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.
Man and dog trek 8,000 km to help rewild Scottish Highlands
A Scotland native and his dog recently completed an 8,000-kilometer fundraising walk across Canada, all while wearing a kilt. After a nine-month odyssey, the tenacious pair finally reached Canada’s most easterly point, Cape Spear in Newfoundland, on Sunday. Michael Yellowlees and his faithful Read More...
Every Welsh household gets a free tree to help tackle climate emergency
The Welsh government has come up with a £2 million scheme to help tackle the climate emergency that will give a tree to every household in the country. This adds up to approximately 1.3 million newly planted trees. People can choose tree species that are native to their region, but if they Read More...
Paris has an Olympic-sized plan to clean up the Seine
If you stroll through Paris on a warm summer day, you’ll likely see groups of sunbathers and picnickers lounging near the Seine, but you probably won’t see anyone swimming. Waste management and pollution issues have made the river too dirty to swim in, but that may change thanks to a new city Read More...
This neighborhood supports one of Latin America’s largest community gardens
The Manguinhos neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro was once a polluted and dangerous area, but thanks to community efforts, the area is now a thriving vegetable garden that feeds 800 families in the city. Made up of 300 beds and the size of four soccer fields, the community garden is one of the Read More...
Cardboard pods provide shelter to animals displaced by bushfires
Australia’s recent bushfires took a great toll on the populations of hundreds of species of animals. With their habitats now destroyed, many of these animals remain very vulnerable in the aftermath, as they have nowhere to hide from predators. In a bid to offer a sheltering solution, a Read More...
San Antonio Zoo celebrates birth of 10 endangered Komodo dragons
Komodo dragons are the world’s largest lizard species, but these enormous creatures, which can grow to be 10 feet long and weigh over 300 pounds, we’re recently reclassified from vulnerable to endangered on the IUCN Red List. Fortunately, the San Antonio Zoo has launched a successful breeding Read More...
Extend the life of your artificial Christmas tree with these tips and tricks
While we may not all agree on whether an artificial tree is more sustainable than chopping down a real evergreen tree this Christmas, what we can agree upon is that if you already have an artificial Christmas tree, you shouldn’t let it go to waste. Greenpeace says an artificial Christmas tree Read More...
Bison return to Romania after more than two centuries
After 200 years of absence, the bison is once again a proud resident of Romania’s Carpathian Mountains. Though a less common sight than it was a few hundred years ago, the majestic animal is now making a determined comeback to the country’s wilderness, thanks to long-term conservation Read More...
This new biodegradable plastic is made of a surprising substance
The world’s plastic pollution problem is one that scientists and eco-warriors are scrambling to solve. Humans have latched on to this environmentally unfriendly material since its invention, and now that we’ve fostered a reliance on it, replacing it or getting rid of it completely has proven Read More...
Landowner pact promises to boost rewilding efforts across the UK
Some of the UK’s biggest landowners have decided to come together to restore peat bogs, woodlands, rivers, and other natural habitats that need rewilding on their land. The National Trust, National Parks England, and Duchy of Cornwall are just a few of the organizations that have pledged to Read More...