Tabla de contenidos para The 2024 Helpers Edition en The Goodnewspaper

One of the foundational elements of Good Good Good and The Goodnewspaper is a quote by Fred Rogers (or Mister Rogers, as he’s known by his neighborhood). You’ve no doubt heard it before: “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” Good Good Good is here to make finding “the Helpers” easier — and ultimately — to inspire our readers to become Helpers themselves. To do that, every year we dedicate an entire edition of The Goodnewspaper to the people we consider to be the Helpers of the Year. Inside this paper, you’ll find Helpers who made a difference for the environment and LGBTQ+ rights —…

As a marine biologist and a policy expert, Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson’s world revolves around climate justice. Her field is marred with messages of doom and gloom — but she wants to make room for climate optimism, too. “Our climate future is not yet written,” Johnson writes in her new book “What If We Get It Right?” “What if we act as if we love the future?” Filled with nuance, humor, and peer-reviewed research, Johnson’s book invites readers to stop writing off the future, and start living for it. With the book’s subsequent publicity, Johnson has hammered the point home: A better world is still possible. “It’s too late to ‘solve’ or ‘stop’ climate change,” Johnson writes. “We have already changed the climate… we are at the stage of figuring…

Amid war, hospitals in Gaza have become a main target of Israeli aggression. Many facilities are now completely destroyed or on the brink of collapse and thousands have been killed. Still, volunteer doctors persist to save lives. As of October 2024, MedGlobal healthcare teams were providing free care to approximately 3,000 patients in Gaza at 16 medical points, as well as assisting remaining hospitals with vital support. Dr. Thaer Ahmad, a Chicago-based emergency physician and MedGlobal volunteer, was in Gaza when Nasser Hospital was besieged. Now back in the U.S., he uses his experiences to call for the violence to end. “I think some of it is survivor’s guilt,” he told CBS News. “We know we have some privileges and opportunities that people in Gaza don’t. How could you not…

ARTS & MEDIA HELPERS In Olivia Rodrigo’s sophomore album “Guts,” she laments the ups and downs of being young. In “ballad of a homes-chooled girl” she lingers on the downs, singing, “I stumbled over all my words, I made it weird, I made it worse.” The lyrics are relatable, but Rodrigo can rest assured: In 2024, during her world tour for “Guts,” she used her platform to launch Fund 4 Good, a fundraising campaign that has unequivocally made things better. “Fund 4 Good works to support all women, girls, and people seeking reproductive health freedom,” Rodrigo told fans on Instagram Live the night of her first tour stop. “The fund will directly support community-based non-profits that champion things like girls’ education, support reproductive rights, and prevent gender-based violence.” As she…

Every election cycle, the nonpartisan organization ALL IN to Vote mobilizes young people for some friendly competition. Not Republicans versus Democrats, but university against university, with campus ambassadors fighting to be named the most civically engaged college campus in the U.S. Equipping volunteers with educational materials in 1,080 universities across all 50 states, the organization has reached over 10 million students, encouraging their participation in American democracy. St. Olaf College in Minnesota has particularly excelled, boasting a 87.6% voter turnout rate in 2020, with election ambassadors hoping to beat their record in 2024. “We’re all about interpersonal connections,” an ambassador, junior Roxi Wessel, told NBC News. “Folks who are connected to you, already know you, have a higher chance of acting on those things that you bring to their attention.”…

Sat beside his late wife 45 years ago, Ron Post was watching news about Cambodian refugees, and was suddenly moved to action. What started as a grief-stricken moment of empathy turned into Medical Teams International, a volunteer medical organization that now serves about 3 million refugees at eight different sites worldwide. And while the need to serve refugees across the globe is certainly great, MTI has also expanded its reach to include 13 mobile dental clinics operating in Oregon and Washington that reach about 25,000 people — many of whom are veterans, seniors, people of color, farmworkers, or experiencing homelessness. Licensed doctors, dentists, and nurses volunteer their time with the organization — sometimes for years. While Post retired from the nonprofit in 1997, he is still a vocal supporter and…

LGBTQ+ HELPERS Chappell Roan had a big year; it’s as easy to acknowledge as spelling “H-O-T-T-O-G-O.” The pop star, who rose to enormous heights after her April Coachella performance, has leveraged her entire music project to bring joy, community, and delight to the LGBTQ+ community. Alongside amplifying local drag performers on all of her tour stops, the red-haired starlet is known for her fundraising efforts for humanitarian relief in Gaza, safeguarding reproductive care, encouraging voter registration, and above all, ensuring the safety of LGBTQ+ rights. She and her fans have raised over $160,000 for The Human Rights Campaign and Reproductive Freedom For All, and continue to share ticket sales with nonprofits like The Glo Center, For The Gworls, and The Trevor Project. “For all the queer kids in the Midwest…

After receiving breast cancer treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital, AI expert Regina Barzilay returned to work at MIT in 2021. But her mind stayed at the hospital. “I walked in the door to my office and thought, ‘We here at MIT are doing all this sophisticated algorithmic work that could have so many applications,’” she told The Washington Post. “‘And one subway stop away, the people who could benefit from it are dying.’” From then on, Barzilay committed to using AI to aid breast cancer detection. Together, with her research partner Adam Yala, Barzilay created Miria. Recently, when put to the test, the machine learning model maintained accuracy across age, breast density, and cancer subtypes. It also showed equal accuracy in white and Black women — a crucial win, given…

Since debuting at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, the Refugee Olympic Team has served as a “found family” for athletes displaced from their home countries. In the last decade, the team has tripled in size, with the Paris 2024 team made up of 37 athletes. They hailed from all over the world — Afghanistan, Iran, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and more — but found commonality in the struggles they faced, having fled war, conflict, and human rights violations. This year marked the first medal win for the Refugee Olympic Team in its short history, as African refugee Cindy Ngamba won the bronze medal for boxing. As a gay woman, Ngamba cannot return to Cameroon without facing prison — so the Refugee Olympic Team has been a saving grace. “I want…

CLIMATE HELPERS Earthjustice has a lot to celebrate this year. In 2024, the nonprofit and environmental law organization aided in precedent-setting court cases that protected 28 million acres of public lands in Alaska, ruled that almost all lead pipes in the U.S. be replaced within a decade, and safe-guarded marine animals from offshore drilling. Earthjustice president Abigail Dillen has served the company since 2000, first as a young environmental lawyer with a passion for protecting public lands. Across two decades, she’s become an indispensable part of the nonprofit’s mission. Last year, on the anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act — which invested over $391 billion into clean energy production and green jobs — Dillen praised the law as a “transformative” move for climate justice. She also pushed for more. “As…

After Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast in 2005, Louisiana residents launched an impromptu flotilla of privately owned boats to rescue members of their community. Now, those volunteers are known as Cajun Navy Relief, an organization that provides immediate rescue and relief support during natural disasters, especially in the southern U.S. Cajun Navy teams often work with local agencies during disaster response, but, operating with autonomy, can travel where needs are the greatest. Their fearless efforts were prominently on display this year, when they answered the call to help North Carolinians affected by Hurricane Helene. In the weeks following the storm, Cajun Navy teams cleaned up debris, delivered vital supplies up Black Mountain, and even built temporary bridges. “Rescue and relief are our way of sharing the South Louisiana cultural…

Adam Pearson was born with neurofibromatosis type I, a condition that causes non-cancerous tumors to grow on nerve tissue. But this year he told The Guardian that his disability is “the least interesting thing ” about him. Pearson is a British actor who recently co-starred with Sebastian Stan in the independent drama, “A Different Man.” But this role represents something greater to him. “I didn’t think disabled people were allowed in films, because I didn’t see any,” he said. “Up until quite recently, only two disabled actors have won Oscars playing disabled characters.” This year, as his film premiered at Sundance Film Festival and headed for theatrical release, Pearson used its press tour as an opportunity to advocate for better disability representation in cinema, pointing to outdated roles where disabled…

CIVIC ENGAGEMENT HELPERS Georgia state Rep. Ruwa Romman is a Palestinian American who has always had a heart for community organizing — even before she became the first Muslim woman elected to the Georgia State House. Amid war in her home country, Romman shared pep talks for activists, bridged divides, and welcomed newcomers to civic engagement on TikTok. Along with speaking on behalf of Palestinians, Romman has spent her time in the state legislature protecting essential services like ambulances, battling anti-voting rights legislation, and stopping anti-LGBTQ+ bills from advancing. As someone who found her calling in public service after years of discrimination, she hopes to use her platform for good. “Today, when any one of our communities is targeted, a diverse, multifaith, multigenerational, and multiracial coalition mobilizes against injustice,” she…

In 1993, a group of medical students — led by Jody Steinauer — formed the nonprofit Medical Students for Choice, in response to the “complete deficit of abortion education” in their medical training. The organization now has over 220 chapters around the world. Their key offering? Family planning and reproductive health training. Steinauer now also serves as an associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of California San Francisco and is the director of the Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health. She also runs The Ryan Program, a residency training program that enhances these educational opportunities for future doctors. As reproductive healthcare deserts continue to emerge across the U.S., her work is vital to ensuring people have adequate care. “From the beginning, the mission of the organization was…

When Will Ferrell and Harper Steele’s documentary “Will & Harper” premiered on Netflix this year, the comedy duo quickly became the blueprint for LGBTQ+ allyship in the American consciousness. It follows the pair, after Steele came out as transgender, on a cross-country road trip, reflecting on decades of evolving friendship. Ferrell’s kindness, paired with Steele’s vulnerability, sowed seeds of courage and compassion in viewers everywhere. “There’s a process of normalizing queer people for America, and this movie does that. It makes the trans experience more understandable. It’s in a comedy language that they know from me. It’s representation in a good way,” Steele told The New York Times. “However, to be honest, I’m not that interested in normalizing for people who have hated me for centuries. I want the movie…

AI HELPERS In 2023, visual artist Kelly McKernan discovered that Midjourney, an AI engine, had used her art to generate over 12,000 images. “I [could] see my hand in this stuff, see how my work was analyzed and mixed up with some others’ to produce these images,” McKernan told The New Yorker. Turning anger into action, McKernan joined artists Sarah Andersen and Karla Ortiz in suing Stability AI, Runway, DeviantArt, and Midjourney to protect their copyrights. It’s one of the first lawsuits of its kind, and like most litigation, progress has been slow-moving. In May, a California federal judge allowed their case to advance. In August, the lawsuit entered its discovery phase, a period in which both parties are required to disclose relevant information. “I truly believe that we and…

Ilona Maher is crushing it. At the Paris Olympics, Maher led Team USA to victory as they scored their first-ever medal win in women’s rugby. Days later, she got invited to join the 33rd season of “Dancing With The Stars.” “Coming on this show, my big thing was to show big, muscular girls that you can dance and feel feminine and pretty,” she told Access Hollywood. “That’s always been my message.” As Maher has played — and danced — across people’s television screens this year, she has faced a torrent of online harassment targeted towards her body. Time and again she’s pushed back at trolls, challenging beauty standards and championing body positivity with the message that “all body types can be Olympians.” In September, Maher modeled for the Sports Illustrated…

Jon Bon Jovi might be known for his hits like “Livin’ on a Prayer” or “It’s My Life,” but for one woman in Tennessee, he will forever be remembered as the man who saved her life. In September, the rock legend was seen on surveillance camera footage helping to persuade a woman to come off the ledge of the Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge in Nashville. In the video, which was shared by the Nashville Metro Police Department, Bon Jovi is seen walking across the bridge with a camera crew, when he suddenly noticed the woman holding onto the ledge, facing the river. CNN reported that Bon Jovi was filming a music video on the public bridge when the incident occurred. Accompanied by another person from his crew, the star spoke with…

Humanitarian and world-renowned zoologist Jane Goodall has lived through many rich, accomplished chapters in her lifetime. At 24, Goodall studied primate behavior in London under the tutelage of celebrated primatologists Osman Hill and John Napier. At 43, she established The Jane Goodall Institute, which supports research at Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania. At 64, she served as the president of Scotland’s Advocates for Animals, an organization that campaigns against the cruelty of animals in medical research, zoos, and agriculture. This year, as she turned 90, Goodall took up a new crusade: the Vote for Nature initiative. “As I enter my 90th year, one thing is clear: we are the stewards of our planet, and we haven’t done enough,” Goodall wrote on the initiative’s website. “Elections around the world are…

HUMANITARIAN HELPERS World Central Kitchen — an international nonprofit that provides hot meals and aid for people in humanitarian crises — works around the world to deliver relief. This year, their work has been especially prominent in Gaza, Lebanon, and Ukraine, as well as on American soil, following the devastating Hurricanes Helene and Milton. With a network of thousands of industry leaders (called the Chef Corps), volunteers, and humanitarian coordinators, WCK’s supporters distribute millions of meals to those in need. And they do so at the risk of their own lives. In April of this year, seven WCK team members were killed by a targeted airstrike in Gaza, and while the organization continues to mourn their deaths, their work also continues — there, and across the globe. No matter the…

In the television drama “Bridgerton,” the life of Nicola Coughlan’s character Penelope Featherington revolves around the high society politics of 1800s London. But outside of the show, Coughlan herself is more concerned with the real-world politics of today. Coughlan’s activism started long before she became a television actress, but this year, she used her platform to advance her advocacy. When an interview soundbite turned into the “viral” song “SHOES… MORE SHOES” — she used the proceeds to raise money for two LGBTQ+ charities: Not A Phase and The Trevor Project. Predominantly, her attention has turned to Gaza. In addition to championing “Artists for Ceasefire,” she’s raised over $1.9 million in funds for Medical Aid for Palestinians and the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund. “To me, it always becomes about supporting all…

This year, U.S. Rep. Jennifer Wexton from Virginia made history when she became the first member of Congress to deliver a speech using an assistive augmentative communication device on the House floor. The Democratic representative has a rare degenerative condition called progressive supranuclear palsy, or PSP. She joins an estimated 5 million Americans who cannot rely on speech alone to communicate. “Despite my PSP condition, which has impacted my ability to speak loudly and clearly, I want to keep doing my job,” Wexton told The 19th, “and that means relying on this device to have my voice heard in Congress.” Wexton’s speech was about a bill that would rename a post office in Purcellville, Virginia after former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. The bill was not one to naturally bring…

HEALTHCARE HELPERS When COVID-19 had the world in lockdown, Dr. Katelyn Jetelina, an epidemiologist and data scientist, was not making sourdough starters. She was putting her extensive background in public health (including consulting with the CDC) to work. And in March 2020, she launched her newsletter: Your Local Epidemiologist. What started as a bulletin to update fellow faculty on the developments of the pandemic is now a global resource, providing “translated” public health science to an audience of over a quarter of a million people. Continuing to educate people on COVID-19 topics and vaccine rollouts, YLE has also begun to cover other public health topics like gun violence, reproductive health, and other infectious diseases. It also offers resources to help readers identify and combat health misinformation, which can ultimately save…

As transgender and nonbinary athletes continue to fight for inclusion in athletics, 29-year-old Team USA Olympian Nikki Hiltz was confident to be seen on the world stage. The nonbinary runner eagerly represented their community, despite not scoring a medal at this year’s Paris Olympics. “Maybe someone is a trans person or nonbinary and wanting to go by different pronouns, and this gives them the hope, like ‘oh, I can show up in my place of work and people can affirm my gender,’” they said in an interview prior to the Games. “I just think sports is such a beautiful place… we’re setting the stage for what’s possible in every environment.” Hiltz is also the founder of Pride 5K, a virtual fun run that supports LGBTQ+ nonprofits. This year, participants raised…

A Greek proverb states: “The wheels of justice turn slowly, but grind exceedingly fine” — a notion that California Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin may resonate with. 2024 marked Irwin’s 10th year as an assemblymember. She has passed 86 laws into law, with a focus on funding preschool education, improving cybersecurity, and expanding environmental programs. This year, her eyes were on AI. In January, Irwin introduced AB 2013: the first bill of its kind to require transparency from AI companies on the data they use to train their models. After making its way through the State Assembly, it was approved by Governor Gavin Newsom on September 28 — the same month Newsom signed similar bills that required AI watermarking and cracked down on sexually explicit deepfakes. “Consumer confidence in AI systems has…

SPORTS HELPERS From WNBA star Caitlin Clark scoring the most points by a guard in a single season (ever), to a record-breaking 1.2 million season attendance for the National Women’s Soccer League, women’s sports has had a good year. But since the inception of women’s athletics, its fans have struggled to find a bar that even aired these history-making moments. So, in 2022, Jenny Nguyen founded The Sports Bra to create a space that showed women’s sports on every TV. The Portland, Oregon hot spot quickly gained popularity, even inspiring similar concepts in other cities. While those independent spots are still needed, The Sports Bra just got another size bigger. This year, Nguyen began franchising. “The Sports Bra has proven to be a lot bigger than just the four walls…