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.
This carbon-negatives raincoat is made entirely from algae bioplastic
A New York designer, by the name of Charlotte McCurdy, has created a water-resistant jacket made from a bioplastic material derived entirely from large-celled algae. Because the jacket is made of algae, which is the single biggest capturer of CO2 from the atmosphere, it’s technically Read More...
Slingshotting pumpkins and other ways to deal with post-Halloween pumpkin waste
After each Halloween, more than 1 billion pounds of pumpkin get tossed out and left to rot in America’s landfills. Some are thrown away the day after Halloween, contributing to the 30.3 million tons of annual food waste in the U.S. When left to decompose in a landfill, that food waste Read More...
A Mexican student has made pavement that self-repairs with rain using old tires
Wouldn’t it be amazing if rain repaired roads rather than damage them? Well, that could soon become a reality thanks to a student by the name Israel Antonio Briseño Carmona. Using recycled tires combined with additives, the student has created a sort-of rubber pavement that turns rain into a Read More...
Memphis turned its parks named after Confederate generals into inclusive spaces
Two years ago, a crane arrived at a park in downtown Memphis and took down a statue of Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederacy during the Civil War, as a crowd watched and cheered. Now, after a two-year legal battle about the statue’s removal, the park, once known as Confederate Park, Read More...
Dogs are helping conservationists preserve endangered species
Dogs and their sensitive noses are known for finding people during search and rescue efforts, sniffing out drugs and even diseases like cancer. Something they're lesser known for is their ability to act as a radar for finding endangered animals. To do that, dogs are being trained to identify the Read More...
Peatlands store vast amounts of carbon, which is why Scotland is restoring them
The burning Amazon rainforests, with their jaguars, monkeys, and colorful birds, have grabbed global attention in a way the destruction of the world's mossy peatlands never has. Yet protecting the world's peatlands, which store at least twice as much carbon as forests, is critical in the fight Read More...
Bristol might soon be the first city in the UK to ban diesel cars
While London has been busy implementing restrictions on gas-powered cars, the city of Bristol wants to take it one step further by banning diesel cars from the city center. That would make it the first UK city to implement such a ban. Under the city council’s proposals, diesel vehicles will be Read More...
Even Denny's is taking part in the plant-based meat movement
Two years ago you would have never expected the world's fast-food restaurants to start serving plant-based meat, but now they're all jumping onto the bandwagon one after another. Restaurants such as KFC, Burger King, and McDonald’s have all adopted meat alternatives to their fast-food classics. Read More...
New livestock diet uses agri-waste to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
The burning of agricultural waste and the methane that's burped up by cows are two major sources of greenhouse gases. An experimental new type of animal feed, however, is aimed at reducing both the burning and the burps. Developed by scientists at Spain’s Polytechnic University of Valencia, the Read More...
Music festivals are leading to sustainable-living experiments
Go to the grounds of a music festival after it comes to a close, and you’ll think you just arrived at the scene of an apocalypse with all the plastic that gets left behind. It’s the unfortunate downside of music festivals, which have become increasingly popular over the last few years. In fact, Read More...