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.
Why fish poop is more important than we realize
A new study published in Science Advances has some news for the scientific community: We should be paying more attention to fish poop. While not a glamorous subject, the study finds that fish and their feces play an underappreciated role in ocean ecosystems. Why fish? Phytoplankton in the Read More...
Shareholder pressure leads to right-to-repair evaluation at major tech company
The EU and the UK have both recently expanded right to repair laws aimed at reducing e-waste and saving customers money. As this movement gains popularity, Microsoft shareholders have successfully pressured the company into expanding the repairability of its goods. Although the US has limited Read More...
Mongolia to fight desertification by planting one billion trees
Mongolia’s presidential press office announced that the country will combat desertification by promising to plant a billion trees, starting next week. “Mongolia aims to realize the target by 2030 to combat climate change and desertification,” the country’s president Ukhnaa Khurelsukh Read More...
These sleek pieces of furniture are mainly made from seagrass
From capturing greenhouse gases to removing plastic waste from our oceans, seagrass has proved itself an invaluable ally in our fight against some of today’s most pressing environmental concerns. Now, the underwater plant is making its way into furniture design in a bid to enhance the Read More...
These bike garages in Denmark are made from recycled wind turbine blades
While wind turbines play an important role in our transition towards a post-carbon world, they do pose a few environmental concerns. For example, most of the wind turbines operating today have a lifespan of about 20 years, which means that a large number of these gigantic pieces of machinery will Read More...
Refugees in Cameroon turn desert camp into a lush forest
In 2014, thousands of refugees who were fleeing the violence linked to militant group Boko Haram in Nigeria came to Minawao, Cameroon, a desert region badly affected by climate change. Since 2014, almost 70,000 refugees had made the space their home, cutting down the last standing trees to support Read More...
Public libraries are climate justice tools
We’ve written about how libraries should double as food banks, but did you know that public libraries are also essential to climate justice? As more regions face extreme temperatures due to climate change, libraries are increasingly serving as refuges for heat-vulnerable residents. For Read More...
French roundabouts are understated hubs for public art
If you’ve ever driven through France, you’ve probably noticed the high number of roundabouts directing the flow of traffic. The Place Charles de Gaulle is the most famous French roundabout, but all across the country, communities are taking advantage of this unused space to create art Read More...
Ocean Cleanup Project reports successful trial of its newest and largest system
From ocean trash capture systems to innovative river barges, The Ocean Cleanup Project is dedicated to cleaning our waterways of pollution. In recent years, the organization has focused on scaling up its solutions to address massive areas of pollution, like the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Their Read More...
New policy reduces climate misinformation on popular video platform
A 2020 report by Avaaz, a US not-for-profit organization focused on issues such as climate change, blamed YouTube for “incentivizing this climate misinformation content via its monetization program.” In response, Google is finally banning ads, YouTube videos, and other content that preaches Read More...