In today’s Good News, sea turtles on the mend in California have a new, larger space for recovery — and visitors can now cheer them on as they prepare to go back into the wild. And at a Toronto hospital, a little cuddling from doting volunteers goes a long way for babies in the NICU.

Catherine Garcia
The Week Digital

Visitors to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, California, can now watch the rehabilitation efforts for sick and injured sea turtles. The aquarium expanded its care space and also turned part of the area into an exhibition. This allows the public to see patients like Porkchop, who lost a flipper after being tangled in fishing gear, and understand the “conservation work we’re doing behind the scenes,” Jeff Flocken, aquarium president and chief executive, told the Los Angeles Times.

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Volunteers at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto spend hours cuddling infants in the neonatal intensive care unit, helping the babies get home faster. Being nestled helps all NICU patients but is especially beneficial for those exposed to opiates in the womb who now have neonatal abstinence syndrome. Studies show that when these infants are cuddled, their hospital stay is reduced by six days compared to those who are not. Many volunteers are former nurses who undergo “rigorous” training, said CTV News.

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Every year, students enrolled in automotive technology classes at Louisa County High School in Virginia fix up five cars to give to single mothers free of charge. About 20 students work on each vehicle, making repairs and doing maintenance like oil and fluid changes. It’s a “great learning experience” that’s also “gratifying” for students, teacher Shane Robertson told The Washington Post. The program is a collaboration with the nonprofit Giving Words, which helps single moms with transportation issues. 

The Guatemalan government is not renewing an oil extraction lease on land near the Laguna del Tigre Biosphere Reserve, instead turning the acreage over to the military so it can keep a “closer eye” on wildlife and stop illegal activities, said Good News Network. Laguna del Tigre is part of the larger Mayan Biosphere Reserve, and protecting this ecosystem is important for the “good of Guatemalans and for the world,” said Environment and Natural Resources Minister Patricia Orantes.

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