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.
How Chilean national parks successfully crafted conservation-based tourism
Backpacking the diverse terrain of Patagonia is a bucket-list adventure for many outdoor enthusiasts, but campers may be surprised to find sites are booked out months in advance. The rise of Patagonia as a booming tourist location is in part due to the work of Kristine Tompkins and her late Read More...
Britain set to impose strict laws around trophy hunting to protect endangered animals
Every year, tens of thousands of animals around the world are killed in trophy hunts, where endangered species like elephants, rhinos, and lions are gunned down by tourists eager to show off their spoils. In an effort that could save the lives of thousands of such endangered animals, Britain Read More...
José Andrés wants to take his post-disaster food operation to the next level
Celebrity chef José Andrés emerged as quite the hero after Hurricane Dorian pummeled the Bahamas. His organization, World Central Kitchen (WCK), was prepared for the storm and prepared meals for the thousands of people who were affected by the devastating storm. This wasn’t the first time WCK Read More...
A polka-dotted zebra has been captured on camera in Kenya
When we picture a zebra in our minds, we all think of the wild African horse with its eye-catching black and white stripes. You can imagine how strange it was then for photographer Frank Liu when he came across a zebra in Kenya that did not have the signature black and white stripes, but rather, a Read More...
Telling people what product their trash will turn into can boost recycling rates
We don’t mean to bring on the negativity, but US recycling rates are abysmal. About 75% of American waste is recyclable, yet just 30% of it is actually recycled. The figures are even worse with materials like plastic. Less than 10% of plastics disposed of in the U.S. in 2015 were recycled. Read More...
This is how conservationists are saving the world’s coral reefs
It’s no news that coral reefs around the world are suffering greatly from the effects of climate change. Sea level rise, intensifying tropical storms, warming waters, and ocean acidification – when combined, all of these impacts dramatically alter coral reef ecosystems, leading to devastating Read More...
New York Harbor sees whale populations rebound due to cleaner waters
Over the last couple of decades, due to high levels of pollution and overfishing, the waters surrounding New York City have become devoid of some of their original marine inhabitants, such as the humpback whale. But, thanks to successful environmental policies, the gorgeous mammals are back in the Read More...
UK families to plant millions of wildflowers to help boost bee populations
Since bees pollinate almost a third of our world’s crops, the alarming trend of bee populations in decline over the past few decades indicates ecological disaster in the works. In order to prevent such a devastating scenario, campaigners in the UK came up with an ingenious idea of giving away Read More...
This open-source home design might revolutionize the way we build
Keeping the fifth largest city in America running in a hot and arid desert climate is a difficult task, but the city of Phoenix, Arizona has pledged to do so and go carbon neutral and zero-waste. To achieve this, the city held a sustainable home design competition to come up with a single-family Read More...
This man saved his island from sinking by planting a tree each day for the past 40 years
Amid the Brahmaputra River in Assam, northeast India resides Majuli – the biggest river island in the world. A hundred years ago, the island was a haven for the region’s wildlife. Now, due to the erosion of its riverbeds, the island is slowly submerging under the unremitting waters of Read More...