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.
Prince of Wales joins global soil boosting project
The Prince of Wales is joining an Anglo-French government initiative to improve the condition of global soils. Ministers from both governments are meeting the prince to discuss how to improve soil health and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from farming. Typically the focus of cutting greenhouse Read More...
Sweden is on target to run entirely on renewable energy by 2040
Sweden is on target to run entirely on renewable energy within the next 25 years, a regulatory official has said. Last year, 57 per cent of Sweden's power came from renewables such as hydropower and wind sources, with the remainder coming from nuclear power. The country now plans to tap into its Read More...
Climate-resilient organic cotton stages a comeback
On the outskirts of Raichur, once known as Karnataka’s cotton city, Ramesh Rangappa proudly shows off his recently planted acre of organic cotton. “It’s rain-fed and we haven’t added any chemical fertiliser,” he says. Although there hasn’t been any rain in recent Read More...
Dutch students use hemp and flex fibers to build ‘biobridge’ for foot traffic
The clean sustainable economy requires more than the use of renewable energy. The building industry is very dependent on fossil resources as well. That’s why a technical university experimented with building bridge using only biocomposite materials. The foot bridge was constructed out of hemp and Read More...
15% of Australia’s tomatoes are grown without soil, fresh water or fossil fuels
Farmers in drought-stricken California should take note: In a desert in Australia is a farm that grows and supplies 15 percent of the country's tomatoes without using soil, fresh water or fossil fuels. The farm uses solar energy to de-salinate sea water and operates greenhouses in order to grow Read More...
Turning CO2 to stone
Earth has limits to the amount of carbon dioxide in its atmosphere before the environment as we know it starts to change. Too much CO2 absorbed by the oceans makes the water more acidic. Too much in the atmosphere warms the planet. With emissions from our carbon-based economies rising, scientists Read More...
Cargo ships may soon have no captains, crews or anyone else onboard
This may seem absurd, but the shipping industry may soon have ghost ships delivering cargo across the world without a single person on board. Just like the auto-industry, self-automation is expected to be the future of the shipping industry. Having crew-less vessels could save up to 22% on a Read More...
What does peace in Colombia have to do with the environment?
After 52 years of war, the government finalised a peace accord to cease conflict and construct stable and long lasting peace in Colombia. After four years of negotiations and almost 300 pages, the accord delves into different key points for the ceasefire, the guerrilla demobilisation, the integral Read More...
Flotsam and fashion: recycler of 'ghost' fishing nets makes marine litter trendy
The oceans are choked with discarded fishing nets, or ghost nets, that are estimated to kill 300,000 whales, dolphins and seals each year. It’s a grotesque and avoidable toll on nature, and one that Giulio Bonazzi, CEO of Aquafil, hopes to reduce using an unlikely ally – fashion. The Read More...
Could carbon farming help the climate?
An ear of corn, swaying gently before a stand of apple trees. A cow chewing slowly on clover. They’re probably not what you think of when you imagine solutions to climate change. But perhaps their time has come. Enter “carbon farming,” a term that encompasses a host of practices aimed at Read More...