Meghan Cook

Contributing Writer at Business Insider

Film Critic at Freelance

Senior Writer at Good Good Good

Articles

New plastic-free cheese packaging biodegrades on its own: 'The solution was in the cheese itself'

5 days ago | goodgoodgood.co | Meghan Cook

A standard pack of cheese singles contains 24 slices, all individually wrapped in 24 pieces of plastic and packaged again in a larger sleeve. According to a Simmons National Consumer Survey, 30.45 million people eat a pound or more of cheese singles per week — and that’s just in the United States. All of that cheese packaging ends up in landfills and incinerators, adding to the global heap of plastic waste.
This deep-sea creature sucks up methane on the ocean floor. It's a new species

1 week ago | goodgoodgood.co | Meghan Cook

During a routine research dive off the coasts of Southern California and Alaska in 2021, Occidental College professor Shana Goffredi scoured the ocean floor looking for methane seeps — deep-sea spots where methane gas bubbles up from the Earth’s crust. After scooping up samples 3,000 feet below the surface, Goffredi and her team took them back to the lab “just to see if there was anything unusual about them.”That’s when they discovered three new species of deep-sea spiders.
Scientists discover new species that was 'shaped by 40,000 years of evolutionary solitude'

1 week ago | goodgoodgood.co | Meghan Cook

The Satyrium semiluna, or half-moon hairstreak, is a small gray butterfly that looks like a moth at first glance. The wildflower lovers are widespread across North America, from the Sagebrush steppe to the montane meadows of the Rocky Mountains. But tucked away in the southeastern corner of Alberta, Canada, another colony of butterflies flaps across the Blakiston Fan landform of Waterton Lakes National Park.
See the 5-star island paradise in Malaysia that doubles as a sea turtle rescue

1 week ago | goodgoodgood.co | Meghan Cook

In Malaysia, five islands form Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park, a glittery turquoise oasis filled with coral reefs, parrotfish, seahorses, and green sea turtles. Gaya, the largest of the five islands, is also home to the Gaya Island Resort: a luxury 5-star retreat nestled in an ancient rainforest that boasts stunning sea views, swim-up pools, and a spa village hidden amongst the mangroves.
'Ghost elephant' makes 'near-mythical' appearance in rare trail camera footage

2 weeks ago | goodgoodgood.co | Meghan Cook

In 2019, a beloved African forest elephant named Ousmane was thought to be only one of five to 10 elephants left living in Senegal’s Niokolo-Koba National Park. Ousmane, who was named after one of the park rangers, disappeared without a trace soon after that survey, earning his species the nickname: “Ghost elephant.” That is, until recent trail camera footage caught a rare glimpse of Ousmane walking the fields at night.
Injured barn owl makes huge strides in recovery as internet cheers him

2 weeks ago | goodgoodgood.co | Meghan Cook

On May 28, an Oregon farmer, Lexie, received an urgent message from her sister-in-law: There was an injured barn owl down the road from her house, deeply entangled in a barbed wire fence. Without hesitation, Lexie found the owl, carefully dislodged him from the fence with gloved hands, and drove him to the Chintimini Wildlife Center.
Firefly species stuns scientists after 90-year absence: 'It’s truly magical'

2 weeks ago | goodgoodgood.co | Meghan Cook

In October, Monash University master’s student Tan Wei Jack was doing a routine specimen examination of a firefly sample discovered in the dense forests of Bukit Kiara, Malaysia. Then he did a double-take. “I was examining some previously collected specimens under the microscope and noticed something strange, a feature that didn’t match what I’d just learned about Colophotia fireflies the day before,” Tan told Monash University in early June.
This 'no-walls, no-doors' resort in Bali doubles as a firefly conservatory

2 weeks ago | goodgoodgood.co | Meghan Cook

In the lush highlands of Bali, a towering treetop resort peaks out over the Balinese jungle and surrounding mountaintops. Guest villas, called bales, are dotted throughout the river valley and perched atop waterfalls. At the “no walls, no doors” resort, breezes pass through open bales as guests drift to sleep under the stars and wake up to sun-dappled morning mists. This is Buahan, a Banyan Tree Escape, the world’s first resort that doubles as a firefly conservatory.
CEO invites world to invest in refugees in TED Talk

2 weeks ago | goodgoodgood.co | Meghan Cook

On April 9, social entrepreneur Julienne Oyler took to the stage at TED 2025 in Vancouver, Canada, and dropped a sobering statistic on the crowd. “One in 10 of us will be displaced in 25 years. One in 10. Each of us is more likely to be displaced than ever before,” Oyler said in her TED Talk, which will be published at a later date. “The time for incremental change is over.
Helene devastated Asheville's bee populations. 'Nucleus hive' donations are helping them rebuild

2 weeks ago | goodgoodgood.co | Meghan Cook

On June 8, Highland Brewing in Asheville, North Carolina, was humming with excitement as locals gathered in “pollinator-themed costumes” for the Fourth Annual Honey Festival. As people sampled honey, danced to live music by “Queen Bee and the Honey Lovers,” and entered the globally renowned Black Jar Honey Contest, the Center for Honeybee Research raked in donation after donation.