Weekly achievements: Recycling transformation, further details included

In the realm of health inequality, England is taking a significant step forward with a comprehensive review focused on the LGBTQ+ community's access to healthcare. The move comes in light of evidence suggesting poorer outcomes and worse access to healthcare for LGBTQ+ individuals compared to the general population. The review aims to scrutinise evidence and data from various settings, with the ultimate goal of bridging the inequality gap.

On the energy front, gas continues to dominate the UK's electricity supply, accounting for 30% of the total. However, there's a notable 15% drop in output. Meanwhile, wind power is closing the gap, now standing at 29.2%, hinting at a potential shift in the UK's top power source when 2025 figures are released.

The UK government has announced a new environmental initiative, the 'Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging' scheme. This scheme aims to shift the financial burden of recycling from local authorities to businesses who produce packaging. The scheme is set to come into effect in November, with the majority of the £1.4bn cash going to English local authorities to streamline collections and revamp recycling infrastructure.

In the realm of science, researchers from North Carolina State University have made a breakthrough in vaccine delivery. By using a vaccine-coated dental floss, they've targeted the junctional epithelium in mice, improving on needle-administered vaccines by triggering an immune response not only in the blood but also in the mucosal lining of the nose and lungs.

The NISAR satellite, a collaboration between the US and India, was launched this week. Equipped with radar technology, it can measure variations in the Earth's surface just a single centimeter in height, even at night and through cloud cover. The publicly-available data from the NISAR satellite is expected to aid in forecasting and responding to natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods, monitoring climate change, and informing agricultural policies.

In health news, a study published in The Lancet suggests that vaccination, healthy eating, and cutting down on alcohol could eradicate the majority of liver cancer cases worldwide. The forecast indicates a doubling of global cases of liver cancer over the next 25 years, with more than one in ten resulting from a severe form of fatty liver disease linked to obesity. Boosting hepatitis vaccination programs and encouraging changes to diet and drinking habits could prevent as many as 60% of cases and save 8-15 million lives over the next quarter of a century.

Elsewhere, conservation efforts have resulted in a spike in seahorse sightings off the coast of Dorset, attributed to the installation of almost 100 new 'eco moorings' contributing to the recovery of seagrass habitats. In Wales' Cardigan Bay, a critically endangered angel shark has been sighted, marking the first sighting in the area since 2021.

In an innovative approach to combat wildfires, an international coalition of researchers has started the 'Buena Cabra ("Good Goat") project' in Chile's central Biobío region. By deploying a herd of goats for strategic grazing, they've managed to save approximately 600,000 square meters of land from wildfires. Remarkably, the goat-grazed area served as a shelter for 30 families during Chile's deadliest wildfires in a decade in 2023.

Finally, the Underground Atlas of mycorrhizal fungi, a map of subterranean fungi, models 2.8 billion fungi DNA sequences collected in 25,000 soil samples across 130 countries. These fungi form symbiotic relationships with plant and tree roots, supercharging nutrient exchange, boosting water retention, preventing erosion, and sequestering 13 billion tonnes of CO2 annually. This international initiative aims to shape the future of climate mitigation by leveraging mycorrhizal systems in restoration strategies, conservation, and sustainable farming systems.

In the field of neurology, scientists from the University of Montpellier's Institute of Functional Genomics have harnessed a unique llama antibody to create 'nanobodies' capable of slipping through the blood-brain barrier to target receptors, potentially leading to new therapies for schizophrenia and other neurological illnesses.