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.
Scientists in Singapore discover new species of firefly
The world’s encyclopedia of species has just gotten a tiny bit larger thanks to the discovery of a new firefly species in the swamp forests of Singapore. It’s the first time in more than a century since a new species has been discovered in the area. The new finding is the result of meticulous Read More...
Lab-grown meat to become cheaper than conventional beef by 2030
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM From steak cuts to chicken burgers, lab-grown meat is showing promising potential to transform the meat industry and shift it towards a more ethical and sustainable future. A report indicates that this transition may actually happen sooner than previously Read More...
How making sense of a scent can help protect coral reefs
Have you ever thought about what corals smell like? Caitlin Lawson, Marine biologist at the University of Technology Sydney in Australia, has made it her mission to collect the gaseous, smelly chemicals that corals release under different conditions with the hope that a deeper understanding of Read More...
This man makes bricks out of chewed-up gum and discarded masks
Have you ever reached in your pocket to find you had forgotten a rock-hard piece of chewed-up gum wrapped in a scrap of paper? This happened to Binish Desai when he was a boy, and that mundane event inspired his childhood dream to build the world’s least expensive houses for the people he saw Read More...
The UK announces program to monitor the world's oceans
The ocean has always been a source of wonder and inspiration. Many have dedicated their entire lives to uncovering the mysteries of the ocean, but there is still so much we don’t know. This past Saturday, the UK announced its mission to fund a worldwide effort to monitor wildlife in the open Read More...
Sponsor-A-Hive program protects bees and promotes food security
Habitat loss and pesticide use are driving factors behind the decline of global bee populations. Creating habitats for bees is a great way to protect bees and boost food security, so The Bee Conservancy is giving out hundreds of free bee homes to groups across the US and Canada in hopes of Read More...
Farmers and scientists in CA collaborate to minimize water use
In response to climate change and relentless droughts and heatwaves, scientists and farmers in California’s Central Valley are working with local communities to put innovative water-saving systems in place. Together, they have found ways to use and re-use water as sustainably as possible. The Read More...
The Optimist View: Keen on Kelp
“The sea, the great unifier, is man's only hope. Now, as never before, the old phrase has a literal meaning: we are all in the same boat.” - Jacques Yves Cousteau On a sunny Saturday morning, I drive about 30 minutes north of my home in Santa Barbara to an area called Refugio Beach. Aptly Read More...
Otters are making a promising comeback in Alberta
Once thriving in southern Alberta, Canada, otters were nearly wiped out as a result of hunting and habitat destruction. Fortunately, the carnivores are now making an encouraging comeback in the region. As reported by naturalist Brian Keating, there has been an increasing number of otter sightings Read More...
Solar concentrators provide fast and reliable solar light
With a population of 5.6 million people, the small island nation of Singapore has roughly the same density as New York City. In a country where space is of the essence, researchers from Nanyang Technological University have developed a compact solar concentrator to illuminate the island’s Read More...