The world’s largest database of good news and social change milestones from throughout human history
We are building the world’s largest database of social change milestones, from the first fire to today’s good news. Change is not only possible, it has happened consistently throughout human history. Filter by era, country, topic, actor, source, and more.
4615
change milestones archived
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- Tomorrow (2025 C.E. - ???)
- Today (2017 C.E. - 2024 C.E.)
- Post-modernity (1945 - 2016 C.E.)
- Modernity (1500 - 1945 C.E.)
- Post-classical (500 - 1500 C.E.)
- Civilization (3000 B.C.E. - 500 C.E.)
- Agriculture (10000 - 3000 B.C.E.)
- Prehistory (250000 - 10000 B.C.E.)
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Era
- Tomorrow (2025 C.E. - ???)
- Today (2017 C.E. - 2024 C.E.)
- Post-modernity (1945 - 2016 C.E.)
- Modernity (1500 - 1945 C.E.)
- Post-classical (500 - 1500 C.E.)
- Civilization (3000 B.C.E. - 500 C.E.)
- Agriculture (10000 - 3000 B.C.E.)
- Prehistory (250000 - 10000 B.C.E.)
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2001 C.E. April 1
The Netherlands became the world’s first country to legalize same-sex marriage
No country recognized marriage between two people of the same sex prior to the 21st century, but a law to legalize marriage equality passed the Dutch legislature in 2000 and went into effect several months later.
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1994 C.E. September 27
Aung San Suu Kyi forms Myanmar’s National League for Democracy to combat dictatorship and promote democracy
The National League for Democracy is a liberal democratic political party in Myanmar that has become one of the most influential parties in the country's pro-democracy movement.
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1977 C.E. January 21
U.S. President Jimmy Carter pardons all Vietnam War draft dodgers
On January 21, 1977, U.S. President Jimmy Carter grants an unconditional pardon to hundreds of thousands of men who evaded the draft during the Vietnam War.
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1965 C.E. August 6
U.S. President Lyndon Johnson signs the Voting Rights Act
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the Act is considered to be the most effective piece of federal civil rights legislation ever enacted in the country.
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1946 C.E. January 10
The first session of the UN General Assembly convenes
The United Nations General Assembly is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), serving as the main deliberative, policymaking, and representative organ of the UN and the international community.
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1895 C.E. June 20
Caroline Willard Baldwin becomes the first American woman to receive a PhD in science
Baldwin went on to pursue her career in academia and science by teaching at the California School of Mechanical Arts, a vocational school in San Francisco where she founded the Physics Department.
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1894 C.E. August 25
Japanese scientist Shibasaburo Kitasato discovers the infectious agent of the bubonic plague
He traveled to Hong Kong in 1894 at the request of the Japanese government during an outbreak of the bubonic plague, and identified a bacterium that he concluded was causing the disease.
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1884 C.E. February 2
Oxford English Dictionary debuts
The Oxford English Dictionary is now the principal historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press.
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1874 C.E. April 15
First ‘Impressionist’ art exhibition opens in Paris, featuring Monet, Degas, Renoir, and others
Impressionism is an art movement that took the French art world—and later the artistic spheres of other countries —by storm in the 19th century.
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1872 C.E.
The U.S. formally establishes Yellowstone National Park, the world’s first national park
Although individual countries designate their own national parks differently, there is a common idea: the conservation of 'wild nature' for posterity and as a symbol of national pride. As of 2023, there are over 6500 national parks worldwide.