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.
Study shows plastic waste can be converted into energy and fuels
Plastic waste is flooding our landfills and leaking into the oceans, with potentially disastrous effects. In fact, the World Economic Forum predicts that if current production and waste management trends continue, by 2050 there could be more plastic than fishes in the Read More...
This Dutch town installed red streetlights to stop annoying bats
Traditional streetlights disturb bats. That’s why a town in the Netherlands has become the first in the world to install red LED streetlights in order to stop hindering bats. Researchers found out that bats are bothered by traditional white or yellow lights, but red lights have no effect on bats Read More...
Meet the Chinese philanthropists who are pledging big money to end climate change
Xing dong! Xing dong! Xing dong!” (Mandarin for “Action! Action! Action!”) is one refrain wafting on the Hawaiian breeze. The other is “Collaborate! Collaborate! Collaborate!” Laurance S. Rockefeller, the American philanthropist and conservationist, would have been intrigued by the Read More...
Beekeepers file complaint against Bayer after glyphosate was discovered in honey
Beekeepers in France aren’t happy with Bayer. Agence France Presse reported (AFP) a beekeeping cooperative in the northern part of the country filed a legal complaint against the chemical giant after the controversial herbicide glyphosate was found in honey. The complaint was filed the Read More...
Better use of forests, and land can deliver 30 percent of climate solutions
As part of the Global Climate Action Summit, World Wildlife Fund (WWF), together with a broad coalition of partners, on Monday issued the 30X30 Forests, Food and Land Challenge: calling on businesses, states, city and local governments, and global citizens to take action for better forest and Read More...
India and Ikea are giving single-use plastics the boot
Single-use plastics are finally getting the negative attention they deserve, and it’s leading companies and governments to take action. To coincide with World Environment Day, the government of India announced it will be banning single-use plastics from all of its 22 states by 2022. That’s a Read More...
Plastic pollution is a problem — These kids are working for a solution
Sometimes a couple of kids can help change the world. Siblings Carter and Olivia Ries founded their nonprofit One More Generation (OMG) in 2009, when they were just 8 and 7 years old, out of a desire to protect the world's endangered species. Their journey to heal the planet has taken them Read More...
Help us reach the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge!
I've been in the process of making our yard more pollinator friendly, and was delighted this year to see what I believe to be our first monarch butterfly in the garden. (It may have been a viceroy. I do get confused.) There's something immensely powerful about taking steps to beautify your own Read More...
Cost plunges for capturing carbon dioxide from the air
Pulling carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air and using it to make synthetic fuel seems like the ultimate solution to climate change: Instead of adding ever more CO2 to the air from fossil fuels, we can simply recycle the same CO2 molecules over and over. But such technology is expensive—about $600 Read More...
Finally, the world’s first zero-waste biodegradable bra has been created
Bras can be made from a variety of unsustainable materials, from water-intensive cotton, to spandex and petroleum-based foam for padding. So once they’re tossed, these synthetic fibers will sit in landfills and take forever to disappear. To lessen bras’ impact on the earth, a lingerie designer Read More...