The Netherlands is on a mission to get back its starry nights
If you’ve never been to the Netherlands, the color of the night sky can come as a bit of a shock when you see it for the first time. In many places, it’s a hazy, bright orange color, the result of all the lights being used within cities and for the country’s vast amount of indoor farms. This Read More...
Dutch care home helps seniors combat loneliness by housing them with students
It’s worse for you than obesity and is as bad for your health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Loneliness is becoming an increasing problem in the West, especially among the elderly. In the Netherlands, though, an innovative scheme is experimenting with a solution. The Humanitas care home in Read More...
What the city of Utrecht did to become a paradise for cyclists
When you think of the world’s most bike-friendly cities, Amsterdam and Copenhagen probably come to mind first. But another contender has edged into the top tier: Utrecht, the fourth-largest and fastest-growing city in the Netherlands, where average daily bike trips number 125,000. A new short Read More...
Pomegranates may hold key compound to slowing down aging
Since aging is a key driver of many diseases, targeting that process could be a handy catch-all for treating a range of diseases and improving the quality of life for pretty much everybody. That’s why, for a long time, researchers have been busy looking for various ways to slow down the process Read More...
Here’s what our neighborhoods can learn from the Netherlands
Oftentimes when you walk down the streets of suburbs in America, you have the feeling that something is missing: people! While there’s plenty of space for kids to play and parents to chat with neighbors, the reality is that most people tend to spend their time in their own private spaces. Read More...
Amsterdam city council to have all its catered events meat-free
The Dutch capital wants to set an example to other cities around the world by taking meat off of their menus. Amsterdam’s city council has recently announced plans to serve vegetarian food as standard at all catered events in its buildings from next year onward. Meetings in the Dutch capital will Read More...
Amsterdam to ban diesel and gas-powered cars and motorbikes by 2030
As the world gets hotter and more crowded, we don't need our transportation to continue pumping dirty emissions into the air we breathe. The World Health Association lists air pollution as one of the most threatening global public health issues and estimates that 90 percent of the world’s Read More...
This Dutch city plans to solve its housing problem with prefabricated homes
Though an attractive destination for students and businesses from all over the world, the Netherlands’ second biggest city is suffering a housing crisis. In an effort to solve this issue, Rotterdam is going big on temporary homes with a new promise to start the construction and installation of Read More...
Could part-time work be the key to happiness?
Work-related stress is an epidemic linked to degrading public health in America. Not so much in the Netherlands, ranked the third happiest country on earth in this year’s World Happiness Report. Indeed, one of its secrets seems to be the widespread practice of the reduced-hour week. Working Read More...
New in the Netherlands: the singing bike path
Three quarters of the Dutch sing while riding their bikes. In Amsterdam singing is now officially allowed on two bicycle paths. No more awkward pauses in cyclist’s songs because they’re passing one another! As a daily cyclist and former amateur singer this news makes me very happy. And that is Read More...