BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For decades, a phone call home from prison could cost a family several dollars a minute. That wasn’t an oversight. It was the business model. A growing number of state prison systems and county jails have moved to make calls free, arguing that regular contact with family is one of the more reliable tools for reducing harm during and after incarceration. A new report from Worth Rises, a nonprofit that monitors the prison industry, now has numbers on what actually happened. The numbers are larger than expected The report covered six state prison systems, California, New York, and the federal system among them, plus more than a dozen county jails across Los Angeles, New York City, and Massachusetts. When agencies negotiated contracts directly with telecom providers rather than routing deals through revenue-sharing arrangements, costs dropped. By a lot: about 62 percent for state systems, 68 percent for jails. Across those systems, incarcerated people and their families have saved more than $622 million. Most of those savings went to Black and brown families, who are disproportionately represented in the incarcerated population. Call volume went up sharply. Daily use per person in prisons rose from roughly 25 minutes to nearly 45 minutes once calls became free. In jails, it more than doubled, from about 27 minutes to nearly 57 minutes a day. In total: an estimated 600 million additional calls and 6.4 billion more minutes of connection. What people talked about changed, too When calls cost money, families ration them: emergencies, financial logistics, urgent updates. When cost disappears, so does the rationing. People call to check on children. They talk through housing plans before release, work out job details, or pass along the ordinary family news that doesn’t feel urgent enough to justify three dollars a minute. Researchers have tracked where reentry breaks down, and family ties keep coming up. People who stay connected during incarceration are more likely to find stable housing and work after release, and less likely to return. Worth Rises didn’t produce that finding; it’s fairly well established in the literature. The report just shows how much contact was being suppressed by cost. Correctional staff at the facilities studied reported something similar from inside. Tensions dropped. Safety improved for staff and incarcerated people. A practical argument for a values question Advocates for free prison calls have long argued from a human rights position: incarcerated people should be able to stay connected to their families. That argument is sound. It also hasn’t moved policy as fast as anyone hoped. The cost argument lands differently. Free calls, properly contracted, actually run cheaper than what came before, because direct contracts cut out the revenue-sharing arrangements with private providers. For legislators weighing budgets, that removes the need to resolve a values debate before acting. About 330,000 incarcerated people, or roughly 15 percent of the two million people in American jails and prisons, now have access to free calls, video calls, or messaging.     Did this solution stand out? Share it with a friend or support our mission by becoming an Emissary.The post The case for making prison phone calls free: new data, real results first appeared on The Optimist Daily: Making Solutions the News.

BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Even though cruise ships may have a bad rap in the news lately, you may have planned or are still planning a trip on the sea. You’ve looked up the excursions, debated which restaurants to book, and maybe even perused the spa offerings. The health side of cruise prep isn’t nearly as exciting, but spending some time on it now could be the difference between the vacation you’ve been imagining and days locked away in your cabin. Here are the areas you need to pay special attention to. A few weeks before you board Book a pre-trip doctor’s visit Schedule a visit with your doctor four to six weeks before departure. The CDC recommends getting up to date on flu and COVID-19 vaccines before a cruise, and if you’re in a higher-risk group, ask about the RSV vaccine too. If your itinerary includes tropical or remote destinations, your doctor can advise on any destination-specific vaccines or medications. Start adjusting your sleep schedule now While you’re at it, think about your sleep. If you’re flying east and crossing three or more time zones, jet lag is a real factor: it leaves you feeling run down and more susceptible to digestive issues before you’ve even boarded. Shifting your bedtime by 15 to 20 minutes a day over two to three days beforehand can make a noticeable difference in how you feel on day one. Assemble a health kit Put together a small health kit before you go. Cruise ship shops carry some of this, but the selection tends to be limited, and the markups are steep. Pack any prescription medications in their original containers, something for motion sickness (meclizine or Dramamine work for most people), basic pain and fever relief like ibuprofen or acetaminophen, antacids, an antidiarrheal, and a few bandages. If you have a history of serious seasickness, ask your doctor about scopolamine patches, worn behind the ear, which can provide relief for up to three days at a time. Travel insurance and cabin choice One last note before you leave: travel insurance is worth considering. Onboard medical care adds up quickly, and emergency air evacuations can run well over $200,000. It’s the kind of thing you hope you never need. If motion sickness is a concern, a lower-deck or midship cabin tends to reduce what you’ll feel at sea. What to pack beyond the obvious Sanitizer, wipes, and a mask Cruise ships have hand sanitizer stations throughout, but bringing your own means you can use it whenever you want rather than tracking one down. Pack antibacterial wipes too: crew members clean regularly, but wiping down your cabin’s door handles, light switches, and TV remote when you arrive is a two-minute habit worth doing. An N95 or KN95 mask is worth having for crowded indoor spaces, especially if you’re in a higher-risk group. Shoes, sunscreen, and what to leave for the ship’s shops Sunscreen with SPF 15 or higher is a given. So are good walking shoes: passengers on cruise ships average 10,000 to 15,000 steps a day, which is more than most people expect, and your feet will know it by day two if your footwear isn’t up to it. Add insect repellent if your itinerary includes tropical excursions: it’s significantly cheaper to bring from home. A refillable water bottle matters more than it sounds. Staying properly hydrated supports immunity, helps with any nausea, and does your skin a favor after a day in the sun. Modern cruise ships typically have hydration stations you can fill from directly. Habits that keep you well on board Handwashing: more important here than at home A 2026 study found that only one in 20 cruise ship passengers maintained proper hand hygiene throughout a trip, despite how much it matters in a shared, enclosed space. You want to be in that five percent. Wash your hands before eating, when you return from a port excursion, every time you re-enter your cabin, and after touching stair railings or elevator buttons. Soap is more effective than sanitizer, but sanitizer is the right move when soap isn’t available. What to eat, drink, and skip At mealtimes, the temptation to go hard at the buffet is understandable, but overeating is a reliable route to feeling rough at sea. The CDC recommends limiting alcohol to one drink per day for women and two for men, worth keeping in mind when drinks are included. If you’re planning to swim, it’s especially worth staying clear-headed. Be cautious about food at local port restaurants, too: preparation and hygiene standards aren’t always consistent with what you’d find on the ship. Apply sunscreen at least 15 minutes before going outside and reapply every two hours. On a sea day, it’s easy to lose track of how long you’ve been on deck. If something goes sideways For seasickness Seasickness usually responds well to moving to a lower deck, lying down with your head still, and consuming something with ginger: ginger ale, ginger chews, or ginger tea. Applying pressure to the P6 point on your inner wrist, which some research links to nausea relief, can also help; wristbands designed for this are available at most pharmacies before you leave. An antiemetic like dimenhydrinate (sold as Dramamine or Gravol) is worth packing if you’re prone to motion sickness. For anything more serious For anything more significant, including fever, vomiting, diarrhea, or difficulty breathing, notify the ship’s medical team promptly. They handle exactly this and will guide you on the next steps, which might include a brief quarantine period. A stomach bug typically resolves in one to three days with rest and fluids. For milder respiratory symptoms, wearing a mask protects the people around you. One more thing: if you can, build in a recovery day or two when you return before heading back to work. Travel is genuinely tiring in ways that don’t always show up until you stop. Give yourself the time, and you’ll remember the trip for the right reasons.     Did this solution stand out? Share it with a friend or support our mission by becoming an Emissary.The post It’s cruise season! Here’s how to enjoy it without getting sick first appeared on The Optimist Daily: Making Solutions the News.

For those with great grandparents, grandparents, and parents from the Greatest Generation (those born 1901 to 1927) and the Silent Generation (those born 1928 to 1945), much can be learned from how to live a frugal lifestyle. These two generations lived through the Great Depression and World War II, two events that forced Americans to become more resourceful due to difficult financial situations, food scarcity, and rations. Today, people who consider themselves frugal are always looking for more ways to save money. To glean frugal wisdom from older generations that would still be applicable today, one frugal person posed the question on Reddit: “What frugal lesson from your parents or grandparents you still use today?” And many frugal people offered their best money-saving tips from their relatives that they still use today. From how to save on money to utilities, these are the best frugal tips from Redditors:  Reuse from your kitchen “My grandma rinsed and reused foil until it crumbled. I rolled my eyes then, now I catch myself doing it. Funny how those ‘silly’ habits end up smart. Mine also saves glass jars, labeled lids with tape, turned t-shirt into rags, and froze veg scraps for stock. :)” – YourxCherry “I save butter wrappers in the fridge to use for greasing baking pans. To get everything out of empty condiment bottles, I pour a little vinegar, milk or whatever is fitting, then shake it up and use that for salad dressing or other cooking needs.” – so-many-cats “I love Tostitos salsa jars. Whatever I cook, such as soup, ground beef, pasta, the extras, or leftovers, everything goes into these jars. They are so perfect for portioning. One jar = one person’s meal portion. I literally have more than 30 jars, and they are incredibly convenient!” – Proud_Possibility256 “I do not go grocery shopping until my fridge is empty including my freezer zero food waste. I have become very creative with recipes. Saves me money. Always take lunch to work.” – Samantha-the-mermaid “My grandmother took care of her five siblings during the depression after her parents died on .45¢ an hour. I make more money in an hour than she made in a week. She never wasted ANYTHING. She taught me to save bacon grease for seasoning, bread ends for bread pudding, leftovers for soup, and coffee grounds and eggshells for the garden. We didn’t carve our pumpkins- we painted them and made pumpkin pie out of it after Halloween.” – That-Response-1969 “I sometimes hate it that I am like this, but one of the first odd things that come to mind is labeling bottles of home goods like dish soap, body wash, bars of soap, hand soap, etc. so you know which one lasts the longest after purchase. Keep in mind, my grandmother grew up during the Great Depression. I also spent a majority of my days with her making food (predominately just standing around doing nothing useful). All of the meals we hold dear to our hearts are actually just frugal meals to stretch out. She would get extremely nervous if she came to your home and there were not canned goods. This is winter in the upper Midwest during the Great Depression to put it into perspective, along with canning and preparing for everything. This is a person that lived by candle light basically. When she finally had a icebox, every last meal had to be frozen. No matter what you made, it had to be able to sit there when necessary. You make no meal that cannot be eaten for three days or frozen solid for the next month. I still live by this routine.” – WideRoadDeadDeer95 Make your money go further “My mother taught me how to compare prices per item or ounce rather than by the package.” – Chicpea09 “My parents always framed purchases by how much time I would have to exchange for the item. So when I was in 6th grade and I wanted a TV for my bedroom and it was $120, I would have to do 6 to 10ish baby sitting jobs – then ask myself is it worth that exchange. This is still how I frame most purchases.” – BagNo349 “My grandfather told me as a teenager that debt is how other people control you. I didn’t realize how true this was until my early 20s when I got into mild debt problems. Since then I have been majorly debt averse.” – Egon88 “Mine told me if you cant pay the milkman 6pence this week, how will you pay him 12pence next week? Lesson learned. I pay my bills on time ALWAYS.” – Mundane_Sail_4155 “My dad always said it’s not a deal if you can’t afford it. Of course he didn’t have slickdeals either lol.” – JasonG5 “My grandpa always said ‘Pay yourself first.’ Even when money was tight, he’d stash $5–10 in savings before paying bills. I thought it was silly but that habit built a nice cushion over time.” – samdaz712 Save on utilities and living expenses “I hang dry my clothing whenever possible. I find it strangely relaxing to stand outside and carefully hang everything up so it has good airflow. It reminds me of helping my grandmother hang out laundry on their farm. The only thing I changed was painting the tips of my clothespins so I can see them better and don’t forget them on the line accidentally.” – SpecificSkunk “MAINTAIN and REPAIR what you already own. Lubricate, tighten, clean. Change filters. Replace belts. Flush. Air out. Condition. Resurface. Store properly. Take care of your stuff.” – i_know_tofu “I patch and repair clothes that can be repaired instead of immediately buying new. For instance, we have a comforter that has gotten holes from the washing machine – cheap materials. I’m learning the Japanese art of Shashiko to patch it over my Thanksgiving week break. I find a used item instead of buying new immediately, when our dryer went out, I bought one from an estate sale for the same price as repairing the old one would have cost (and since it was on it’s 3rd repair – heavy eye roll on cheaply made crap – I don’t feel so bad. I line dry a lot of things. Not everything but a lot.” – LeftwingSH “I put on hoodies and blankets and refuse to turn the heater on until the outside temps are about 45 degrees.” – thedoc617 “How to drive in order to maximize your miles per gallon and reduce wear and tear on the car. Accelerate slowly and try to keep under 2 RPMs. Leave a wide berth between yourself and other cars. Anticipate traffic/stopping, then let off the gas and cruise. Don’t ride the brakes.” – OrdinarySubstance491 The wisdom holds up, all these years later There’s a reason these habits stuck around long after the Depression ended and the rationing stopped. They work. Not because they’re clever tricks, but because they reflect a fundamental shift in how you relate to the things you own, treating them as resources to be respected rather than conveniences to be used up and replaced. Our grandparents didn’t have the luxury of waste, and in learning from them, we might find that neither do we. The good news is that most of these tips cost nothing to start. Pick one, try it this week, and see what happens. This article originally appeared last year. It has been updated. The post Frugal people share the best money-saving advice from parents and grandparents they still use appeared first on Upworthy.

People often pay to go on whale watching tours in hopes of mayyyyybe catching a single glimpse of a tail splashing the water, if they’re lucky. Sometimes, even that’s enough excitement. Just the smallest glimpse of one of the world’s largest species. There’s something powerful about feeling that small and insignificant. On August 13, 2022 however, folks in New York City got the whale watching cruise of a lifetime as they were able to witness not one, not two, but NINE whales swimming in the harbor. A remarkable sight that has only become more common as whale populations in the harbor have grown dramatically since. While onboard a tour with American Princess Cruises, Celia Ackerman, who works as a naturalist for the company, captured multiple breathtaking photos of the creatures with a view of New York’s skyline as the backdrop. Here’s just one of the beauties: Gorgeous all images taken by Celia Ackerman, used with permission from Gotham Whales Ackerman is also a research associate for Gotham Whale, a marine mammal research, education and advocacy organization. Gotham Whale tweeted the images not only to let others join in on nature’s spectacle, but also to raise awareness and avoid potential collisions. “Amazing day to say the least,” Gotham Whale’s caption read. Why New York’s waters are suddenly full of whales This once-in-a-lifetime sighting might be less of a miracle and more a result of concerted efforts to clean New York’s waters. Back in 2019, the New York Post cited a study that showed New York’s harbors were the purest they’ve been in nearly 110 years, not since “Albert Einstein had just published his theory of relativity,” according to the Post article. This was largely due to the Clean Water Act of 1972, in addition to volunteer environmental groups, according to the article. Cleaner water means more fish, and more fish means a whale buffet. Not to mention some amazing photos: Breach incoming! Photo credit: Celia Ackerman/Gotham Whales “Something else to make your heart happy!” someone commented alongside a blue whale emoji. Humpbacks are one of the great comeback stories Humpback whales, in particular, are an amazing conservation success story. In the 1940s, when whaling oversight first began, humpbacks were nearly extinct. Now they’re thriving. What’s not to love about this photo? Photo credit: Celia Ackerman/Gotham Whales This is the stuff fairy tales are made of y’all. Whales used to pass through New York harbor on their way to more fertile feeding grounds, but the water cleanup efforts have motivated them to stick around and feed. That’s how you get incredible sights like this. Over-whale-mingly cool. Photo credit: Celia Ackerman/Gotham Whales Hands down, most successful whale watching cruise ever. No question. One fish, two fish. Photo credit: Celia Ackerman/Gotham Whales These whales gave a water show and everything (see below): We’re in the splash zone. Photo credit: Celia Ackerman/Gotham Whales There’s even a video of three breaching whales from the same day, shared by science and health reporter Aaron Tremper. Caught a Triple Breach on video while out with @APCruises and @gothamwhale yesterday! Humpbacks off NYC? Always a breathtaking sight!#whales #NYC #animals pic.twitter.com/DycLRANOoW— Aaron Tremper (@aarontremper) August 15, 2022 “I would’ve been screaming. This is so magical!” wrote one person. Of course, the new-and-improved coastline (and all the fish that comes with it) is not only attracting whales. On August 8, 2022, two sharks were spotted off a beach in Queens, New York. And there were 15 shark sightings in one day the previous week, according to ABC7 New York. However, shark attacks are still quite rare. I know what you’re thinking: where are the dolphins?! Don’t worry, Ackerman found some of those, too. Like this Clymene dolphin below, whose most well-known party trick is spinning while jumping out of the water. He’s auditioning for the “Flipper” reboot. Photo credit: Celia Ackerman/Gotham Whales These images come as a respite after the news that Freya, a walrus in Norway who captured hearts by sunbathing in various boats, was euthanized by authorities after being declared a “threat to human safety.” Her death was considered by many to be an avoidable act of cruelty, brought on by human negligence. However, the walrus named after a Norse goddess of love aptly still commands reverence by her followers, who have started a fundraiser to erect a statue in her honor. Here is where things stand today Since these photos surfaced in 2022, the whale population in New York has continued to grow. Now, it’s so big that officials are growing worried over whale-ship collisions. Efforts to expand vessel speed limits have faced setbacks, in January 2025, NOAA withdrew proposed expansions that would have extended year-round protections. Meanwhile, the whale population continues to grow, with Gotham Whale’s catalog now documenting nearly 500 humpback whales off the coast as of 2025. We don’t always do right by our animal friends. But when we do, it shows. New York’s impromptu whale party is literal living proof of that. Finally, some good news about growing traffic! This article first appeared four years ago. It has been updated. The post New York City was visited by nine different whales in one day and the photos are incredible appeared first on Upworthy.

Around 1 a.m. on April 24, 2018, semi-truck drivers in the Oak Park area of Michigan received a distress call from area police: An unidentified man was standing on the edge of a local bridge, apparently ready to jump onto the freeway below. Thirteen drivers responded without hesitatio Those drivers then did something amazing. They raced to the scene to help and lined up their trucks under the bridge, providing a relatively safe landing space should the man jump. Fortunately, he didn’t. The impressive line-up wasn’t a coincidence. The drivers were prepared for exactly this sort of situation. Sgt. Jason Brockdorff of the Huntington Woods Police Department told The Detroit News that the response was something local police and truck drivers had actually trained for. But what was unusual was the sheer number of drivers who responded to the call. “That’s a practice we use if we have a jumper,” Brockdorff said. “We try to do it every time, to lessen the distance someone would travel if they were to jump. Fortunately, that didn’t happen.” The incident lasted nearly four hours, into the early morning. However, once the trucks were in place, the police were able to more comfortably negotiate with the unidentified man. A police car parked along the freeway. Photo credit: Canva After four hours, the man walked away safely Eventually, the man walked off the bridge on his own and received medical attention. In a pair of tweets, the local police department called attention to the incident to remind people in similar situations of the importance of seeking mental health services: This photo does show the work troopers and local officers do to serve the public. But also in that photo is a man struggling with the decision to take his own life. Please remember help is available through the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988 (or the previous number 1-800-273-8255). You can also call a loved one, member of the clergy or 911. There are so many people that can help you make the choice to get help and live! It is our hope to never see another photo like this again. You can also call a loved one, member of the clergy or 911. There are so many people that can help you make the choice to get help and live! It is our hope to never see another photo like this again. pic.twitter.com/cDfm1CK1BZ— MSP Second District (@mspmetrodet) April 24, 2018 What this moment says about all of us Working together, the police and everyday strangers saved a life. Ordinary people heeded the call of service to help a fellow person who was struggling. It’s a powerful image that’s impossible to ignore, and a reminder of humanity at its best. This article originally appeared eight years ago. It has been updated. The post 13 truckers parked side by side in the middle of the night to save a life appeared first on Upworthy.