When it feels like the sky is falling down around us, James Gill brings us the latest positive news stories for the week ahead to lift the spirits and inspire a smile.

CHANGE – Trump stinks; Jordan slam dunks

Donald Trump has undeniably said a lot of questionable things. The president’s misjudged comment about George Floyd – killed in police custody – where he said last week, “Hopefully George is looking down and saying this is a great thing that’s happening for our country. A great day for him. It’s a great day for everybody,” might be his most idiotic yet. Yet, what these past few weeks of incredible and inspiring protesting taking place around the world has taught us is that it is important to speak up and, if that means calling out those in power, then so be it. After all, it can lead to positive change (anti-racism protests continue across the planet as BALANCE writes this). If you want to join the global Black Lives Matter movement, you can do so here: blacklivesmatter.com. You’ll find petitions, resources, a place to donate and much more.

The aftermath of the tragic death of George Floyd has seen some incredible acts of generosity; take Michael Jordan and his donation of $100 million (in partnership with the basketball legend’s Nike-backed brand), which is to be spread across the next 10 years. “Black lives matter. This isn’t a controversial statement,” says Jordan. “Until the ingrained racism that allows our country’s institutions to fail is completely eradicated, we will remain committed to protecting and improving the lives of black people.” You know, just in case you couldn’t admire Jordan any more following the sublime The Last Dance (and, to answer that earlier box-set “quandary” – if you’ve not yet seen The Last Dance, please do so).

COMMUNITY – Warm reception

We are only human and so it’s easy to think you’ve got it particularly tough this pandemic. For example, if your biggest dilemma right now is: “We’ve caught up with Ozark – what box-set should we ever watch next?!” then you’re probably not having too bad a time of it. Spare a thought, then, for the elderly, especially if they have no means of reaching the outside world; after all, Zoom obviously isn’t an option for everyone. Connecting the elderly is the reason why mobile network giffgaff has teamed up with Doro, the leading global supplier of telecommunication solutions for seniors. The partnership will see 2,000 easy-to-use Doro 5516 phones sent to isolated older people across regions spanning the UK, Germany, France and the Nordic countries.

Carl-Johan Zetterberg Boudrie, CEO of Doro, explains: “Social exclusion and involuntary loneliness have become reality for many seniors, exacerbated in the wake of the Coronavirus. It is wonderful that so many elderly people are accepting of social distance, even though they are in greater need of communication than ever before. By donating Doro phones to those most at risk, we hope to reduce anxiety and simultaneously enable closeness between families.” Ashley Schofield, CEO of giffgaff, adds: “As much now as ever, a sense of community is vital which is why following on from the announcement of our recent goodybank initiative to help the most vulnerable members in society, we’ve partnered with Doro. Living in isolation is tough for everyone but the elderly may find themselves in a greater state of stress and suffering from loneliness. We hope that by providing these phones that it will help them stay connected with loved ones and bring some much-needed respite in these trying times.”

FESTIVAL – Food glorious food

Not even a pandemic can stop the Great Feast of London from helping those in need. This new festival combines food, wellbeing and music, with creators Dominic Cools-Lartigue and Bejay Mulenga trying to make the best of lockdown to recreate the festival feeling via digital. Taking place across 3 to 5 July, for each meal that’s sold, one will be donated to a Londoner in need through A Plate For London. Obviously perusing stages, stalls, tents isn’t an option right now, so food from London’s best chefs and restaurants delivered to guests’ front door, garden gate or even direct to the local park is the next best thing. There’s also interactive online experiences and entertainment. Dominic Cools-Lartigue, Founder of Street Feast and Co-Founder of The Great Feast of London and A Plate For London said: “A city is nothing without its people, so across the weekend The Great Feast of London will be feeding and entertaining the people who make this city what it is. The festival gives us the opportunity to inspire Londoners through world-class chefs, performers, and thinkers whilst also raising funds to feed our neighbours in need.”

Bejay Mulenga, Entrepreneur and Co-Founder of The Great Feast of London and A Plate For London comments: “The transformation to a ‘new normal’ over the past weeks has left an undeniable mark on London commerce, community and culture as we knew it. Amongst industries hit, hospitality was one of the hardest, putting our favourite restaurants and thousands of workers at risk of redundancy and pay cuts. If there’s one crucial lesson my last 10 years in business across retail, music, education and marketing has shown me, it’s this: innovation begins with simple ideas of value. The Great Feast of London is an innovative commercial platform for restaurants, wellbeing and music crews to help digitise, market and mobilise their offering across London.” To find out more visit greatfeast.com; @greatfeastoflondon; aplateforlondon.org; @aplateforlondon

TRANSPORT – Save more than pennies

With the news that masks are now compulsory on transport from 15 June (WHY AREN’T THEY COMPULSORY NOW?! Sorry, didn’t mean to shout there), it can open up a fresh can of anxiety: which mask should I buy? Are some better than others? Is there one that will make me look like Iron Man (that was just BALANCE asking that last one)? Fortunately, help is at hand thanks to chief medical officer and general practitioner, Dr Tom Bracewell, who says: “If you spend lots of time around other people, protective masks can reduce your chance of catching an infection, and you can avoid passing it on if you’re infected. As we continue work to flatten the curve, any reduction in transmission rate is welcome. When an infected person coughs or sneezes, up to half a million virus particles can spread to those around them, so it’s never been more important to have the right protection against what is a very infectious virus.” Obviously other brands of mask are also available, yet the Covaflu FFP2 filters 94% of particles, complies with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) pandemic protection guidelines and has an adjustable head harness suitable for every head size. Also, crucially, for anyone fretting about costs during lockdown, the FFP2 Covaflu mask is priced from a wallet-friendly £5.83 at covaflu.com.

PLANTS – Green is good

How many people do you know who’ve cut down their meat intake (or indeed gone fully vegan) off the back of watching the documentary Cowspiracy? BALANCE will put its own hand in the air. If you’re the same, then you would do well to bookmark the website sayplants.com, which is an online platform aiming to help those looking to have less meat and more green in their diet by recommending nearby restaurants and the like. School friends Harry Kingdon and Marcus Rapacioli launched the new business during lockdown, and say: “We’re really excited to launch a review platform that collects the best plant-based hidden gems and puts the focus on the restaurant, not hundreds of inaccurate reviews. It’s early days but we’re striving to build an ultimate guide to plant-based restaurants, that makes eating plants more convenient for everyone, vegans, steak-lovers and everything in between. Public perception of plant-based eating has shifted a huge amount and we want to contribute to that wave of change.” You can get in touch with the chaps at [email protected]. It’s just London for now, yet the plan is to expand.