Canadian astronaut Col. Chris Hadfield, former commander of the International Space Station, made a New Year's resolution to help make our world a better place. His first step was to post an uplifting video about why we should be optimistic about the future.

"It is easy to look to the future and lament how far there is left to go, but sometimes it is helpful to stop and reflect on just how far we've come," he wrote in the video's introduction.

(WATCH the video below)

Story tip from Kelly Harrington