March 17, 2021
We hope you're feeling starstruck today because we've got a story from Mars on how NASA is collaborating with indigenous leaders to name their findings in the Navajo language and how Tinder is making their love matches more safe with background checks. Listen to The Optimist Daily Update with Read More...
Athens is tackling urban air pollution and heat stress with "pocket parks"
Adding greenery to urban areas can do wonders for the liveability of a city. On top of providing shade and a cooling effect, trees, and shrubs also remove pollution from the air. That’s why Greece’s capital, Athens, has embarked on a mission to green up the city by creating “pocket parks” Read More...
CityLoops is a grand experiment on the scalability of circularity
If you sit on a bench in the city of Musicon, about 30 kilometers from Denmark’s capital of Copenhagen, you’ll likely be sitting on a slab of concrete recycled from a nearby demolition site. Musicon is one of seven cities around Europe selected for experimentation by CityLoops, a project Read More...
Tinder is adding a background check feature for their matches
Match Group, the parent company of various online dating applications, announced this Monday that, in partnership with nonprofit Garbo, they will roll out a feature that helps their users run background checks on their matches. Garbo is a consumer online background check platform. Its founder, Read More...
Cultivate a more sustainable closet with these green fashion tips
We recently shared three strategies for buying clothes more eco-consciously. In addition to shopping with sustainability in mind, taking a deeper look at your clothing habits, in general, can help you develop an environmentally-friendly closet and ditch fast fashion for good. Here are five Read More...
This credit card incentivizes consumers to support women-owned businesses
Many small businesses were left paralyzed and suffering this year because of the pandemic, especially those that are owned or led by women. Women-owned or led businesses historically have a harder time accessing markets and putting their products in front of potential consumers, and the health Read More...
Scientists make exoskeletons more user-friendly with cameras and AI
While exoskeletons have proved incredibly useful in recent years by enabling people with disabilities to move around more easily, they still have some drawbacks. A research team at the University of Waterloo in Canada is looking to address these issues by integrating smart cameras and AI into the Read More...
UGG launches new carbon-neutral vegan shoe line
We recently shared a guide to making more eco-conscious clothing choices. Part of this includes buying from brands that value sustainability and durability. One such company making their goods a bit greener is UGG. The popular shoe brand just launched their Plant Power Collection which features Read More...
Virginia restores voting rights for the previously incarcerated
Last year, we wrote about a proposed bill in Washington DC that would end felony disenfranchisement in the district. Fortunately, that bill passed and now the state of Virginia is eying a similar policy. Virginia Governor Ralph Northam announced an executive action this week that would restore Read More...
NASA uses Navajo language to name rocks and soil on Mars
After successfully landing on the neighboring planet last month, NASA’s Perseverance rover is now ready to explore its ground. Its first scientific focus is a rock named “Máaz” — the Navajo word for “Mars.” That’s just one nickname among many others that have been given to landmarks Read More...