Sustainable Urban Development
With cities expected to host about 70 percent of the world's population, sustainable urban development is key to making communities worldwide more resilient against the growing threat of climate change. Find out about the latest urban practices from across the world aiming to make our cities more sustainable and inclusive in these good-news stories from The Optimist Daily.
How EV fleets are shielding Europe from oil price volatility
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A new analysis by energy think tank Ember finds that six European countries collectively avoided close to $2.2 billion (approximately €2 billion) in oil import costs between March and August 2026. The savings came directly from EV fleets reducing how much Read More...
The Giving Grove: how Kansas City's free community orchards became a national model
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM It is harvest time in Kansas City, and at Kansas City Academy, students are stepping outside during lunch to pick jujubes straight off the trees. "I feel like a fairy tale princess every lunch," said Nova Henry, a senior, "because I get to go out and just Read More...
World's tallest wind turbine reaches 1,197 feet in Germany
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The world's tallest wind turbine just reached full height in Germany. GICON's pilot turbine in Schipkau, eastern Germany, now stands 365 meters (1,197 feet) tall from base to blade tip, making it Germany's second-tallest structure after Berlin's TV tower. Read More...
A Dutch startup is making concrete that grows its own moss
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Most building materials are designed to resist the elements, to stay sealed and unchanged for as long as possible. Respyre, a Dutch startup, is working from the opposite premise. The company has developed Mosscrete, a bioreceptive concrete coating that Read More...
How one small device is solving the apartment solar access problem
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM An Australian device that splits rooftop solar power across an entire apartment building just won the country's top design honor. Melbourne-based Allume Energy took the 2026 Australian Good Design Award of the Year for its SolShare system, which its creators Read More...
Australia sets a new renewable energy record, with rooftop solar leading the way
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM On Saturday, September 22, solar and wind met 80.4 percent of demand on Australia's national electricity market, with the grid covering the eastern states, South Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory. For about 30 minutes around lunchtime, rooftop Read More...
Berlin mapped 900,000 street trees. Now 12,000 people water them.
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Amanda Gläser-Bligh named her street tree Linda. Linda is a linden, eight years old, growing outside Gläser-Bligh's apartment building in Charlottenburg, and once a week during Berlin's hot months, Gläser-Bligh makes a couple of trips up and down the Read More...
London's Oxford Street gets fully pedestrianized this month: here's what that means
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Oxford Street, one of the busiest shopping streets in the world, goes traffic-free on October 26. London Mayor Sadiq Khan announced the closure of the stretch from Orchard Street to Great Portland Street, nearly a kilometer (just under half a mile) through Read More...
Colorado's largest wildlife overpass cut I-25 collisions by 91 percent
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Nine months in, North America's largest wildlife overpass has cut vehicle collisions on a stretch of Interstate 25 in Colorado by 91 percent. Before it opened, that corridor was averaging roughly one deer hit per day during peak migration. The crossing, a Read More...
Athens' former airport is becoming Europe's largest coastal urban park
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Two million square meters of former airport land in the southern suburbs of Athens are being converted into The Ellinikon Park. The park is designed to actively lower surrounding air temperatures, process 100 percent of its own rainfall on site, and keep more Read More...