An Optimist's Guide To The Planet

Hosted by the humanitarian, explorer, and Game of Thrones star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, An Optimist’s Guide to the Planet is a round-the-world adventure on the brighter side of climate change.

Each immersive episode features a range of uplifting stories. And—from carbon-neutral jet fuel to worms that eat plastic—showcases the activists and scientists who are harnessing traditional knowledge, cutting-edge technology, and nature’s regenerative power to come up with solutions to our biggest environmental challenges. It’s a relentlessly positive journey as Nikolaj serves up inspiration rather than climate doom and gloom.

Featured Stories:

• Nikolaj meets with a local geologist in Greenland who discovered a way to turn the melting ice caps into a potential benefit.
• In rural Spain, a developmental biologist and amateur beekeeper find a solution that could help solve the massive problem of plastic waste deep within her beehive.
• Nikolaj learns about a green housing initiative in Kilifi, Kenya that, with only a fraction of the carbon footprint, could mean green, inexpensive 3D-printed homes for millions of people.

Awards

Canadian Screen Awards 2025, Rob Stewart Award for Best Science or Nature Documentary Program or Series