๐จ๏ธ The 10-Year-Old CEO of Brownsville, Texas
Sources: KRGV News ยท Sunny Skyz ยท Happily News
Most 10-year-olds spend their free time playing video games, but Ernesto Gael Hernandez is busy running his own 3D printing business and dreaming of buying his mom a house someday. Sunny Skyz
What began as a fun way to make custom keychains for classmates has quickly grown into a thriving small business for the young entrepreneur from Brownsville, Texas. Now, with multiple printers running at once and products being sold in a local store, Ernesto is already turning creativity into success. Sunny Skyz
Where it all started: When Ernesto told his mother he wanted to earn money through 3D printing, she didn't just buy him a machine โ she told him to work for it. "My mom said that I could save up my chore money and buy my own 3D printer with my money," Ernesto explained. He saved $500, bought the printer, and named the business Prestige 3D Labs. KRGVHappily
Teaching himself everything: Ernesto taught himself how to create custom designs by watching online tutorials and quickly realized there was real demand for his products. "I saw tutorials on YouTube on how to edit and make custom keychains for other people," he said. Sunny Skyz
More than just keychains: Inside a small workshop at home, Ernesto spends his days designing and printing colorful creations including keychains, whistles, can openers, and fidget-style items meant to help people dealing with anxiety, ADHD, and stress. "I would wake up early and set something to print while I'm at school, or after school, or before football practice," Ernesto said. Sunny SkyzKRGV
The business is booming: Business has grown fast. Ernesto says he has already made around $1,500 in profit, and demand became so strong that he partnered with a local Brownsville clothing store called Jungle to help sell his creations. Sunny Skyz
The lesson behind the business: His mom says the business has taught him patience, time management, and responsibility โ even if it gets stressful sometimes. Iheart
And his big dream? "I just like doing it because I want to invest in a house for my mom and me when I grow older," Ernesto said. KRGV
A fifth-grader in Texas, running three printers, stocked in a real store, scheduling production around football practice โ all to buy his mom a house one day. If that doesn't make your week, nothing will. ๐ฅนโค๏ธ
๐จ The Italian Ghost Town Painted Back to Life
Source: Good News Network โ by Andy Corbley
A southern Italian hamlet once referred to as a ghost town is now attracting thousands of tourists after commissioning artists to paint more than 140 murals on its empty shop fronts and crumbling walls. goodnewsnetwork
The problem: Stornara, in the Puglia region, suffered from a fate befalling many Italian towns โ a generation experiencing rising living standards had fewer children, and those children, now grown up, left for the cities, leaving the small town behind. goodnewsnetwork
One man's frustration became a movement: Local artist Lino Lombardi grew frustrated watching his hometown crumble and became determined to make it a destination worth visiting. In 2017 he created Stramurales, an annual street art festival that sees artists from around the world come to paint murals on the town's walls. Six vibrant murals were created at the first festival in 2018, and now thousands of people visit every year. goodnewsnetwork
The results are remarkable: Revenue through tourism has increased by 25% since 2020, and eight new businesses have opened, including two restaurants, three B&Bs, and an art-supplies shop. More importantly, the town's population has stopped declining and begun to grow again as young families move back. goodnewsnetwork
The human stories say it all: Antonio Maglione, who had been on the brink of closing his cafรฉ, recalled: "Suddenly there were loads of people turning up with cameras and guidebooks. I had to quickly learn to say 'welcome' in five different languages. The murals saved my business, but more than that, they saved our community." goodnewsnetwork
Rita Gensano, who returned to Stornara in 2017 after 20 years in Turin, described it as feeling like "walking into a ghost town โ it felt like it was dying." She's now a local tour guide and says: "It has become something extraordinary which I have been fortunate to be a part of." goodnewsnetwork
Lombardi's own words: "Our community has painted itself back to life, one wall at a time," he said. "I started looking at the walls as blank canvasses which could be turned into something beautiful. We never planned to be a case study, but if our experience can help other communities, that's even more meaningful." And it already is โ other struggling towns have begun appealing for help from the organizers following Stornara's success. goodnewsnetworkgoodnewsnetwork
A one-man act of stubbornness and love turned blank walls into a reason to come home. ๐ฅน
๐พ Platypuses Are Back โ and They're Having Babies!
Here's the full, in-depth story โ straight from the scientists themselves! ๐ฆ๐
๐พ Platypuses Are Back โ and They're Thriving!
Source: UNSW Sydney Newsroom โ May 22, 2026
Three years after their historic reintroduction to Royal National Park, platypuses are now breeding, dispersing, and being spotted by visitors along the Hacking River. UNSW Sites
Scientists from UNSW Sydney confirmed the reintroduced population has grown to 20 known individuals, following the release of four additional animals and a fresh round of surveys in May 2026. Lead researcher Associate Professor Gilad Bino, from UNSW's Centre for Ecosystem Science and co-founder of the Platypus Conservation Initiative, called reaching 20 individuals a defining moment for the program. UNSW Sites
How it all began: Following a chemical spill on the Princes Highway in the 1970s, platypuses disappeared from Royal National Park entirely โ becoming locally extinct in Australia's oldest national park for 50 years. The reintroduction program, a collaboration between UNSW, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, WWF, and Taronga Conservation Society, was launched to bring them back. timeout
The journey so far: Ten founding platypuses were released in May 2023, three more joined in May 2025, and now four new arrivals โ males Absinthe and Duckie, and females Hydra and Dawn โ were added in May 2026, bringing the total number translocated to 17. UNSW Sites
The most exciting discovery: During the latest surveys, the team re-encountered Prometheus โ confirmed last year as the father of Gili, the first juvenile born in the park โ and also captured a new subadult male hatched in the park during the most recent breeding season. This provided clear evidence that the population is not just surviving, but actively reproducing and raising a new generation in the wild. UNSW Sites
Dr Tahneal Hawke, co-lead on the project, said the team now has multiple age classes in the park, evidence of breeding across consecutive seasons, and animals interacting with the river system as a healthy platypus community should. "That is the signature of a population that is starting to stand on its own," she said. UNSW Sites
A connection beyond science: A/Prof. Bino noted that visitors are now reporting platypus sightings along the Hacking River โ something that simply hadn't been possible in living memory. "That public connection โ people seeing platypuses back where they belong โ is one of the most rewarding outcomes of this work," he said. UNSW Sites
What's next: Each animal carries a small transmitter so the team can follow their movements. Dr Hawke explained that each new translocation is carefully planned to complement the existing population โ boosting numbers and broadening the gene pool without compromising the source populations the animals come from. The Platypus Conservation Initiative will continue monitoring survival, movements and breeding outcomes in the years ahead. UNSW Sites
The reintroduction remains the first successful platypus translocation in New South Wales, and one of the most ambitious wildlife recovery projects ever undertaken in the state. Net24 News
What a story โ a 50-year absence, a baby called Gili, and a dad named Prometheus. Nature really does deliver. ๐ฅน
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