Good news: Behind the scenes of some of the most uplifting stories of 2025

Associated Press journalists captured some of the most uplifting stories of 2025 amid global challenges. A video journalist recorded a call between America’s new pope, Leo XIV, and his brother in Chicago. The pope asked why his brother was not answering his calls, leading to a joyous exchange. In Seattle, an AP photographer told scientist Mary E. Brunkow that she had won a Nobel Prize. In the Philippines, a photographer photographed a wedding in a flooded church. In California, a youth theater group put on a musical after a wildfire destroyed their theater.