It’s been a long year. It’s also been a heavy year, especially when it comes to the news. While it’s impossible to turn away from these moments, we think there should also be space to read about the good in the world.

So for TDA’s final newsletter of the year, we’ve decided to highlight some of the lighter stories from the year that was.

Without further ado, allow us to present you with a round-up of the best ‘good news’ stories of the year.

Happy holidays!

2023 will forever be known as the year of the Matildas. Their incredible World Cup campaign captured the hearts of the country and inspired the next generation.

The numbers told the same story: The Matildas’ semi-final game against England in August became the most-watched TV program in Australia since 2001, when the current ratings system started.

Channel 7 said its broadcast reached a total of 11.15 million viewers.

Bring on the Olympics!

While the Tillies bowed out fourth, in the same month Australia’s national netball team, the Diamonds, beat England to win the World Cup.

And in October, Australia also won the International Wheelchair Rugby Cup after beating Canada in the final match.

However, Australian athleticism wasn’t confined to just the pros. This year, we saw incredible records broken for a good cause.

In March, Australian man Blake Johnston broke the world record for the longest surfing session ever at 40 hours.

He rode more than 600 waves in the process and raised money for a mental health charity.

Then there was Erchana Murray-Bartlett, who finished 150 marathons in 150 days.

She started her journey in Cape York and her final marathon ended in Melbourne.

Murray-Bartlett raised more than $105,000 for the country's endangered wildlife and national parks.

Politics usually doesn’t get a good wrap, but this year there was some major law reform globally.

In June, Estonia’s Parliament voted to legalise same-sex marriage, making it the first Baltic country to do so. The new legislation also allows same-sex couples to adopt children.

The legislation will come into force next year.

Also this year, three U.S. states – Connecticut, Vermont, and Michigan – banned child marriage.

This means they prohibited anyone under the age of 18 from receiving a marriage licence without exception.

There are now a total of 10 states in the U.S. that have outlawed child marriage.

On a domestic front, Australia’s gender pay gap reached its lowest level. ​​

The pay gap between the full-time earnings, including bonuses, of men and women in Australia reached its lowest level on record — 21.7%.

Data from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) showed the gender pay gap narrowed by 1.1% over the year from April 2022 to March 2023.

The arts world also had a few firsts this year during awards season.

Alex Newell, for their role in ‘Shucked’, and Harrison Ghee, for their role in ‘Some Like It Hot’, became the first openly nonbinary performers to win Tony Awards - awards for performances on Broadway. They did so on the same night.

Michelle Yeoh also made history as the first Asian woman to win Best Actress at the Oscars in its 95-year history.

Yeoh said while accepting her award: “For all the little boys and girls who look like me watching tonight, this is a beacon of hope and possibilities.”

Speaking of hope, data from UNESCO this year revealed there are 50 million more girls in school today globally than in 2015.

Completion rates of education for girls also increased. In primary education, the completion rate increased from 86% to 89% and in upper secondary education it increased from 54% to 61%.

Now that’s a good news story.

And that’s it!

We love good news.

Happy New Year!

Hi, I'm Sam, co-founder of The Daily Aus. I’m getting married next year!

As you know, weddings are damn expensive. To help us save, my fiancé and I (both Up customers) have set up a 2Up Saver account – that’s a separate account you can start with your partner, which can be easily closed if it's not needed anymore. We've committed to an ambitious goal and so far we’re 43% the way there. To help us, the account also has a decent interest saving rate!

Even if you don't have a wedding coming up, you can also manage your day-to-day spending through a joint 2Up debit account, which is separate from your personal accounts. This isn't just a shared account; it feels like a real collaboration to keep track of your spending. You're able to track spending and allocate how much you want to spend on things like groceries or date nights each month.

Check it out here. Use code COMMITABIT to give each person $10 on sign-up.