Politics
Having a difficult time finding positive news about national and global politics? Search no further! From public policy to positive leadership to democracy efforts, find the latest good news stories in the world of politics at The Optimist Daily.
Maine will be the first state to use ranked-choice voting for elections
In a country dominated by two political parties, voting for an independent third-party candidate is often seen as a vote wasted. But that won’t be the case for voters in Maine where the state’s Supreme Judicial Court just upheld the use of ranked-choice voting for its presidential and Read More...
California to ban the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035
When it comes to the transition to cleaner means of transportation, California has been at the forefront of efforts to limit greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles. Earlier this summer, the Golden State introduced a new law requiring all commercial trucks and vans sold in the state to be Read More...
China pledges to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060
The UN climate summit, Cop26, has been delayed until November 2021 due to the pandemic, but many participating countries aren’t waiting until next year to quantify their emissions reductions commitments. After the EU pledged to cut emissions by 55 percent by 2030, China made an unexpected Read More...
Connecting rentership and registration can empower marginalized voters
The 2020 election is fast approaching and we’ve been sharing stories on vote-in mailing, companies giving paid leave for employees to work the polls, and even NBA arenas turning into voting locations. Today we’re sharing another incredibly simple strategy to register more Americans to vote: Read More...
Washington becomes seventh state to ban wildlife killing competitions
As ridiculous as it sounds, many states in the US still allow hunting competitions where participants compete for prizes and awards by killing wild animals. Fortunately, more are starting to realize the ethical and environmental concerns of such outdated events, with Washington recently becoming Read More...
Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A legacy of justice and optimism
At The Optimist Daily, we share solutions to promote a culture of determined optimism. This week, we are celebrating the life and legacy of one of the world’s most inspirational determined optimists: Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Ginsburg, who passed away September 18 at the age Read More...
New Jersey passes bill to protect poor communities from pollution
In the past months, the state of New Jersey has passed some landmark laws that have been worth sharing. It started in June when the state mandated that climate change education must be a part of the curriculum in schools. Then, just weeks ago, Gov. Phil Murphy signed off on a new law that allows Read More...
Lyft is once again offering free or low-cost rides on Election Day
With the elections coming up, ride-sharing giant Lyft is offering free and discounted rides to help people get to their local polling stations. When election day arrives, riders will be able to get 50 percent off one ride (up to $10) to a dropbox or polling location when you use the code Read More...
After Cop26 delay, youth activists will hold their own climate talks
Vital negotiations to fulfill the Paris climate agreement were supposed to take place at the UN’S Cop26 in November, but the coronavirus has delayed the climate talks. Activists and participants are not impressed by the lack of progress, especially considering the urgent action needed to limit Read More...
South Australia becomes first Aussie state to ban single-use plastics
Although bans on single-use plastics have been enforced in countries all around the world, such policy has yet to be implemented in Australia. But that is about to change after South Australia became the first Australian state to introduce laws banning some single-use plastics including cutlery, Read More...