The best things that happened this week – in one short poem

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/apr/05/the-best-things-that-happened-this-week-in-one-short-poem

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We start this week with a short poem.

Actually it’s for you, dear Upsider, and here’s how to use it. When an interlocutor takes you to one side this weekend to bemoan the state of the world and the fact that news is always bad, simply reply that in this week alone:

Bavaria moved to save the bees,

The world cut deaths from heart disease,

Scientists invented a new kind of wood,

Refugees were rewarded for doing some good,

A woman elected by Slovakians,

In London, short story vending machines,

A footballer shelled out on tickets for teens,

Dancers got shoes that matched their skins.

And that’s not all. Our reporters dug into other initiatives this week: a campaign to ensure more responsible reporting of domestic violence, led by a man whose father killed his mother and sister; a metro system run almost entirely by women; and the whisper of a housing revolution in Berlin.

Alas, none of our correspondents filed in iambic pentameter, so you’ll have to make do with their rather elegant prose instead.

Please let us know where you think the Upside should turn next for stories, ideas, initiatives and inspiration by emailing us at theupside@theguardian.com. Particular attention will be paid to those who submit ideas in haiku.

What we liked

An initiative by the Solutions Journalism Network to fund reporting on gender inequality, sexual violence and the people trying to fix the problem.

A refreshing Reuters article about Taliban fighters who like to wield a cricket bat just as much as a Kalashnikov.

And the winning entry from the National Council for Voluntary Organisations’ photo competition, highlighting a programme to install potable water in Bangladesh.

What we heard

I read a lot of online news every day and am becoming increasingly upset at the endless parade of greed and horrible human and corporate behaviour. You start to despair about mankind and the way the world is seemingly heading. Your Upside page is an absolute blessing, setting my world to rights, showing that there is good around – that kind of news just does not get that many clicks.

Wendy Pickford, by email.

And in reference to our series on four-day working weeks:

We are already well on the way to delivering this, and we will be the first EVER to do this for our 300 (customer facing) contact centre agents.

Daniel Cotton, simplybusiness.co.uk, via email.

Where was the Upside?

In Washington, where a new generation of mermaids was being trained.

Also, on a football pitch in Sochi created out of recycled plastic Budweiser cups.

If you have a thought, comment, criticism or suggestion for story ideas or subjects, please email us at theupside@theguardian.com. Which global crisis might best benefit from some Upside treatment?