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- [00:00]
A
Today is Saturday, December 27th. As we close out 2025 and get ready to celebrate a new year, we're pausing to focus on good news. Not the loudest or biggest headlines, but the types of stories that remind us of what's possible when people step up to help each other and look for solutions. My guest today is Brandon Harvey, the founder and CEO of Good Good Good, a positive news media company. He's also the editor in chief of the Good newspaper, a monthly print paper filled with, you guessed it, good news. He's sharing their 10 most popular good news stories from 2025. These are stories about small acts with big ripple effects, reminding us that good is happening all around and inspiring us to not just read about good news, but also be the good news whenever we can. Welcome. Welcome to the Newsworthy special edition Saturday when we sit down with a different expert or celebrity every Saturday to talk about something in the news. Don't forget to tune in every Monday through Friday for our regular episodes where we provide all the day's news in 10 minutes. And I'm Erica Mandy. It's now time for today's special edition Saturday. Brendan Harvey, thank you so much for joining us here on the Newsworthy again.
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B
I am so excited to be here. Thank you so much for having me, Erica.
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A
We're so happy to have you. We always love talking about good news. And, you know, this year has felt pretty contentious. No matter what side of the aisle you're on, the news can feel a little overwhelming. People feel like there's this big political divide. Are you finding that people are seeking out good news more than ever this year, or has it just been information overload?
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B
No matter what, I really do feel like this has been a big year for good news. People are seeking it out and they're craving it. But more than that, it feels like a lot of the energy around it is that people are seeing needs in their community. They want to make a difference. They want to be the good news. And so they're almost looking for inspiration. And a lot of these stories are ones where people go, oh, wow, like, I wish that that could happen in my community. Or that's something solving an issue that I really, really care about.
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A
Ooh, I love that. Be the good news. Not just read about it we've talked about in the past. But I think it's worth mentioning again that humans tend to have a negativity bias. So, you know, when we talk about seeking it out, sometimes you do have to do that because our brains are kind of wired to Pay attention to negative or urgent things. Can you talk a little bit about that and how you try to overcome that?
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B
Yeah. Our brains have this negativity bias where bad news sticks to our brains, like Velcro. And good news just isn't as sticky. It slides right off our brains unless we're very intentional about seeking it out, appreciating it when we see it.
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A
Yeah. And what do you think the impact of that balance is? Or how has it felt for you personally? When you are looking at good news every day, especially this year, it's easy.
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B
To feel like the bad news is inevitable and it's almost going to kind of avalanche upon itself. But when you read good news stories, you kind of get to realize that, like, we're not powerless over the bad news. There are people working to create solutions. And some of these people, you know, some of these stories are stories of people working to create a solution over the course of decades and decades and decades. And then you finally have a breakthrough, like a medical breakthrough or some sort of tech development. And. And now we get to reap the benefits of that. That good news that they were working towards this whole time was kind of quiet and silent until now. And then other times, it's that something bad happens in the world and you see people race together to make a difference, to do something about that problem. And either way, it's a reminder that while bad news will continue to happen, there are always people who are stepping up to do something. And, and, and so we don't have to lose hope. It doesn't have to feel like the world is getting worse. There's always people who are going to make the world a better place.
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A
Before we get into it, how did you come up with this list? What was the criteria?
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B
So we looked through all of the Instagram posts that we shared this year, which is about a thousand Instagram posts.
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A
Wow.
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B
And then every article that we shared this year on our website, goodgoodgood co, and that was maybe another 600. And we looked at where we saw intersection, where it blew up on social media and it blew up on our website. And so these are the top 10 most clicked for both of these.
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A
Okay, awesome. Let's start with number 10 and work our way up to number one. So give us number 10.
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B
Mealtime was extra challenging for this disabled first grader. So a lunch lady made him a custom cafeteria cartoon. So Julian is a little person, and he has one of the most common forms of dwarfism, which just means that in his own words, his bones grow slower and so one of the accommodations in his school was that the food professionals for lunchtime built him this really cute custom cart to help him navigate the lunchroom. And they even put on a little license plate. This happened in Oregon. So it's an Oregon license plate that says Julian, and it allows him to have an accessible lunchroom experience just like all of the other kids at school.
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A
I love that it makes such a difference for even one kid. It's truly inspiring. Okay, number nine.
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B
This went especially viral on social media. The headline is in this all women tiny home neighborhood rent starts at $450. Residents want it to be a nationwide blueprint. And so you just need to imagine. We've got this beautiful photo on the article itself. You just need to imagine a dozen unique, cute, tiny homes all in a little neighborhood together and have it be affordable while you're at it. And truly, it's like you can see these images. These homes have been made to feel so homey, and each one is unique. And you get to see the personality, and you get to see this community of women coming together to form, like, an entirely new concept for a neighborhood.
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A
I'll have to check out the pictures, because now I'm curious to see how these turned out. It's really cool. Okay. Number eight.
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B
New York City has the first free food vending machine, which offers eggs, meat, and fresh produce to people in need. And it's in partnership with this nonprofit called Change Food for Good. And they saw it as a very effective way of making sure that people have access to food, and it helps kind of overcome some barriers that other traditional ways of distributing food might come across. And so they have this first vending machine at the Kips Bay Boys and Girls Club. And they're hoping that this will catch on and be the kind of resource that can be put in a lot more communities and a lot more spaces that serve their communities.
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A
Yeah. And I know there's volunteers helping to set it all up and keep it fresh, but at the same time, you don't need volunteers manning it the whole time in order to make sure that people have food when they need it, which is pretty cool.
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B
Yep. It's really, really cool. And I feel like it also helps reduce, like, a shame component to it.
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A
Right.
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B
You know, it's just available at this place, and you need it. You can access stuff, and it eliminates a whole extra barrier in that way.
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A
All right, number seven.
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B
Ikea builds trauma informed tiny home, donates it to homeless seniors in Texas, and they have these really, like, gorgeous, modern designs for these tiny homes. And it's really cool that they donated them to a specific community in San Antonio, Texas, devoted to getting homeless seniors off of the streets.
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A
Does it say what trauma informed means? What does that look like?
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B
Yes. So this is a research backed approach to housing. And basically the concept is the design focuses on creating a warm and open space that's filled with a lot of natural light, that communicates a sense of calm, and it's built with safety in mind. I think usually that's a little bit of a challenge to do in a smaller space. And so I think that the people behind the designs did some really unique work to bring this to life.
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A
And it's great to hear companies using their resources for good. And so what are we on number six?
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B
This tech millionaire built a village of 99 tiny houses for homeless neighbors in Canada.
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A
So people find these tiny houses really fascinating.
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B
I know, it's so funny. We started to notice that during the year, you know, it was just a normal part of our articles that we were writing. And then we started to notice that people were really drawn to these tiny house stories. But also part of it is just they are a very helpful solution for people experiencing homelessness. In fact, an article that I didn't even include in this top 10 list was a study that found that tiny housing for people experiencing homelessness is a really, really effective solution. And for some people, it's a more effective solution for getting people off of the streets and helping them rebuild their lives than traditional shelters are. And so I think part of it is, I think there's been a recent uptick in nonprofits and companies and commun building more of these because they work.
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A
We read so much about homelessness and some of the problems, but this is a way to think about the solutions and see how people are helping instead of just complaining about it.
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B
Yes. And all of these are different communities and they all have a little bit of different designs, different approaches specific to their communities. But it just took one person or one group saying, let's do something about this.
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A
Still ahead, we count down the top five good news stories of the year, including the most clicked on and shared story. Before we get into it, I want to take a quick moment to say thank you for your support of the newsworthy this year. We would not be here without you, the listeners turning to us each day. And we take your trust in us seriously. We are so grateful for the opportunity to be part of your life on a daily basis. And of course, we so appreciate anytime you tell a friend or family member about the show and it's vital that we continue to grow this community of listeners in order to pay our team and do the work as an independent media company providing the news each weekday in a quick, friendly and informative way. So please continue to talk about the newsworthy, share the show, leave a positive review and if you can sign up to be a newsworthy insider, your monthly support gets you access to ad free episodes and a chance to ask me anything. Grab your free seven day trial@thenewsworthy.com insider. You can also get some newsworthy merch. Thank T shirts, sweatshirts, mugs, cell phone covers, totes and more. Check@thenewsworthy.com merch. Thanks again for everything as we close out 2025 and head into the new year. Now back to my conversation with Brandon Harvey of Good, Good Good. We are to the top five. Let's go with number five.
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B
In a final act of kindness, Pope Francis donated his entire personal bank account to prisoners right before he died. First of all, Pope Francis had a lot of care and compassion for people who were incarcerated. He made the specific a juvenile prison, a youth prison in Rome that he had shown support for in the past. But what's really interesting is it's not just any donation. It specifically goes to fund a pasta factory that operates in the prison.
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A
Really?
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B
So, of course, this prison and pasta factory are in Rome and we all love some good Italian pasta. This specific factory employs inmates to work towards reintegration in society and helps prevent recidivism. And it's giving you work experience so that when you are released from prison, you're able to jump straight into productive careers and start your life off on, on a good foot. And of course, you know, it's nice for everybody to have a little bit of experience making pasta.
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A
Absolutely.
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B
Okay, number four, rent and teacher shortages are on the rise. So this school district is building a tiny home village. This one's really interesting because this school in Colorado Springs, Colorado had extra property that they were not using. And so they decided to build two villages on the school property. The first village is called Wendy's Village, and it's a community of 40 units specifically reserved for educators. Rent starts at 800amonth. The houses are 352 square feet in size, and the whole neighborhood sits on the school's soccer field, which takes up less than an acre.
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A
So do some of the teachers work there? I imagine.
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B
Exactly, exactly. And it ensures that teachers can afford to live there and serve that community.
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A
Right.
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B
And then the second development is also on the school's property a little bit further away. And this is for young adults aged 18 to 25. Rent starts at $600 a month, and it ensures that kids have transitional housing options, and it gives them also opportunities for educational programming, job opportunities, and ultimately just helps keep young adults out of poverty.
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A
And I imagine some of the kids that go to the school eventually might move in there. And they know about it because it's in their community.
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B
Exactly. It's a really great resource. And for this one, you really have to picture these, like, sleek, modern houses. It feels like a really cool neighborhood that would be in any city. It's just that all the houses are a little bit smaller, but they have front porches and the. They've got windows. And it's. It's really like a stunning aesthetic. So it feels like some. Somewhere that you would actually want to live.
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A
Yeah. We'll have to link to all these stories on our website so that people can go check out all the pictures to the top three. What's number three?
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B
Okay, number three. This one also went especially viral on Instagram. And part of it is because it's so colorful and aesthetically beautiful. The headline is, instead of a new jail, LA built a shipping container housing complex for homeless residents. It's specifically using the shipping containers themselves. It's got these bright orange accents that you can kind of imagine are from the shipping containers. And it's really interesting. This plot of land sat empty in downtown LA for a long time, and it was a parking lot for a while. And then it was slated to become a staging area for the construction of a new jail. But then in 2019, county officials began considering the space to shelter homeless residents. And then when the pandemic hit, they moved forward really quickly on this project, and it's officially open, and it offers permanent and temporary housing for people experiencing homelessness. And it's. It's a really nice interior as well, and it gives people privacy and comfort and gives folks just a chance to get back on their feet if they've come on hard times.
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A
Very cool. And you weren't kidding that there are so many housing based stories.
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B
Yeah. Which I was a little bit surprised by. But it seems like a lot of people are really just celebrating stories of what does it look like to make sure that somebody in need has a home? What does it look like to make housing more accessible? It comes down to this core idea of, like, home is important and having a sense of place is important. And so I think it's just making people feel Good. About what is possible when it comes.
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A
To housing number two.
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B
This Chicago man invents backpack beds and aims to give one to every person sleeping on the street in his city.
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A
So describe what a backpack bed is.
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B
Yeah, so these backpack beds are of course a backpack, but the backpack is a little bit wider than a normal backpack and it comes to about 6.6 pounds of weight. You can put all of your belongings in it, but then it rolls out into a shelter that has a built in mattress. And the mattress is insulated so that if you're slee on the ground, it's not just radiating cold. This is made for people who live in Chicago, so it helps you survive freezing cold temperatures. If you are experiencing homelessness, when morning comes and the sun comes out, you have the ability to roll it back up and move on with your day. And what's great about that too is if you're going out and you're looking for jobs, if you're going out and looking for food, whatever it is that you're doing that day, you're, you can carry your, your home with you. Because I think a lot of times it's a little bit scary to leave your stuff somewhere and hope that it will stay safe that day. So I think it creates a lot of freedom for people and of course just keeps people safe at night.
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A
What a neat invention. And you said it's like a shelter. So there's a little roof or top on it.
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B
Exactly. You can kind of imagine just like a little tent and then if it's raining or snowing, protect you from the elements.
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A
Drum roll for number one.
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B
A Portland coffee shop is serving free SNAP breakfast. The owner said they will help their neighbors and I quote, until everyone's benefits are reinstated or we go broke doing it.
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A
Oh, I think I saw this one. So this was during the government shutdown, right?
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B
During the government shutdown, when in November. There were concerns and I guess it became reality that people were not going to be getting their snap benefits. And 42 million Americans rely on SNAP benefits. A lot of those folks are our kids. And so obviously this was going to have a big impact on a lot of communities. And so it was really interesting to see a lot of small businesses step up to do something about it. This coffee shop, I think, really inspired a lot of people because of how generous it is. Like that quote is wild where they said, we're going to do this until everyone's benefits are reinstated or we go broke.
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A
I'm willing to give up the small business to help people yeah.
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B
And this is a nonprofit coffee shop that already was focused on making an impact for people, and they were known for doing good, but this was taking that generosity to the next level. But what's really cool about this, in my opinion, is that generosity was matched by the community. They raised over $350,000 from the community. Some of that was people saying, I'm going to go to this coffee shop. I'm going to support them. I'm going to give an extra big tip on it. Some of that was people from around the world donating to the coffee shop. And what they did was they said, this is actually. It turns out that this is more money than we can handle. And so they. They dispersed it to about 10 nonprofits that specifically focus on feeding people who all do that in a different way. And then they are continuing to offer this program for people who are in need to be able to get a free breakfast, even beyond the government opening back up.
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A
I love this for so many reasons, but I think the top reason is that it just goes to show how one person's kindness or one small business kindness can have a ripple effect and just inspire so many people to step up as well.
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B
Absolutely.
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A
What was the story that really stood out to you that you remember from the year? Whether it's on the list or not.
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B
I. I really think that this final story is number one for a reason. I'm so inspired by this coffee shop, and it's really stuck with me. It also helps that when I looked up the address, it's walking distance from my house.
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A
Oh, wow.
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B
So it's been really, really fun to literally see the support of the community come to life for this.
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A
So did you go in person?
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B
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It's. It was quite a sight to behold to see a line out the door for people going to overpay for a free breakfast so that that extra money would go towards somebody else having a free breakfast. It made me really, really proud of this community.
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A
So neat. What's giving you hope? As we head into a new year.
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B
You know, I'm feeling a lot of hope knowing that people are really thinking about what their role is in their communities. I know that's something I'm thinking a lot about. It's one thing to, you know, try to make a difference online, but it's another thing to say I care about my community and I'm going to find my own unique way of doing something about it. How can I get involved?
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A
And it's such a good reminder because, you know, even on our show, we cover national news, which is important. But your stories are reminding us that when we really want to make a difference, going local is the way to go. And that even if it's part of a national news story or not, where you can really have the biggest impact is just right there in your own neighborhood, your own community, in your local area.
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B
If you start local, who knows who might see that outside of your community and it might cause a ripple effect beyond you. But you get to start small first.
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A
And that also makes it a little less overwhelming. Like you're not trying to solve all the world's problems in one day.
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B
Exactly, Exactly.
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A
Just a final thought, or anything else you want to add.
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B
I'm just so grateful for the wonderful work that you do keeping people informed, and it's such a treat to get to be here and celebrating some good news as we round out the year.
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A
Brandon, we love having you on. We love talking about good news and thank you for all your work. Thank you so much.
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B
Thank you, Erica. It's always a pleasure.
- [20:44]
A
Well, thank you again to Brandon Harvey and the team at Good Good Good for providing us with some great good news. You can check out the stories he shared today, including all the pictures of the tiny home neighborhoods we talked about. Find the links in today's Episode notes, go to thenewsworthy.com, click episodes and find today's date. Of course, you can also go directly to Good Good Good Co to get even more good news stories now and throughout 2026. In fact, join thousands of other readers who already wake up to free Good News stories in their email inbox by going to good good good.org newsletter. Join us again during the week to stay informed on the day's headlines. In less than 15 minutes a day, the Newsworthy is back on Monday to catch you up on everything you may have missed during the holidays. Until then, have a great rest of your holiday weekend.