Sustainable Urban Development
With cities expected to host about 70 percent of the world's population, sustainable urban development is key to making communities worldwide more resilient against the growing threat of climate change. Find out about the latest urban practices from across the world aiming to make our cities more sustainable and inclusive in these good-news stories from The Optimist Daily.
Fog nets from Chile to Morocco. And soon California?
Fog nets are screens of overlapping horizontal and vertical mesh that catch moisture from fog and collect it once gravity brings the droplets down. In remote villages in drought-stricken Morocco, these devices not only bring drinking water to hundreds of thousands of people but also let them Read More...
Get healthy, go to a green space
We decided to revamp a couple of stories on the benefits of green spaces, for which there is an ever-growing body of evidence. NPR’s Aaron Scott recently spoke with environmental psychologist Ming Kuo on green spaces and why we all seem to feel better walking down a city street lined with Read More...
Be intentional about respecting wildlife by keeping these 4 things in mind
This year, if you are striving to be more considerate of wildlife while on your summer travels and hikes, but still want to enjoy, observe, and photograph the wonder and beauty our planet has to offer, there are some important things to think about. When we humans get too close to wild animals Read More...
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...
Barcelona plans to limit docking of cruise ships
You’d think thousands of travelers disembarking from cruise ships in Barcelona would be a good thing for the city. However, these tourists coming in from the many yearly cruise liners don’t book accommodation, don’t spend as much as you’d think, and contribute to city congestion. The huge Read More...
New York Harbor: an unexpectedly popular feeding ground for dolphins
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) released a new study that reveals some surprising news about the New York Harbor—it’s an unexpectedly popular feeding ground for bottlenose dolphins from spring through fall. At a glance, the New York Harbor seems anything but ideal for dolphins. Read More...
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...
Gaza beachgoers enjoy crystal clear waters for the first time in years
People in the Gaza Strip who wanted to take a refreshing dip while visiting the city’s beaches would be hard-pressed to actually get into the water. Beachgoers who did brave the waves would sometimes end up getting ill due to the untreated sewage that was flowing straight into the waters off Gaza Read More...
Google’s new tool lets us witness the planet changing in near real-time
Planet Earth is changing, transforming, and shifting faster than we can keep track of these days. Human development continues to spread, The Alps are turning from white to green, massive solar farms are being erected, and droughts are shrinking lakes and drying out rivers. All of these major Read More...
Tree cities: regreening and making cities more climate-resilient
We decided to revamp a story about a wonderful solution: tree cities. At The Optimist Daily, as you’ve probably guessed, we love solutions for urban green spaces. We’ve written quite a bit about these, with their ability to offset carbon emissions, help grow food, and help animals and Read More...