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.
Local police department installs ‘chat benches’ to help elderly tackle loneliness
Loneliness and social isolation are growing public-health concerns for people of all ages, but the elderly are usually the ones who suffer the most from these conditions. As a means of tackling loneliness and isolation in an English town, local police forces have begun designating specific Read More...
Other than birds, you shouldn’t be feeding wild animals
Whether it’s a birdfeeder on an apartment terrace or a corn feeder for backyard deer, many people enjoy attracting wildlife with the offer of food. But experts say doing so can have dangerous consequences for both animals and humans. According to a wildlife biologist for the Pennsylvania State Read More...
Chubb becomes America’s first insurance company to step away from coal
US insurance giant Chubb Limited just announced new policies when dealing with coal, and it’s not going to make friends of the fossil fuels industry happy. The company announced it no longer will underwrite the construction and operation of new coal-fired plants or new risks for companies that Read More...
Austria is poised to ban the common weedkiller Roundup
The popular herbicide Roundup is used globally by people trying to rid their gardens of weeds, and that’s a problem. Scientists have continued to find evidence that proves that Roundup, which was originally created by GMO giant Monsanto, is linked to cancer. The good news is government Read More...
Adidas by Stella McCartney unveils new hoodie made out of 100% recycled clothing
Each year, the world throws out a mind-boggling 92 million tons of textile waste. In a little more than a decade, that number could increase by 60 percent. One solution to this problem is recycling the most popular fabric used for making clothing: cotton. In collaboration with fashion designer Read More...
We’re running out of rare-Earth metals for electronics. Here’s a solution
Electronic devices are made possible thanks to a group of elements often referred to as rare-Earth metals, but as the name suggests, these may be in limited supply and are relatively expensive. Now, a team of scientists has found a way to combine much more common elements into electronically-useful 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...
Novel technologies could increase UK’s recycling rates tenfold
When we throw something in the recycling bin, we like to think that plastic waste will be reincarnated into something else. Sadly enough, the reality is that most of the plastic being produced today is non-recyclable and winds up in the landfill. To deal with all that non-recyclable plastic, a host Read More...
Planting more trees could dramatically help in fight against climate change
In order to achieve stabilization of global temperatures as called for by the international climate goals, we need to reach net-zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050. And while turning away from fossil fuels to clean energy sources is an essential step, a recent study suggests that the best Read More...
Satisfying the Ache for Home
Whole Community Approaches to Accommodation by Amelia Buckley Homelessness has been on the rise in many major cities including Los Angeles and San Francisco, where homelessness rose in the last year by 12 and 17 percent respectively. But even for those who have a home, it’s often not that Read More...