Today’s Solutions: January 11, 2025

Evergreen

Toy house in a palm of a man's hand against a blurred forest background.

5 lesser-known innovations for a more sustainable home

One of the big questions for environmentally-minded homeowners is how to make their homes more sustainable and energy-efficient. There are some more obvious switches one can invest in, like installing small wind energy systems or household hydropower systems, however, there are also many Read More...

Beavers

More on beavers and rewilding

We decided to dust off and update this innovative solution to restoring habitats with the most industrious aquatic mammal: beavers.  At The Optimist Daily, we’ve written a great deal about the benefits beavers bring to their environment and the importance of restoring their populations in Read More...

Half an avocado with seed with yellow chiffon background

Spider-like film doubles avocado shelf life

Concerned about the problem of plastic pollution, a scientist has developed a plant-based coating that could make food plastic wrappers obsolete. The biodegradable coating has antimicrobial properties and can easily be sprayed onto produce, such as avocados and citruses, slowing Read More...

Seattle

Seattle installs EV chargers on utility poles for residents

Electric vehicles are the transportation of the future. In the meantime, cities are struggling to install the infrastructure that we will all need to charge our cars. This is an important issue for EV owners away from a home or office charging port, or if they live in an apartment complex. If Read More...

two older people happily driving on a road flanked by greenery on a moped

What’s the secret to a longer life? Optimism of course!

Do you want to live a longer, fuller life? Well, according to this study published earlier this month in the Journal of American Geriatrics Society, you should seriously consider cultivating higher levels of optimism.  According to the new study, which involved almost 160,000 women of a range Read More...

The Juneteenth flag waving in the wind.

The symbolism behind the Juneteenth flag

In 2021, President Joe Biden announced that June 19th, shortened to Juneteenth (which is also known as Emancipation Day and/or Freedom Day), will be officially celebrated as a federal holiday. Juneteenth is still in the early years of being officially observed by many businesses and Read More...

Giant tortoise munching on leaves

Giant tortoise believed extinct for 100 years is actually alive

We previously shared a story about a family finding their pet tortoise alive and well in their attic after it had been missing for over 30 years. Now prepare for an equally endearing tortoise comeback story. Considered extinct for more than a century, a giant tortoise is actually alive in the Read More...

The Dad Gang is breaking the s

The Dad Gang is breaking the stereotype of the absent Black father

In honor of father's day, we are revamping a few stories that celebrate the inspiring dads out there in the world, empower dads, or highlight the incredible experience of fatherhood. Good fathers, good community members As a black man, Sean Williams would regularly receive “good dad” Read More...

happy cute child in pastel colored dress grins while laying in a patch of wildflowers

A garden designer’s top 6 tips for rewilding your own garden

Rewilding is a progressive form of ecological restoration and conservation that returns a region to its natural, wild, and “unkempt” state. Here at The Optimist Daily, we love to spotlight the amazing rewilding initiatives that are taking off worldwide, and exactly how each project helps boost Read More...

Clothes hanging out to dry on a hanging rack outside on a sunny day

5 simple ways you can do less laundry

Apart from being an extremely mundane task, doing your laundry is also rather far from being an eco-friendly chore. It involves an energy-intensive process that uses a lot of water and, in the case of synthetic fabrics, releases countless microplastics into the environment, threatening public Read More...