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.
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...
Doubling down on diesel: CA regulations will slash nitrogen oxide emissions
Last week, the California Air Resources Board unanimously passed new regulations to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions. The new legislation, aimed at diesel trucks, will reduce NOx emissions by 90 percent. This is the equivalent of taking 16 million light-duty vehicles off the road. The new Read More...
Hurricane Laura: Here's where you can contribute
Hurricane Laura is the latest climate change-fueled natural disaster to hit the US. The powerful storm made landfall in Louisiana last Thursday with winds of up to 150 miles per hour. Obviously hurricanes are a destructive force, but a hurricane (or any natural disaster) occurring during a pandemic Read More...
Africa to be officially declared free of wild polio
Just twenty-five years ago, thousands of children in Africa were left paralyzed due to the poliovirus. Now, Africa is to be declared free from wild polio by the independent body, the Africa Regional Certification Commission. Polio is a virus that spreads from person to person, usually through Read More...
First Canadian to legally consume psilocybin shares his experience
Earlier this month, we wrote about a landmark approval from the Canadian government to allow four terminally ill cancer patients to use psilocybin to treat end-of-life distress. In a follow up to that story, one of those four patients, Thomas Hartle, received his first psilocybin-assisted Read More...
The OPTIMIST VIEW: Getting over Growth and Measuring what Matters
"Human Beings have been doing markets since we came down out of the trees, but not everything can be measured in markets." Hazel Henderson By Kristy Jansen How do you measure success? For some it might be lots of money, adoring fans or a powerful position. Others measure their riches in Read More...
Thought Leader Series: The 19th Amendment and why intersectionality can’t wait
This week we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, but while this granted white women the right to vote, Black women were not granted full voting rights until 1965 and many Latinx, Asian American, and Native American women couldn’t vote until 1975. As we Read More...
USPS delays cutbacks until after November’s election
We recently shared an article about how you can help save the US Postal Service. From grandma’s birthday cards to the integrity and safety of our elections, the USPS is a critical public service which we all rely on. Thanks to the activism and action of thousands of Americans, Postmaster General Read More...
Is the era of single family home zoning over? Portland says yes.
For generations, the white picket fence has been a symbol of residential America, but as housing prices rise and cities expand unsustainably, many communities are becoming disillusioned with the classic single-family home. With zoning laws favoring these types of residences, making housing more Read More...