Newsletter - Project Optimist

A graphic of Earth. Bodies of water are shown as blue people, while land is shown as green areas. It's set on a white globe against a blue background.

Community Voices ⎸ The pragmatic case for climate optimism

Author Charlie Sellars on how shifting our mindset from “minimizing footprint” towards “maximizing impact” can bring joy back into environmentalism.

Environment Featured

Atlanta is embracing a cheap, effective way to beat urban heat: ‘cool roofs’

White or reflective roofs significantly reduce temperatures. Atlanta is the latest city to mandate their adoption.

Two people hold buckets of garbage they collected on a beach. The image does not show their faces. You see their hands holding the buckets. They're wearing gloves on their hands.

Environment

Science says plastic bag bans really do work

Outlawing or taxing plastic bags reduces beach litter, according to a recent study.

The cover of a book. It's yellow with different types of cartoon eyeballs drawn on it.

Social Issues

Find 'I Never Thought of It That Way' moments

In her book "I Never Thought of It That Way," Mónica Guzmán suggests people search for moments that take them outside of their own perspective.

A Somali woman stands in her office. She wears a brown dress with white polka dots. Her long, curly hair falls around her shoulders. She wears clear-rimmed glasses and smiles.

Other nonprofit media

More Somali therapists are entering the field, hoping to change the conversation around mental health

The generational divide between younger Somalis willing to seek out mental health services and their parents is a challenge practitioners are working to address.

A woman and a man stand on the snowy ground next to a tall solar panel array. Evergreen trees are seen behind them.

Other nonprofit media

Solar power gives resort ‘new blood, new life’

After sitting dormant during the winter for the past decade, the Lodge of Whispering Pines is up and running on the strength of a solar project that largely powers its dozen cabins.

A clear blue sky with a few white wispy clouds is seen with some trees.

Biophilia

Poems that bring nature to life

Check out two pieces from 'You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World.'

Woman poses for a photo with her dog outside in winter.

Community voices

Community Voices ⎸ Saying yes to strange and difficult things

Emily Ford writes about the experiences that shaped her relationship with nature and the outdoors.

Community voices

Community Voices ⎸ Looking for a thriving, post-COVID downtown? Head to Rochester

Mayo Clinic and the Destination Medical Center have helped make the “orchestrated serendipity” possible, writes Bill Lindeke of MinnPost.