Filter Articles:
Need a Dose of Optimism These Days?
Subscribe for good news, no politics, and a guide to a better life online!
Sign upWake up to Good News for a Change!
Get the Ever Widening Circles App! Feeling better about the world is as easy as tapping our app on your phone.


Jump to another article!
Surprise Me!17 minutes
[ Innovation ]
Heroes from Table Scraps: How Oysters Are Protecting NYC!
By Sam Burns
New York Harbor is the cleanest it’s been in over a century and it’s thanks to a delicacy many of us love to slurp down…oysters! Using nature’s knowhow, table scraps, and a little ingenuity, oysters are bringing life back to polluted waters and protecting one of America’s most beloved cities!
10 minutes
[ Culture ]
Where There’s a Weevil, There’s a Way!
Here’s a story that shows what’s possible when we use our strengths to solve big problems. When a Texas lake and way of life were threatened by an invasive species, scientists, community members, and weevils teamed up to save their beloved waters!
7 minutes
[ Nature ]
Celebrating Our Most Under-Appreciated Neighbors!
When you think of cities, trees probably aren’t the first things that come to mind. But did you know that trees are a vital part of creating healthy urban spaces? Urban forests have been used for thousands of years to keep city-dwellers healthy, and now we are rediscovering their benefits!
35 minutes
[ Nature ]
Can We Bridge Change By Starting With What We Love?
Could we solve major problems by coming together with storytelling and the things we share a passion for? That was the mission of two native Michiganders as they hopped in a veggie powered van to discover why their homeland was so important to people, and rally them around saving it!
13 minutes
[ Culture ]
Bike Angels: Competitive Problem-Solving at Its Extreme!
What happens when we use fun to inspire people to help the world in their own way? New York City tried out this experiment with their Citi Bike Bike Angels program and the results were, well, unexpectedly enthusiastic!
23 minutes
[ Culture ]
Is Going Zero Waste Really Possible?
Have you seen those people who can fit a year’s worth of garbage into a mason jar? Is that even possible? Meet a family that tried to live zero waste for a month and see how it went!
15 minutes
[ Nature ]
Meet These Queens of the Bug World!
By Sam Burns
Powerful kingdoms are rising and falling all around us, each created and lead by a mighty queen. But what’s it like to be a queen in the insect world? We’re taking a royal tour through the lives of a wasp and a fire ant queen to learn what’s happening inside these busy colonies.
8 minutes
[ Culture ]
Giving New Life to Well-Loved Clothes
What if you could give old clothes an entirely new life? This was the question Patagonia wanted to tackle as a warehouse of used gear piled up around them. The fix they came up with to keep these garments out of the landfills is a model that changes the future of clothing!
9 minutes
[ Culture ]
Could Your Dinner Save the Planet?
So, you’ve started recycling, maybe even use fewer straws! Is there another easy way you can easily benefit the planet? Why not start with your plate!
7 minutes
[ Innovation ]
The Tastiest Way to Save the Planet
Are you looking for food that’s good for both you and the environment? What if we told you that all of your favorite treats, from protein bars to tacos, can be made with insects! We’re discovering where those feelings of disgust you may be experiencing come from and how eating insects could help the planet. Dare to join us?
9 minutes
[ Innovation ]
Turning Plastic Bags into Speakers!
By Sam Burns
Some of the most important innovators of our time are finding ingenious ways to look at waste as a resource. Here’s a clever group that has found an artistic and functional way to use single-use plastic bags!
[ blog ]
The Conspiracy Chronicles: Litter, May 2019
What can we do to pick up and prevent litter? Here are some ways you can help fight this problem and join people around the world hard at work, too!
12 minutes
[ Thought Leaders ]
Pa Arding: Turning Accidents into Opportunity
By Sam Burns
How do any of us find a way to turn moments of tragedy into a catalyst for good? Pa Arding had her life inexorably changed, but that didn’t stop her from finding ways to paddle her way to a cleaner planet. There are a few lessons we can all learn from her story.
11 minutes
[ Nature ]
Meeting the Salween River
By Sam Burns
On this Saturday Around the World, we’re traveling through the beautiful Salween River in China and seeing the efforts put into place to protect it.
18 minutes
[ Conservation & Sustainability ]
Our Plastic Waste Problem: It’s Not About Perfection
We all know that plastic waste is a huge problem, but what are we supposed to do about it? Turns out there’s a lot we can do with just a few little changes!
27 minutes
[ Innovation ]
Why Wild Animals May End Up On Your Street
By Sam Burns
These communities in Canada are helping us all reimagine what we can do to have healthy relationships with the wildlife that lives around us!
11 minutes
[ Conservation & Sustainability ]
This Washing Machine Uses Beads to Clean Your Clothes
By Sam Burns
Xeros Technology has developed a new way of cleaning garments that will completely change how washing machines affect our planet (and our wallet!)
5 minutes
[ Nature ]
What You Learn When the Sun Doesn’t Rise
By Sam Burns
There’s a span of time every year in the arctic zone when the sun doesn’t rise above the horizon. What is it like to experience these polar nights? On this Saturday Around the World, we head to Greenland to explore.
22 minutes
[ Art ]
So, What’s a Food Forest?
By Sam Burns
There’s something growing on the South Coast of New Zealand that could change our lives. Check it out!
11 minutes
[ Animals ]
How Blue Whale Poop Changed This Scientist’s Life
The study Whale Poop may not sound like life changing science, but for this scientist, it not only changed her life, it shifted the way we think about one of the planet’s most remarkable species and the ways we study them!
5 minutes
[ Conservation & Sustainability ]
Solutions from the Spinach King
By Sam Burns
What if we saw a need in our communities and tried to fix it? Lufefe Nomjana saw the need for sustainable food in his community and tackled the problem to become the Spinach King! Here’s his story.
23 minutes
[ Conservation & Sustainability ]
The Ocean Cleanup Project
By Dr. Lynda
At only 19 years old, Boyan Slat of the Netherlands developed an ocean cleanup array which has removed over 7 million tons of plastic from the ocean. Learn more about The Ocean Cleanup Project and how you can help in today’s important feature.
5 minutes
[ Conservation & Sustainability ]
What Do We Do With All This Stuff?
By Dr. Lynda
How much time do you spend just managing the things in your life? Here’s an easy way to start simplifying your life and your stuff, and really, it’s easier than you think!
5 minutes
[ Conservation & Sustainability ]
A Tale of Three Plastic Bottles
Does recycling really make much difference? It turns out, our choices when it comes to plastic bottles make a major difference. TED-Ed explains how!
8 minutes
[ Art ]
Kinetic Sculpture: A Surreal Journey…
How can moving art impact its surroundings? How can art introduce us to new forms of life? Find out how artist Anthony Howe is making this possible with the most amazing kinetic sculptures.
10 minutes
[ Animals ]
Swan Upping: The Ceremony of Conservation
What do swans, nifty uniforms, conservation, and Her Majesty the Queen of England have in common?
6 minutes
[ Art ]
Stone Testament to a Chinese Proverb
Using stone to make human necessities and artistic expressions has been part of our impulses for tens of thousands of years. Meet an amazing person who carries that torch with sublime results.