July 29, 2020
The Optimist Daily Update with Summers McKay & Kristy Jansen - Your weekday update from The Optimist Daily featuring discussions of our top positive news solutions from independent, reader-funded, journalists. If you love to garden you'll love today's episode featuring the world's largest urban Read More...
Future of food: The world’s biggest rooftop urban farm is now bearing fruit
In the summer of 2019, we published a story about a rooftop urban farm being constructed in Paris that was set to be the biggest in the world. Now, nearly a year later, the world’s largest urban rooftop farm has started to bear fruit. Strawberries, to be precise: small, intensely flavored and Read More...
Trained sniffer dogs are able detect coronavirus with incredible accuracy
In the past, we wrote about a research project in the UK where scientists were exploring how dogs could be trained to sniff out signs of the novel coronavirus. A similar venture has been undertaken by researchers at the University of Hannover, Germany, where a team found that with little training, Read More...
NASA to fly stadium-sized high-altitude balloon to watch newborn stars
NASA’s latest mission won’t involve launching a rocket into space, but rather a stadium-sized high-altitude balloon that will fly high up in the Earth’s atmosphere - all in an effort to watch newly formed stars. The mission is called ASTHROS (Astrophysics Stratospheric Telescope for High Read More...
Greenspot finds community nutrition solutions California’s bountiful backyards
Southern California’s mild climate and fertile soil make it an ideal habitat for the multitude of fruit trees that dot its landscape. Now, Santa Barbara-based Greenspot is looking to share the produce riches and promote nutritious local food with its harvesting and hosting programs. If you Read More...
If 50% of people take these 3 steps, we could stop the spread of Covid-19
While a vaccine may be crucial to fully stopping the coronavirus, a new study finds that three simple steps may drastically reduce the spread of Covid-19: handwashing, physical distancing, and wearing a mask. However, for these steps to actually stop the virus, at least 50 percent of the Read More...
France is bringing back the freight train in a push to green the economy
Over the last couple of decades, trains have steadily lost ground to lorries to transport goods from one end to the other. And while trucks are more convenient, as they enable more flexible point-to-point operation, they are also significantly more carbon-polluting. In France though, the freight Read More...
Microsoft launches two initiatives to help corporates slash emissions
This week, software giant Microsoft joined eight other global corporations to launch Transform to Net Zero, a coalition that was created to help businesses erase their carbon footprint. The coalition, which includes companies such as Nike, Unilever, and shipping company Maersk, aims to set an Read More...
Just attempting a plant-based diet can help lower blood pressure
High blood pressure is one of the highest risk factors for heart attacks, strokes, and other cardiovascular diseases. As a result, researchers are actively seeking lifestyle interventions to limit its damaging effects and lower blood pressure over time. While fully plant-based and vegan diets Read More...
We are in a time of transition. Here’s how to make the most of it
When it comes to the zeitgeist of our times, author Arianna Huffington put it best: “To say the world is in a state of transition is an almost comical understatement. We all have our individual challenges, but what we share is the fact that we have no idea what the shape of our daily lives will Read More...