Climate Action
What is Climate Action? Climate Action is humanity's efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance our planet's resilience against climate change. From adaptation to mitigation, at The Optimist Daily you will learn about the most recent positive news stories and solutions targeting climate change and other environmental issues.
China pledges to build large solar and wind farms in Gobi Desert
China is, by far, the biggest consumer of coal power in the world. While at the moment its energy consumption is 70 percent coal-based — other industrialized nations average around 30 percent, the United States being 25 percent — China apparently sees the value in switching to renewable Read More...
Once a French coal-mining zone, now a green tourism hub
Once upon a time, Nord-Pas-de-Calais supplied half of France’s coal. This region in the north of the country is distinguished by the giant pyramid-like black cones of slag which are a result of three centuries of environmental and economic hardship. Now, when you get close to the slag cones, Read More...
The New Symbiosis: Living with Wildlife
“We’re animals. We’re born like every other mammal and we live our whole lives around disguised animal thoughts.” - Barbara Kingsolver By Oliver Kammeyer Human society developed an idea over time that it is separate from nature, that we exist apart from it, or in spite of it. Perhaps it Read More...
This company uses an ancient microbe to convert CO2 into food
Many plant-based meats and dairy substitutes use pea protein isolates as their primary protein source. This often involves a complex process of cleaning the protein to get rid of unwelcome flavors, as well as adding additional ingredients to cover up the taste. A Vienna-based company, called Arkeon Read More...
Peatlands, a boggy carbon sink absolutely worth saving
For those in the world who have to live with it, you may wonder “what on earth is peat good for?” Peatland is a mossy wet mass that you can’t build on, you can barely walk on, you can’t grow crops on it, and all its stagnant water is a breeding ground for mosquitoes which bring Read More...
This startup turns CO2 into jet fuel and plastics
The impressive Bay Area-based startup, Twelve, is on a mission to replace petrochemicals at a large scale so that it can significantly slash global energy emissions—something that we urgently need to do for our species’ survival. Converting CO2 into something useful How will they do it? Read More...
What if you could power your home with your car?
One of the things we find reassuring about electric cars — besides the fact that they produce fewer emissions and don’t hurt our planet nearly as much — is the idea that we could charge one from our very own homes instead of having to drive to a gas station. What if it worked the other Read More...
Scientists can now decode pigs' emotions
We can clearly see animals' emotions through their behavior, whether that’s dogs filling up with glee when we grab their leash or elephants mourning a loss in their herd, there is clearly some feeling going on here. While communication between animals and humans remains at a divide, we do Read More...
California’s plan to tackle the problem of microplastics
It’s time to face the facts: teeny tiny microplastics are everywhere and despite their size, they’ve become a prodigious problem. Not only are they in our bodies, they plague the ocean and its biodiversity and are even floating through the air. Checking microplastics The state of California Read More...
Upcycling your "business," 5 uses of human waste
At The Optimist Daily, we keep our ears keened for news about upcycling. It’s an impressive hack, making productive use of discarded materials and waste, turning what was trash into something new. It’s a great solution toward making sustainable products, and we’re always looking for creative Read More...