synergy between the two worlds of music and environment. The environmental challenges we face as a collective require not just practical policy solutions but also bold and inspiring messages, stories, and art to propel us forward. People need to feel the gravity of the destruction of our planet in order to truly change. Musicians have a unique ability to move people - and that is why they should be on the front lines of galvanizing action and setting an example of protecting our planet and future generations."
Find out more here.
Nature has become an official Spotify artist to raise money for conservation
You can now listen to ‘Nature’ on all major music streaming platforms.
From Pink Floyd to the Beatles, natural sounds have been enhancing music forever.
A new initiative will recognise nature as an official artist meaning singers, songwriters and bands who use these sounds can choose to add it as a featured artist. Some of their profits from streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music will then be shared with environmental causes.
Two countries in Europe are powered by 100% renewable energy as wind capacity soars
Last year was the best year on record for new wind energy installation.
The world installed 116 gigawatts of new wind power capacity in 2023, according to the latest Global Wind Report from industry trade association the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC). That is a 50 per cent increase from 2022 making it the best year on record for new wind projects.
High Seas Treaty: EU votes to ratify landmark international law to protect oceans
The European Union has voted in favour of ratifying the High Seas Treaty.
This treaty aims to protect marine life in areas that are outside of countries’ maritime borders including the high seas and the seabed.
The decision is a key step in the process of approving the ratification of the High Seas Treaty.
Staff at wildlife centre dress up as a mother fox to save abandoned cub
Employees of the Richmond Wildlife Center in Virginia are doing their best to act like mother foxes as they feed and care for an orphaned kit that found her way into their care.
In a bid to make this as natural as possible, they had to get a little bit creative.
Executive director Melissa Stanley took the unorthodox step of donning a hyper realistic fox mask while feeding the tiny kit from a syringe.
