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.
The world is finally coming to its senses and planting trees again
In the new ecological age, we have learned that trees have far more value than providing timber: they keep soils moist, prevent floods and provide shelter, store carbon, beautify landscapes, protect water sources, increase biodiversity, improve conservation and induce wellbeing. We now know that we Read More...
This Harvard psychologist is proving that the world is better than ever before
The world is doomed. That’s the perspective you would have if you watched and believed everything you saw on the television. But this perspective omits all the progress we’ve been making in the world. In fact, if you look at the data, you can see that the present age is the safest we’ve ever Read More...
Singapore skyscraper will burst at the seams with greenery
Italy's Carlo Ratti Associates (CRA) and Danish firm Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) have collaborated on an interesting new skyscraper currently under construction in Singapore. Rising to 280 m (918 ft) the building will be jam-packed with greenery, and feature trees jutting out of its Read More...
The Queen of England has forbidden plastic straws and bottles on royal estates
No one can withstand the charming voice of David Attenborough. Not even the Queen of England. After watching the filmmaker’s latest documentary, the Queen issued a ban on all plastic straws and bottles from the royal estates across England, including the public cafes at Buckingham Palace. The Read More...
Why climate change may not be leading us to a doomsday scenario
Study after study has gone on to show that climate change will have cataclysmic effects on the world if we don’t change our ways fast. This outlook seems pretty grim, but it may not seem all bad news. In a provocative new analysis, researchers contend that the current goal of reducing coal, oil Read More...
Madagascar has a hi-tech waterless toilet that charges your phone
Traditional flush toilets aren’t an option in many parts of the world, but neither is leaving people with unsafe and unhygenic choices. Now, one company is piloting a new loo that’s waterless, off-grid and able to charge your Read More...
‘Food in the Nude’ project helps New Zealand supermarket reduce plastic use
A New Zealand grocery store is attempting to slash its plastic use creatively with a new “Food in the Nude” project. And no, it’s not about people getting naked – it’s about serving produce without a pile of Read More...
Radical solutions to the air pollution crisis from around the world
Air pollution is a serious global concern, linked by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to over 5.5 million deaths every year. It has been described as a greater threat to the world population than malaria and HIV combined. As policymakers and scientists scramble for ways to battle the deadly Read More...
The city of Paris is threatening lawsuits against the fossil fuel industry
In response to the city’s recent climate change damage including massive recent floods, Paris has announced that it is exploring possibilities of suing the fossil fuel industry. Last month, the mayor of New York announced that the city would divest its pension funds of $191 billion in fossil Read More...
How volcanic ash can help make cement stronger and greener
Producing cement takes a massive toll on the environment. In fact, the energy-intensive process of making cement accounts for around 5 percent of global CO2 emissions. Researchers have turned to irradiated plastic bottles and tweaking calcium levels to improve cement production in the past, and now Read More...