Global Development
In an increasingly globalized world, international development efforts aim to improve living conditions, equity, and human rights around the world. Our global development section tracks this globalization and reports on specific equitable and sustainable development initiatives.
The Optimist View: ITP Small grants change the world
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.” - Margaret Mead The Optimist View is our long-form edition weekend publication which dives deeper on the critical solutions we cover on The Optimist Daily. Read More...
Rotating water still device produces potable water at much faster rate
Solar stills are a primary technology for extracting potable water from tainted or salinated water, and while they’re useful in water-scarce regions, their technology is still relatively inefficient. Fortunately, a team of researchers from Russia's Ural Federal University has reconceptualized the Read More...
EU launches climate resiliency checklist for new infrastructure projects
In addition to reducing emissions in order to mitigate the effects of climate change, we must also ensure that we are protecting communities by building infrastructure that can withstand the results of climate change we are already experiencing. To address this issue, the EU has created guidelines Read More...
Germany gymnasts reject sexualization by ditching bikini-cut uniforms
Professional female athletes have been subjected to sexualization for far too long, and they are starting to fight back. We recently wrote about how the Norwegian women’s beach handball team wore shorts instead of bikini bottoms during the 2021 European Beach Handball Championships to protest the Read More...
THE OPTIMIST VIEW: Invoking the Pause 一 Funding environmental changemakers
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.” - Margaret Mead We’re all familiar with major names in philanthropic giving like MacArthur, Rockefeller or Ford, but there are hundreds of lesser known Read More...
EU announces new climate action legislation
To reach their goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050, the EU has released a draft of new climate change legislation to further cut emissions. The new legislation, which must still be approved by the EU’s 27 member states and parliament, proposes laws such as increasing taxes on jet fuel and Read More...
Pawsitive Change enhances rehabilitation for inmates and shelter dogs
Last year, we wrote about how incarcerated individuals in Florida comfort shelter dogs during Fourth of July firework displays, but this isn’t the only program allowing incarcerated individuals and canines to collaborate. Pawsitive Change, a pup, and inmate rehabilitation program, pairs Read More...
This self-cleaning filter safely quenches the thirst of communities in need
Opening the tap on any faucet in your home to access a stream of clean drinking water is a privilege that not everyone is afforded. The reality is that millions of people around the world must retrieve water with jugs and buckets from sources like rivers and wells. In many cases, despite all the Read More...
New York introduces mandatory racial impact studies for large developments
New development projects are a fact of life in urban areas, but unfortunately, these developments displace marginalized communities and families of color at a disproportionate rate. Communities that developers feel do not have the resources to advocate for themselves are taken advantage of and Read More...
The Optimist View: The Doughnut Economy
“Don’t wait for economic growth to reduce inequality—because it won’t. Instead, create an economy that is distributive by design.” - Kate Raworth BY Amelia Buckley Years ago, before I decided that my writing skills were far stronger than my calculus abilities, I sat in an Read More...