The Tales of Trees and a Conservation Legacy in This Week’s Earth Optimism
These stories celebrate success, uncover a spark of hope, share a new idea, or might just make you feel good about Planet Earth.
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Making Palm Oil Sustainable
Palm oil is the most widely used vegetable oil despite being one of the biggest contributors to tropical deforestation. Yale Environement360 dives into the strategies of some of the startups developing synthetic palm oil as a more sustainable alternative. Learn more about this bioengineered solution in Can Synthetic Palm Oil Help Save the World’s Tropical Forests?
Remembering a Hero for Biodiversity
The pioneering biodiversity conservationist and unwavering optimist Tom Lovejoy passed away on Christmas Day. Yet, his mission to protect the planet and its biodiversity will forever live on in the countless people his contributions have inspired. Jeremy Hance shares Lovejoy’s lasting mark on the field of conservation in this must-read piece in Mongabay: Tom Lovejoy’s Enduring Legacy to the Planet.
Tales of Trees
What clues can trees give us about the past and our future? Apparently, quite a bit. The Old Man and the Tree in Smithsonian Magazine tells the story of Bob Leverett and his work studying old-growth forests in New England and what they can share with us about the changing climate.
The Cost of Eating for the Planet
One of the issues with a sustainable diet is the cost. And that factor can fluctuate widely depending on where you live and the access to different grocers and markets. Find out how much the pricing varies geographically and some ways researchers are looking to solve sustainable diet inequalities in Anthropocene Magazines’s article, In Rich Countries, a Sustainable Diet Is Cheaper Than a Conventional One. The Opposite Is True in Poorer Nations.
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