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 cities are finally dealing with the emissions that come with consumption
Climate optimists argue that it is possible to reduce our production emissions without substantially changing our lifestyles. (Electric cars are just as good!) But what if those lifestyles — in which consumption is perpetually rising — are driving increases in production emissions elsewhere? Read More...
Oregon is now leading the nation when it comes to affordable housing
When it comes to affordable housing, no state is tackling the issue as aggressively as Oregon. This past week, the Beaver State passed a law that will effectively enact a state-wide ban on single-family zoning, which has come under scrutiny as housing costs have soared and housing shortages have Read More...
The world’s most inspirational climate activists have finally met each other
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Greta Thunberg are two of the most visible climate campaigners in the world, spearheading a movement that is forcing those in power to address the climate crisis. And although they both have a very similar agenda, they are also as different as two campaigners can get. Read More...
Mini urban forests are about to make Paris even more beautiful
Earth is home to approximately 3 trillion trees, but most of them are far from urban centers where they’re most needed to cool down pavement and air temperatures. Paris has a plan to change that. The city just announced that it will be planting a series of urban forests as a way to combat Read More...
This photographer is trying to restore some calm amidst the climate crisis
For many years, world-renowned photographer Chris Jordan was focused on the “underbelly of mass consumption”, capturing iconic, yet disturbing photos of birds dying from eating plastic. But recently Jordan has started to change his approach. If people are bombarded with messages about Read More...
How these eco toilets are saving nature and empowering women in rural areas
In many rural parts of the world, people do not have access to any bathroom facilities and therefore must use makeshift bathrooms that are at risk of contaminating the soil or local watershed, which also leave them at risk. That’s why Jenifer Colpas designed a unique toilet that is more than just Read More...
Here’s one simple thing you can do to help spare the seas
Of all the forms of plastic pollution on this planet, the Ocean Conservancy lists cutlery as amongst the “most deadly” to sea turtles, birds, and mammals. And since alternatives to plastic cutlery are not widespread, the solution, for now, is rather straightforward: we should carry our own Read More...
India’s first ‘garbage cafe’ provides meals in exchange for trash
They say you shouldn’t waste your food, but in this unique case, the waste you collect is what can get you food. India just launched its very first ‘garbage cafe’ in the city of Ambikapur in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh. An initiative of the Municipal Corporation, the idea is to Read More...
This is actually what happens when you flush a goldfish down the toilet
It sounds like the most outrageous of urban myths: When you flush a goldfish down the toilet it survives and becomes an enormous super fish in the wild. But this is no myth! And in fact, it's a huge problem. Recently, a Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper (BNW) posted a photo on Facebook of a whopping Read More...
This environment-friendly house is made out of 600,000 recycled plastic bottles
When plastic bottles are recycled they can be made into lots of things, but in a first, Canadian builders have figured out a way to turn your everyday plastic waste into a home. D Composites, a construction company, built a three-bedroom home along the Meteghan River in Nova Scotia from more Read More...