Politics
Having a difficult time finding positive news about national and global politics? Search no further! From public policy to positive leadership to democracy efforts, find the latest good news stories in the world of politics at The Optimist Daily.
Seattle protects Uber and Lyft drivers with new gig economy wages
The gig economy is growing, but these workers are not always guaranteed the same protections as employees in more traditional roles. In a move to protect these workers, the city of Seattle has passed a new wage scale for Uber and Lyft drivers, including a $16.39 minimum wage, to ensure their wages Read More...
French law tightens regulations on keeping wild animals in captivity
Although it can be fascinating to see wild animals up close and personal, many animals kept for human viewing are not housed in humane conditions. In a big win for animals and their activists, France has passed a law gradually banning the use of wild animals in traveling circuses and the captivity Read More...
65 country leaders pledge to reverse destruction of nature
Leaders from 65 countries recently came together to make a renewed commitment to putting nature on the path to recovery. As reported in Deutsche Welle, the commitments include eliminating plastic leakage to the oceans by 2050 and incentivizing banks and businesses to value the natural Read More...
Maryland becomes first state to implement a foam container ban
We recently wrote about New Jersey’s progressive single-use plastic ban. Now, Maryland is achieving its own waste-reduction goals by becoming the first state in the country to implement a ban on foam food containers. Passed in 2019, but implemented last week, the law prohibits restaurants, Read More...
Berkeley bans unhealthy snacks from grocery store checkout lines
Those tempting candy bars and chip bags flanking the grocery store checkout line aren’t placed there by accident, but these impulse buy items will soon be a thing of the past in Berkeley, California after the city became the first to ban “junk food” displays in checkout lines. The ban, Read More...
New Jersey to pass nation’s most comprehensive single use plastics ban
New Jersey has been at the forefront of progressive action recently with a new bill that protects poor communities from pollution and a law that helps undocumented workers find jobs. Now, the state is on the verge of passing the country’s most progressive single-use plastic ban that would outlaw Read More...
Maine will be the first state to use ranked-choice voting for elections
In a country dominated by two political parties, voting for an independent third-party candidate is often seen as a vote wasted. But that won’t be the case for voters in Maine where the state’s Supreme Judicial Court just upheld the use of ranked-choice voting for its presidential and Read More...
California to ban the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035
When it comes to the transition to cleaner means of transportation, California has been at the forefront of efforts to limit greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles. Earlier this summer, the Golden State introduced a new law requiring all commercial trucks and vans sold in the state to be Read More...
China pledges to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060
The UN climate summit, Cop26, has been delayed until November 2021 due to the pandemic, but many participating countries aren’t waiting until next year to quantify their emissions reductions commitments. After the EU pledged to cut emissions by 55 percent by 2030, China made an unexpected Read More...
Connecting rentership and registration can empower marginalized voters
The 2020 election is fast approaching and we’ve been sharing stories on vote-in mailing, companies giving paid leave for employees to work the polls, and even NBA arenas turning into voting locations. Today we’re sharing another incredibly simple strategy to register more Americans to vote: Read More...