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Happy Earth Month! Protecting our planet is a never-ending job, and we’ve recently seen several small signs of progress that show how environmental action is helping Mother Earth:
🦋 The threatened monarch butterfly species—which is crucial to ecosystems—is showing promising signs of recovery with a population increase of 64%.
🌊 The Ocean Cleanup has removed 110 million pounds of plastics from oceans and rivers.
🌲 Louisiana residents are restoring coastal ecosystems through the planting of 30,000 bald cypress trees.
These achievements remind us of what is possible when people direct their time and resources toward making a positive impact in the world around them. Small actions add up to big change, and we hope that this Earth Month-focused edition of Breaking Good adds a dash of uplifting news into your feed.
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Remembering a Defender of the “Lungs of the Earth”
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Sometimes referred to as the Mahatma Gandhi of the Amazon Rainforest, Chico Mendes didn’t originally set out to become an environmental hero, but his efforts to protect his livelihood turned him into one anyway.
In the 1970s, Mendes earned his living by rubber tapping—a sustainable process that extracts latex from trees without damaging them. As cattle ranchers threatened the Brazilian rainforest with deforestation, he began unionizing fellow workers in resistance. Mendes organized empates—peaceful demonstrations—in which protesters formed human chains to block loggers from entering forests.
After their efforts attracted international attention, Mendes traveled to Washington, DC, to speak to the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank. He advocated for establishing protected areas where indigenous communities could sustainably extract non-timber forest products.
While Mendes found a receptive audience on the world stage, not everyone appreciated his efforts. After surviving several assassination attempts, he was killed by ranchers in 1988. His death became a turning point in the fight to protect one of the world’s most important ecosystems.
As the campaign to stop deforestation continues, Mendes’ legacy has inspired more efforts to empower indigenous communities to help save forests. In 2025, the World Bank announced a new project to protect indigenous lands and ecosystems in Pará, Brazil. Meanwhile, conservationists leading a reforestation initiative in Guatemala have named their project after Mendes. |
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| Sustainable Investing Carries On |
Several recent trends show many investors are still prioritizing environmental impact when deploying capital. Morningstar reports that trillions of dollars remain invested in sustainable strategies, and it has been more common for investors to incorporate environmental, social, and governance considerations in conventional investing. Meanwhile, we’ve recently seen news of fund launches and capital raises for a range of environmentally-focused strategies, including climate tech, green AI infrastructure, and aquaculture.
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Finding Fund Managers Dedicated to Impact
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| Searching for a fund manager that prioritizes the issues you care about? The 2026 ImpactAssets 50 offers a free, curated database of 193 impact investing fund managers worldwide, from emerging managers to established players. Approximately one-third of firms on the list focus on environmental strategies, while 58% primarily target social strategies such as financial and economic inclusion, community development, affordable housing, and health and wellbeing. Hopefully, you will be able to find the funds that align with your values. |
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“Ecopreneurs” Combining Purpose & Profit
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| Entrepreneurs play an important role in creating solutions to some of the biggest environmental challenges facing our planet. Environment+Energy Leader recently reported on how agile, focused startups are advancing progress across issues such as water reuse and renewable energy. Meanwhile, the finalists for the Youth Ecopreneur Programme’s annual YECO Awards are developing solutions to protect ecosystems, support regenerative agriculture, improve water access, and more. |
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A Fitness Trend That’s Good for the Planet
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| This spring, New Yorkers have been getting in their cardio while giving back to their communities. Runners have been joining the global fitness trend of “plogging,” which involves cleaning up trash while jogging. Created in Sweden, plogging continues to gain attention as more people see the health, environmental, and social benefits—and some are even treating it as a side hustle to earn extra cash. |
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