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.
Light pollution is wreaking biological havoc. Self-driving cars can change that
When it comes to self-driving cars, the conversation usually revolves around a few central points, including more safety, less traffic, and more freedom for people with disabilities. But there’s one potential outcome of autonomous driving that’s often overlooked: less light pollution. According Read More...
A new WWF program is persuading poachers to save the snow leopard in Russia
When American researcher Rodney Jackson of the Snow Leopard Conservancy donated 20 motion-activated camera traps to his Russian colleagues, the hope was that they would be able to snap some photos of endangered snow leopards and learn more about them. After two years, however, not a single leopard Read More...
A new mandate in Boston could lead to more protected bike lanes across America
In many European cities, bicycles are king. Bicyclists have their own lanes, they have the right of way, and the city tries to do everything they can do to support bicycle-riding. In America, it’s a much different story, with cars dominating the roads and respect for bike lanes being Read More...
Tesla’s new Gigafactory is as high-tech as you might have expected—and more
When it’s fully complete, Tesla’s Gigafactory in Sparks, Nevada, will be the largest building in the world, sprawling over 15 million square feet on a plot of land more than three times larger than Central Park. The building, which Elon Musk has called “the machine that builds the machine,” Read More...
Mozambique’s Gorongosa National Park is thriving once more after years of war
In the ruinous 15-year civil war that followed the independence of Mozambique in 1975, the Gorongosa National Park served as a refuge for the right-wing RENAMO, or Resistência Nacional Moçambicana, rebel forces who received military support from neighboring Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and South Read More...
How the elk is helping restore wildlife habitats in coal country
One of the many awful side effects that come with coal mining is that the mining process completely transforms areas that were once teeming with flora and fauna. In the Appalachian Mountains, coal mining companies regularly blow up the top hundred feet of the mountain to expose coal seams, removing Read More...
The ‘Attenborough effect’ may help justify drop in use of disposable plastics
David Attenborough has inspired millions by bringing the sublime natural world into our homes, but his impact is even more surprising than you might expect. A recent survey suggests that his documentaries on climate change are having a major impact on consumers, and may be responsible for a Read More...
These surfers are mobilizing more than 30,000 volunteers to clean ocean plastic
Very few people are as familiar with the problem of ocean plastic as surfers. Tired of riding waves littered with trash, more and more surfers around the world are taking a stand against plastic and finding ways to fight it. In Australia, a duo of surfers created a floating rubbish bin that can Read More...
Scientists closer to finding the optimal eco-friendly replacement for plastic
The quest to keep plastic out of landfills and simultaneously satisfy the needs of the food industry is filled with obstacles. A biodegradable replacement for petroleum-based products has to meet all sorts of standards and, so far, attempts at viable replacements from renewable sources have faced Read More...
Wrapping produce in banana leaves is becoming a trend in Asia
A few weeks ago, we wrote about a supermarket in Thailand that had a surprisingly simple solution to plastic packaging: banana leaves. Instead of wrapping goods such as cucumbers and lettuce in plastic, the store simply used leftover banana leaves. A local real estate person spotted the Read More...