Feel-good stories of humanity

Give yourself a lift with these heart-warming tales from around the globe.

Cooma Correctional Centre teams up with farmers to take care of orphaned lambs

Photo: Supplied by Cooma Correctional Service

Who could resist a cute and cuddly lamb? Cooma Correctional Centre, in regional New South Wales, has partnered with the local farming community to help during the drought, by taking in orphaned lambs and looking after them during the first crucial months of their lives. The inmates at the Centre are responsible for taking care of the lambs, getting up at all hours of the night to feed them. The program is an initiative of Centre staff member Julia Gilroy, in the hope it would help the farmers, and provide those at the Centre with some basic agricultural skills that could help them find work upon release. “Everyone loves baby lambs,” she said. “I'm constantly telling the inmates to let the lambs have a rest and to have a break from patting them.” The program has been a hit, with more and more farmers getting involved, and the local community supporting them by donating food, bottles and blankets. See more »

Jonah’s making a difference one stitch at a time

Photo: CBS News

11-year-old Jonah is a crocheting prodigy. He started when he was just 5, teaching himself to make a dishcloth. Since then he’s made anything and everything: blankets, gloves, hats, ear warmers, even a llama. He has his own ‘Learn to Crochet with Jonah’ show, and counts Kelly Clarkson among his fans. Now he’s putting his skills to a good cause, starting a fundraiser to build a library in his hometown in Ethiopia. Jonah was adopted from there, and wants to build a library so that his friends who are still living at the orphanage “can have books in their hands.” He’s raised $20,000 to date. “I want to hand children in Ethiopia the chance to unlock their own passion and potential. The talent and love that came from that gift can now spread across the globe and back to the beautiful country I love so much,” he said. See more »

Nobel prize winner looks to inspire other women

Photo: SBS News

This week US economists Esther Duflo, Abhijit Banerjee and Michael Kremer won the Nobel Economics Prize for their work fighting poverty and helping millions of children. Esther is the youngest winner of the award, and only the second woman to win the prize in 50 years. The work she, Abhijit and Michael worked on showed that poverty could be addressed by breaking down the issue into smaller and more precise questions in specific fields, such as education. They pioneered experiments ranging from providing tutoring to Indian schoolchildren, to encouraging governments around the world to invest in preventative medicine. “Showing that it is possible for a woman to succeed and be recognised for success I hope is going to inspire many, many other women to continue working and many other men to give them the respect that they deserve like every single human being,” said Esther. See more »

All-women orchestra from Afghanistan looks to revive music banned under the Taliban

Photo: SBS News

For five years in the 1990s, music was completely banned by the Taliban in Afghanistan. The long and brutal civil war saw the loss of art and culture, with censorship and imprisonment of musicians and artists. Now, an all-women orchestra is looking to rebuild what was lost, and showcase their country’s rich musical history to the rest of the world. The group is called Zohra, and are currently touring Australia. Founded in 2015, the group has endured criticism and attacks, but are determined to keep going. 14-year-old performer Meena has to keep her passion for music a secret from some of her family, but hasn’t let that stop her. “We want to open the door for new generation in Afghanistan because if we do not do it, another generation will never do it,” she said. “That's why we play music; we show the beauty of our country for all the world, and all the country we met.” See more »

Alberto goes for gold

Photo: Stefan Armbruster/SBS News

Alberto Campbell-Staines was orphaned in Jamaica at just three months old. Now 26, he’s about to race for gold at the INAS Global Games in Brisbane as the face of the event. Alberto was adopted by an Australian couple, Julie-Ann and Paul, when he was 6. It was a long battle for the couple to bring him home that ended at the High Court. Now here, Alberto’s making the most of it. After showing talent for running at a young age, Julie-Ann and Paul encouraged him to pursue the sport. Alberto competes in the T20 classification, for athletes with an intellectual disability. He’s undefeated in the 400m for the last seven years in Australia, ranking in the top 10 in the world. He’ll also compete in the 800m and 4x100m and 4x400m relays. He’s hoping his performance at INAS will lead to a spot on the 2020 Paralympic team. “It lets me show young athletes you can achieve anything, if you have a disability or not, and be noticed by everyone else and get a bit of respect,” he said. “To me it means a lot, to be honest, for people like us with intellectual disability, we’re not quite noticed much. And to be 'the face', it’s like, 'here we are, come and support us at the games, we’ll show you guys what we got, what we’re made out of'.” See more »