Environment
Need some good news about the environment? The Optimist Daily is your go-to herald of positive environmental news, highlighting eco-friendly solutions and scientific progress around climate action, circularity, conservation, and more. Learn about everything eco in our Environment section.
The National Trust to adopt "siestas" due to rising temperatures
As the recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report indicates, there is a lot that we have to do to reduce our impact on the planet if we want it to continue to be a suitable place for humans to live, however, even if we do enough to prevent the worst from happening, we will still have Read More...
This online game places the world's future in your hands
The continued presence of human beings on this planet is uncertain thanks to generations of unsustainable and exploitative use of natural resources. We can read about what the future may hold for us if we fail to mitigate our impact on our environment, but it may be difficult to understand the Read More...
Nightclub in Glasgow will harness energy from dancers
The annual COP26 climate conference took place in Glasgow in 2021 from October 31st, where a number of creative environmental initiatives are discussed as the spotlight shines on the city. One of the initiatives unveiled involved the legendary Glasgow club SWG3, which trialled an innovative scheme Read More...
How tiny wasps could solve the US’ invasive beetle problem
You may have never heard of the emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis), but this little green beetle is the most invasive wood-boring insect in US history. The insects are native to Russia and Asia and were first discovered in Michigan in 2002. Today, they are wreaking havoc on ash trees across Read More...
Czech school will be home to first 3D-printed parkour playground
Last year, we wrote about Protozoon, the world’s first-ever 3D-printed floating house. Now, Buřinka, the same Czech group that built the 3D-printed floating structure, has 3D-printed the world’s first parkour playground. The result of a partnership between the private sector, the public Read More...
This sustainable wood alternative is made from kombucha waste
As demand for wood keeps growing, scientists are scrambling to find alternative sources for the material to cut the industry’s environmental footprint. From lab-grown wood to wood 3D-printed with the help of logging waste, innovators are hard at work to find viable solutions. Design student Gabe Read More...
The Gorilla Guardian Club converts poachers into protectors
Eight years ago, the Ebo Forest Research Project was launched by scientists from Cameroon and the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. Its overarching goal is to protect the Ebo forest, a 1,500 square kilometer (580 square miles) area in the Congo Basin, and its inhabitants, which include rare primates Read More...
This new irrigation system talks to plants to find out when they’re thirsty
As water shortages affect more parts of the globe, strategic irrigation practices are becoming key to achieving optimal water efficiency on farms, especially those located in drought-stricken areas. A technology called GrowStream is designed to provide exactly this type of solution — by enabling Read More...
A tree gets planted in Uganda every time a baby is born 9,000 km away
In 2008, a tree-planting charity called the Size of Wales set off to plant a new tree in Wales for every baby born or adopted in order to offset carbon emissions. After reaching its national targets, the scheme extended its efforts to Mbale, a hilly, heavily deforested area of Eastern Uganda that Read More...
14 Practical ways you can fight climate change
The latest report from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has made it clear that human activity has created a “code red for humanity,” and we must act now if we are to prevent the global temperature from rising to 1.5 Celsius above pre-industrial levels and ensure that Read More...