Today’s Solutions: December 19, 2025

Air-conditioning systems gobble up about 6 percent of the electricity generated in America, raising emissions of greenhouse gasses in the form of carbon dioxide from burning power-station fuel. Not only that, but the refrigerants used in air-conditioning systems are also detrimental to the Earth. Two researchers may have found a possible alternative to wasteful air-conditioners. They have invented a film that can cool buildings without the use of refrigerants and without drawing any power to do so. The researchers estimate that if you placed 20 square meters of their film atop an average American house, it would be enough to keep the internal temperature at 20°C on a day when it was 37°C outside. Best of all, the film only costs around 50 cents a square meter.

Solutions News Source Print this article
More of Today's Solutions

New method uses sound waves to map soil health, stop famine, and restore farm...

BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Across the world, soil scientists are trading in their shovels for something unexpected: seismic sensors. In a breakthrough ...

Read More

This simple 15-minute mindset exercise can ease anxiety, science shows

BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A growing body of research is revealing how a short, simple activity that is done in just 15 ...

Read More

3 habits of the happiest people

Think of the happiest people you know. Do you find yourself often wondering what they are doing to maintain a general level of joy? ...

Read More

Changemakers of the week: GRuB and SparkNJ

Every day on the Optimist Daily, we report on solutions from around the world. Though we love solutions big and small, the ones that ...

Read More