Mark Harrison

Sign the Petition Save Geography at the University of Leicester

SAVE GEOGRAPHY at Leicester University (UK) - We call on the University of Leicester to urgently reconsider the proposal to dissolve Geography. This is direct attack on the discipline of Geography at Leicester with likely loss of Geography staff. Please sign + share

www.change.org/p/save-geogr...

We’re counting on you to show leadership right now and protect people, not polluters. We need a real plan to transition away from fossil fuels. Show leadership and add the roadmap to the #COP30 agreement!

Horrible news...

AEWA Exec Sec: "2/3 of bird species are in decline and the Slender-billed Curlew’s extinction serves as a poignant reminder that conservation frameworks must be implemented swiftly, backed by adequate science, resources and sustained political will".

www.cms.int/news/slender...

Underwater cameras reveal 'pristine sea-life' off Isles of Scilly Experts say the footage shows

Very happy to see this!

"The Isles of Scilly is a semi or near pristine environment which can be an example of how our waters could look if we give them space and time to recover"

@uniexecec.bsky.social @owenexeter.bsky.social

www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/...

The grant lottery: award rates at UK national funding agency fall below 20% Application volume is outpacing available funding, intensifying competition and worsening pressure on the peer-review system. But those who win grants are now getting more.

Nuts... Is this really the best way to maximise the use of & impact from scientific resources, constantly spending huge amounts of time on applications with such low rates of success? Or just more 💰 needed?!

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Good! Because of their wet nature, regular #fire is not a natural occurrence on #peat anywhere, so this English ban should be great news for people, wildlife and climate (albeit still with some weaknesses that need to be addressed).

This is figure 1, which shows global and regional PM2.5 pollution from the 2023 Canadian wildfires.

Around 354 million people in North America and Europe are likely to have been affected by fine particulate matter pollution from the 2023 Canadian wildfire season, a paper published in Nature suggests. go.nature.com/42iffKC ⚒️ 🧪

Be it feast or famine, orangutans adapt with flexible diets Humans could learn a thing or two from orangutans when it comes to maintaining a balanced, protein-filled diet. Great apes native to the rainforests of Indonesia and Malaysia, orangutans are marvels o...

#Primates 🦧

Brazil authorities suspend key Amazon rainforest protection measure Suspension of Soy moratorium could open up area of rainforest the size of Portugal to destruction

Potentially devastating reversal of a highly successful policy:

"One of the key agreements for Amazon rainforest protection – the soy moratorium – has been suspended by Brazilian authorities, potentially opening up an area the size of Portugal to destruction"

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Brilliantly led by Namrata Anirudh, with @wendyerb.bsky.social @dave-s.bsky.social @nicolasjdeere.bsky.social @mattstruebig.bsky.social and many others not on here.

Link to the OA paper:

www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

1/ Nice article just published summarising our recent paper exploring the distribution, ecology and #conservation of #kerangas #forest in Kalimantan 🌳. Under-appreciated but incredible forests, with important conservation potential and much still to learn! Paper OA and linked 👇

Drivers and solutions to Southeast Asia’s biodiversity crisis Nature Reviews Biodiversity - The terrestrial ecosystems of Southeast Asia are both globally important reservoirs of biodiversity, and a provider of resources and livelihoods for millions of people...

Southeast Asia covers multiple global biodiversity hotspots — but is experiencing a biodiversity crisis.

Our new article in Nature Reviews Biodiversity asks: What’s really driving the losses, and what can we do about it?
👉 rdcu.be/expy6 1/7

World in $1.5tn ‘plastics crisis’ hitting health from infancy to old age, report warns Plastic production has increased more than 200 times since 1950 and hits health at every stage from extraction to disposal, says review in the Lancet

Shocking.

"Plastics are a “grave, growing and under-recognised danger” to human and planetary health... which is causing disease and death from infancy to old age and is responsible for at least $1.5tn (£1.1tn) a year in health-related damages."

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

‘Self-termination is most likely’: the history and future of societal collapse An epic analysis of 5,000 years of civilisation argues that a global collapse is coming unless inequality is vanquished

For thousands of years, we have been parasitised, exploited and destroyed by elites. Our survival depends on overthrowing them.
Fascinating article by @dpcarrington.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Thanks for this, super useful! I'm new to the platform and would be keen to be added as well, if that's possible 🙂

Scholar profile of what I've been working on: scholar.google.com/citations?hl...

G'day folks!👋 I'm new here, so please be kind and feel free to connect if you're also intrigued by all things (tropical) ecology, wildlife, conservation, restoration, forests and peat 🙂