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.
Here’s what the hyperloop systems of the future might look like in urban areas
We've seen a lot of technical exploration around how a hyperloop system might one-day fling humans and goods across the Earth at the speed of sound inside low-vacuum tubes but not much about the structural elements that would hold everything in place. That’s why startup HyperloopTT has teamed up Read More...
What do cities look like when they are built for people, not cars?
It turns out cities focused on people, rather than vehicles, are cleaner, quieter, have more public space, and even help you live longer. One city in Spain is showing the rest of the world how this might be done. Barcelona is revolutionizing city planning by taking areas equal to nine city Read More...
LA recently hired its first-ever forest officer. More cities are set to follow
How do you keep cities cool as the world gets hotter? It’s sort of a no-brainer: Less concrete, more jungle. In a recent study, University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers showed that tree cover can cool down a city block by as much as 10 degrees Fahrenheit, a difference that could Read More...
This bat highway allows light-shy bats to cross the road
Highways are a nightmare for animals because they fragment habitats and obstruct the movements of animals. Now, you wouldn't think that flying animals would have a problem with roads, but as it turns out, some bats do. Not with the roads themselves, but with the street lights. Many bat species will Read More...
A New Orleans local listed a pothole on Airbnb to get the city to fix it
After waiting years for the city to fix their streets, a resident of the Irish Channel neighborhood in New Orleans did something a bit outside the box to get the attention of city officials: he listed a local pothole on Airbnb. The listing is called “Homer’s Hideout”, and the description of Read More...
Seattle takes the long-view and announces its roadmap to resilience
As a society, we face challenges every single day, and this week, as Hurricane Dorian leaves its mark on the Bahamas and the rest of the Atlantic coastline, is no exception. Issues include the extreme weather events and destructive acts of nature that are becoming regular occurrences (floods, Read More...
Where you live affects health, wealth and earning potential - podcast reports
A couple of weeks ago we shared a story about the cognitive benefits of listening to podcasts. This was thrilling to us since several on the Optimist Daily team are dedicated podheads. One story we listened to this week jumped out as something that we had to share - a Planet Money episode that Read More...
Will the growth of car sharing change how cities are built? Absolutely!
Car share services, such as car2go and ZipCar, have gained popularity in recent years as a cost-effective and easy transportation methods for less “car-centric” individuals, including students and residents of urban areas. Apps like car2go work like an instant rental car service, zoom in on the Read More...
Restoration groups use permaculture to rebuild in the wake of the Camp Fire
One year after the Camp Fire destroyed 90 percent of homes in the small Northern California town of Paradise, community members are rallying behind the regenerative nature of permaculture to rebuild their town. Permaculture is an agricultural technique which uses regenerative resources to create a Read More...
These experimental homes represent the future of low-cost housing in Mexico
In the desert-like climate of Hidalgo, Mexico, a community of quirky, experimental housing has been constructed, with each house built by a different architect or studio. The idea behind the community was to motivate architects to develop new construction techniques, water-saving systems, and Read More...