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.
People love renewable energy, so why don't politicians get it?
Robin Hood: one of Britain’s best-loved folk heroes. He speaks to our national love of subverting the rules. Fighting against institutional injustice, he protected the most vulnerable from the predatory practices of a corrupt establishment. Nottingham city council’s new not-for-profit energy Read More...
Climate benefits from electric car equals $425, study says
A new study places a dollar-based price tag on the environmental benefits of electric vehicles in terms of avoided greenhouse gas pollution, and the answer may surprise both clean-car enthusiasts and skeptics. In the western United States, where electricity is generated from a relatively clean mix Read More...
Smart, green cities could save the world $22 trillion, study shows
Every day, some 200,000 people move into cities across the globe. It doesn't seem that anything will halt or slow the trend of urbanization. To keep cities sustainable, it's essential for urban planners to adopt smart solutions to put cities on a greener, low-carbon path. That is not only possible, Read More...
Artificial 'plants' could fuel the future
Imagine creating artificial plants that make gasoline and natural gas using only sunlight. And imagine using those fuels to heat our homes or run our cars without adding any greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. By combining nanoscience and biology, researchers led by scientists at University of Read More...
Low emission biogas also produces fertilizer
TORONTO, CANADA A Canadian chemical engineer has devised a product that transforms the waste generated by biogas production into fertilizer. Andrew White says his SulfaCHAR system eliminates chemical waste from the biogas process, while increasing renewable gas plants' profitability and stopping Read More...
The best way to measure a household's resilience? Ask those who live there
The concept of “resilience” is taking development and humanitarian sectors by storm. Huge amounts of finance are being channelled into “resilience-building” activities, aimed at supporting people and communities to deal more effectively with climate extremes, financial Read More...
Plastic bag use down 70% in Wales since charges began
Almost three-quarters of consumers say they support the 5p charge that has raised millions for charities, report says Friday 4 September 2015 01.01 EDT Last modified on Friday 4 September 2015 01.03 EDT The number of single-use plastic bags has declined by more than 70% since charges were Read More...
Scientists explain the impact of urban trees on air quality: They decrease pollution levels
City-dwellers, if you didn't already love your trees, here is another reason for you to become a treehugger. Researchers of the University of Leicester have found that trees are vital for improving the quality of air that we breathe in our cities. They have a measurable impact on pedestrians, by Read More...
Crop rotation boosts soil microbes, benefits plant growth
In the first study of its kind, new research from the University of New Hampshire shows that crop rotations, in isolation from other management factors, can increase the functions performed by soil microbial communities that benefit plant growth. The study was conducted by researchers with the New Read More...
These prize-winning, game-changing designs tackle some of our toughest global challenges
“Design’s purpose is to improve lives,” explained this year’s jury chair Mikal Hallstrup of the design industry’s Index Awards. “It’s not about tea cups or fancy chairs.” Organized by a non-profit organization based in Copenhagen, Denmark, a city looking to its architects and Read More...