10 Muslim men that ruled 2015
A singer who brought electricity to 600 million people in Africa. A scientist who made a chip that can charge your phone battery in 10 minutes. A humanitarian activist who raised half a million dollars to build schools and mosques in Mali. A winner of the Nobel Prize for chemistry for his work on Read More...
Wind and solar ready for 2016 records in spite of cheap fossil fuels
This year is set to be another record-breaking year for renewable energy because of infrastructural investments made in 2015. Wind and solar power are surging as a clean-energy construction boom gains momentum in spite of a global glut of cheap fossil fuels. Installations of wind turbines and solar Read More...
Why all of us need more positive news in the New Year
To kick off our unique daily solutions news service in the New Year, please take a moment to watch this 2-minute video we made. It won't surprise you that here at The Optimist, we strongly believe in the power of positive news. We know—and you, too—that many, many more things go right than Read More...
15 times plant-based diets stole the spotlight in 2015
There’s no better investment in our health than a better—mostly plant-based—diet. Last year showed a promising trend. A nice overview of 2015 moments that supported the shift to a healthier lifestyle for society. Top advisors to the U.S. government voted for a vegan diet, a veggie burger was Read More...
World's first 'vegan butcher' is set to open this month
Apparently it’s possible to have such a thing as a ‘vegan butcher’, and the first shop of its kind is going to be opening this year. Herbivorous Butcher plans to open in Minneapolis later this month, after a successful Kickstarter campaign, and will sell a range of plant-based Read More...
Buddhist leads prison inmates in meditation
Joe Engum of Pendleton started mediating because of a personal trauma. And for eight years now, Read More...
Vitamin D supplements may help lower symptoms in MS patients
Health officials still aren't certain what causes multiple sclerosis (MS)--a disease in which the immune system eats away at the body's protective covering of nerves. However, they do know that a combination of genetic and environmental factors seem to influence the health issue; one genetic factor Read More...
Migrant crisis: Charities make massive peace sign out of life jackets on Lesbos
Charities working on the Greek island of Lesbos have made a massive peace sign out of discarded life jackets to honour refugees who've died trying to cross the Mediterranean. More than 100 volunteers used 3,000 vests to form the symbol on a hill outside the village of Molyvos. More than one million Read More...
The quiet power of meditation
Whether it's improving our day-to-day lives or surviving a sudden calamity, there's no substitute for clear-headed mental discipline. And a growing number of people believe they know how to find it. Allan Lokos and his wife, Susannah, were on vacation when their plane crash-landed in the Southeast Read More...
As Africa's sharing economy grows, Airbnb takes tourists in new directions
Travelers are gaining access to places and experiences across Africa once closed off or just unknown to them. JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA — Nearly two years ago, Mengesha Tesfaye was scrambling to make ends meet shining shoes in Lalibela, a picturesque Ethiopian town known for its medieval-era Read More...