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.
Thought Leader Series: We need more controlled burns to prevent wildfires
Many residents in California woke up this week to apocalyptic orange skies due to fast-growing wildfires across the state. Today, for our Thought Leader Series, we share a ProPublica article that dives deeper into solutions for reducing the severity of what many are now calling Read More...
New law allows chefs to run little restaurants out of their homes
Wouldn’t it be amazing if people with a knack for cooking could run a small restaurant out of their home? Well, in the city of Riverside, California, that’s now possible. Riverside recently passed law AB-626 that opens unprecedented doors of opportunity by allowing residents to operate small Read More...
Portuguese youth are taking 33 countries to court over climate change
The youth isn’t very happy about climate change. If the Fridays4future climate strikes didn’t make that clear, a new court case filed by young activists from Portugal at the European court of human rights makes it abundantly clear. The case, which was crowdfunded, demands 33 countries make Read More...
New Jersey enacts new law to help undocumented immigrants find jobs
California has long been the only state to have passed a blanket law to aid all undocumented immigrants, but now New Jersey has joined the state after Gov. Phil Murphy repealed key restrictions. The restrictions barred undocumented individuals from obtaining occupational and professional Read More...
Homebase: Stopping homelessness before it happens in New York
Although homelessness across America has been decreasing since 2010, New York City has witnessed an opposite trend. From 2007 to 2018, the state has witnessed a staggering 47% increase in homelessness. That’s where a grassroots program called Homebase steps in. Founded in 2004, Homebase is Read More...
Central Europe to become a frontrunner in reducing plastic waste
The town of Bled in Slovenia is known for its beautiful lake, picturesque scenery, and cream cakes. But more recently it has also become a flag bearer of good recycling practices in Central Europe, with many tourist spots in the resort town prioritizing sustainable packaging. For much of its Read More...
Thought Leader Series: Post-pandemic travel needs to be regenerative
Tourism has been decimated by the pandemic, but when travel returns, what will it look like? This week’s Thought Leader Series from The New York Times, shared with us by an Emissary, looks at the concept of regenerative travel and how we can take sustainable vacations one step Read More...
New California bill would mandate diversity on corporate boards
California legislation requires that most corporate boards in the state have at least three female members by the end of the year. Now, the progressive state is building upon this law with a newly passed bill that would require boards to also have at least one member from an underrepresented Read More...
Years later, many refugees are feeling at home in Germany
When Germany's chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed a great influx of refugees in 2015 rather than denying them at the border, she received overwhelming criticism for opening the country’s borders to migrants. Germany was suddenly the country with the second-highest population of refugees in the Read More...
Finnish town gives locals free cake if they cut their carbon footprint
A town in Finland has found a rather tasty incentive to encourage its inhabitants to cut down their carbon emissions: free cake. Lahti, situated 100 kilometers north of Helsinki, has developed an app that tracks residents' CO2 usages based on traveling by car, public transport, bike or walk. The Read More...