It’s a common childhood pastime to gaze up at the clouds and point out puffy shapes that look like animals. Another element of nature that can spark your imagination? Plants. Gaze at the greenery and flowers below and you’ll see them transform into jellyfish, butterflies, and bunny ears. Tilt your head and parrots and doves […]
Despite its gorgeous beaches, you won’t find a bustling boardwalk along Southern California’s scenic Gaviota Coast. The 76-mile sprawl in Santa Barbara County is the state’s largest remaining stretch of undeveloped coastline, an area conservationists are dedicated to permanently protecting. And its rich, rural landscape draws an incredibly diverse array of terrestrial animals — from […]
Ernesto Rodriguez, who lives on Southern California’s idyllic Catalina Island, can frequently be found photographing trees. He ventures out to various forests, stands in clearings, and aims his camera at the slivers of sky that peek through branches and leaves. “You take 15 pictures on one plane, and you tilt the camera up 30 degrees. […]
Peaceful, playful, and an escape from the outside world, treehouses are perhaps the quintessential childhood happy place. They’re the stars of movies (The Sandlot, Without a Paddle, and Stand By Me, to name a few) and practically synonymous with imagination — something well worth cultivating at any age. If you’re looking for a nostalgic adventure, […]
From beaches to redwood forests, California is home to some of the most beautiful state parks in the country, and a new one has officially joined the ranks. Dos Rios State Park, a 1,600-acre riverfront sprawl in the San Joaquin Valley, opened to the public today, bringing the state’s total to 281. The opening was […]
Food banks play a crucial role in keeping communities fed across the globe. Another vital but lesser-known benefit? They’re helping to fight climate change, with a recent impact report outlining the link between food banks and a reduction in carbon emissions.
On picturesque Mackinac Island in Michigan, nobody worries about parking tickets — not for their cars, at least. Automobiles have been banned since the turn of the 19th century, so the small locale’s roughly 500 year-round residents rely on bikes, boats, and horse-drawn carriages to get around. The ban was implemented as the auto industry began […]
The overall winner of the international Astronomy Photographer of the Year contest was announced yesterday, with the title going to Ryan Imperio for his sci-fi-esque shot, “Distorted Shadows of the Moon’s Surface Created by an Annular Eclipse.” Taken in Odessa, Texas, during the 2023 annular eclipse, the image (above) captures Baily’s beads, which are formed […]
Nestled in the lush landscape of Japan’s Shikoku island, the small town of Kamikatsu is in the process of achieving a tremendous feat: becoming the nation’s first zero-waste municipality. “Our goal is to develop a town with abundant natural beauty and make it a place where everyone feels happy and can fulfill their respective dreams,” […]
In this age of fast fashion, many people don’t give a second thought to tossing a torn shirt or ditching a pair of pants with a broken zipper. But go back in time a few decades, and simply mending what needed repairing would be far more commonplace. With her posse of street sewers who gather […]
For a long time, dogs have played an important role in the aftermath of disasters, using their agility and strong sense of smell to aid in search-and-rescue missions. But there’s another, smaller animal that may soon be giving these trusted canines some extra help: rats — African giant pouched rats, to be specific. Apopo, a […]
Growing up, many of us were instilled with some basic principles for not wasting Earth’s resources — don’t run the water while brushing your teeth, recycle your aluminum cans, use cloth napkins rather than paper. But as we hear more and more about the changing climate, it might feel like those habits aren’t making enough […]