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.
Charcoal-coated seeds could help reverse deforestation in Kenya
Deforestation is an immense problem for the Kenyan people. Each year, a staggering 120,000 acres of forests are lost due to illegal logging and urbanization. That also leads to a serious water shortage in the country because trees collect, filter, and release rain into streams and rivers. In an Read More...
Disassembling munitions and recycling them is finally possible
Getting rid of obsolete or out of date munitions such as grenades and warheads has been a major problem ever since the invention of gunpowder. Up until relatively recently, the only alternatives have been to explode them, bury them, burn them, or dispose of them at sea. None of these are ideal and Read More...
A Dutch company is dyeing textiles without water or chemicals
When it comes to fashion water is no drop in the bucket. Conventional textile dyeing uses anywhere from 25 to 40 gallons for every two pounds of fabric. Globally, the water used in textile production adds up to about 24.56 trillion gallons each year, according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. Read More...
Costa Rica pledges to achieve zero net carbon emissions by 2050
Costa Rica may be one of the top nations when it comes to climate action, but that's not stopping the Central American nation from upping their game. Recently, Costa Rica laid out a long-term plan to achieve zero emissions by 2050 in an attempt to help decarbonize the world economy and curb global Read More...
These machines transform discarded sea food waste into bioplastics
A quartet of designers have developed a series of machines that turn seafood waste into a biodegradable and recyclable bioplastic. What the machines do is they transform the shells of crustaceans into a paper-like material that could act as a sustainable alternative to single-use plastics. Each one Read More...
Why badgers and otters are staging a comeback in Britain
When policymakers come together and create conservation laws that are well-thought-out, it’s amazing what it can do in the real world. Just take a look at Britain where badgers, otters, and other furry carnivores are staging a spectacular comeback after the government clamped down on hunting and Read More...
Five strategies for removing massive amounts of carbon from the atmosphere
The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimates that warding off catastrophic global warming requires actively removing 100 billion to 1 trillion tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by midcentury. Planting billions of trees is one way of doing this, but there are Read More...
Norway to pay Indonesia for cutting emissions and reducing deforestation
In 2010 Norway signed a $1 billion deal with Indonesia which aimed to reward the developing country for efforts that reduce deforestation, improve forest preservation, and cut carbon emissions. Home to the world’s third largest tropical forest, Indonesia is also the biggest producer of palm oil, Read More...
Here’s what you can do to help save bugs from extinction
To put things bluntly, without bugs, we wouldn’t be around. That’s why a recent report outlining the drastic decline in insect life around the world is so worrying. According to the best data available, the total mass of insects is falling at a rate that suggests they could vanish within a Read More...
This island is introducing the strictest plastic ban the world has ever seen
The Pacific island nation of Vanuatu currently boasts some of the strictest laws when it comes to plastic waste. In July, the island voted to ban single-use plastic bags, drinking straws and styrofoam containers in a dramatic attempt to stem the flow of trash from the country’s coasts into the Read More...