Natalie

Mapping The Anti-Rights Movement From The US To The UK with Chiara Capraro, Amnesty International UK. Bellingcat Stage Talk, Thursday 12/2, 5pm CET/11am EST discord.com/invite/bellingcat

From trans healthcare to abortion politics - the same actors keep appearing. On Thursday 5pm CET/11am EST we'll be live with @amnestyuk.bsky.social 's Chiara Capraro in Discord talking on their research tracing the political alliances shaping today’s anti-rights movement. discord.gg/bellingcat?e...

Every “gender-critical” transphobe, and every creepy transphobic journalist “just asking questions” is responsible for this.

Transphobia IS fascism.

starbucks on a city street Couple excited to move to the big city and experience the exact same retailers as their current suburb but in cute buildings.

"Couple excited to move to the big city and experience the exact same retailers as their current suburb but in cute buildings."

Council of Europe Assembly backs ban on conversion practices | ILGA-Europe The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has adopted a landmark resolution calling on states to ban conversion practices.

“The Assembly has now called on member states to act swiftly, arguing that ending conversion practices requires not only legal bans, but sustained political will, properly funded services for survivors, and public education to prevent further harm.”

This is welcome news from Europe. 🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈

Not watch it for ages. Tonight’s viewing now sorted.

a man in a suit and tie looks out of a window with quickworky written in the corner Alt: a man in a suit and tie looks out of a window with quickworky written in the corner Mr Jolly Lives Next door

Is this the very building?

Thanks to the roughly 60 people who took part in Toronto's solidarity ride for Alex Pretti, as well as to the over 100 other cities around the world who also hosted rides. Here's a video I recorded as the ride passed by Queen's Park. #BikeTO #BikeSky #TOpoli #VikingBiking #StopICE

a dirt road with a blue sky in the background and a gif from gifbin.com ALT: a dirt road with a blue sky in the background and a gif from gifbin.com

No fireworks. No parties. No flags. No celebrations.

No comments from the Brexit leaders. No "wasn't that a great idea."

Six years after we left the EU - everyone knows it was a disaster.

But....

Council of Europe votes to ban conversion therapy The Council of Europe has voted to pass a resolution banning so-called 'conversion therapy' for all, including trans people.

@rikiwilchins.bsky.social 2026 Jan 29 PinkNews: Despite strong lobbying efforts by anti-trans Sex Matters, human rights body Council of Europe votes 3-to-1 to ban ‘conversion therapy’ across its 26 member states. UK Labour MP Kate Osborn brought the motion & 10k ppl in UK wrote in support of it.

Image showing news where Sex Matters has lost (twice in a day)

Rough day for Sex Matters

Just saying @carolinerussell.bsky.social is ace. The effort & genuine care she shows in horrific circumstances like these...
Compare to the endemic inaction at roads like this, the shrugged shoulders at junctions like the ones that bookend this road, despite clear patterns of collisions, the idea...

No surprise that the Doomsday Clock ticked closer to Armageddon today. Nuclear powers Russia, Israel, North Korea, Pakistan, India & the US have all been sabre-rattling their world-ending nuclear weapons. At 85 seconds, it’s closer, than ever, in history*

Perhaps we should ban adults from social media

Utrecht to start construction on largest car-free neighborhood in the country next week Construction of a new neighborhood is set to begin in Utrecht next week. The neighborhood, called Merwede, is scheduled to be the largest car-free district in the Netherlands, with 6,000 homes. The ar...

In case you missed it, Utrecht, Netherlands has begun building the largest Dutch “car-free” neighbourhood.

12K people
6K homes
1.8K social rental homes
1.5 mid-range rental & affordable owner-occupied homes
21.5K bike parking spaces
250 shared cars
2 parcel hubs
Parking structures on the edge.

Alex Pretti: Analysing Footage of Minneapolis CBP Shooting - bellingcat Bellingcat has analysed video of the shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. The footage appears to contradict statements made by the Department of Homeland Security.

Our analysis at @bellingcat.com on the killing of Alex Pretti breaks down the video evidence.

He never reached for his gun.
Agents sprayed/tackled him while his hands were up.
He was disarmed before he was shot.
The first shot came from an agent firing at him.

www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/01...

Twenty little black and white cycling line drawings, as follows: It’ll be worth it / great view from the top (person cycling up a hill). Bike shed - caption 'Room for another one?' This machine fights climate change (bicycle). 'Slow and steady wins the race'. Picture of person on upright bike. Bike helmet with 'A safe route would be even better' written on it. People cycling helps drivers, showing how cycling removes one car from the queue in front of you. Cargo bike (yes you can). Picture of cargo bike carrying washing machine. Ding dong. Bike bell. (Cyclists: Pass pedestrians with care). Cycling helps the NHS, written inside a heart. There’s a bike for almost everyone, showing an adapted cycle. Give us space - thank you. Diagram showing safe passing distance. VIP transport (Very Important Pet). Pet in bike basket. Picture of person on bike with caption 'Pays the same taxes you do'. Folding bike picture, showing how they open up possibilities. Car boot, under your desk, on a train. Take care please. Picture showing family on bikes ('could be your family') with car behind. This week’s shopping, arrows pointing at shopping on bike. E-bikes aren’t cheating. Picture of bike going up hill. 'Largely fuelled by cake', written on a piece of cake with bicycle topper. Where there’s a road let's make a safe bike route too. Shows bike route next to road. 'Have fun out there'. Two cyclists and a sign saying 'adventure', pointing in the direction they are going.

Hello to new followers (no idea quite how you're finding me, but... hello!). This is the kind of thing I do. And my best work, every week, is in my newsletter, which you can subscribe to here: diagramclub.substack.com Anyway, thank you for following.

Not one mention of climate change or resilience in this report.

Black and white drawing titled ‘The enemy - how they travel’. Picture of small boat, which is crossed out. Picture of private jet - not crossed out.

The enemy - how they travel

Poster showing details of event: Burns Night Cèilidh City Academy, E9 6EA Saturday 24th January, 6-11ish We invite you to join us for our yearly fundraiser and social cèilidh on Saturday the 24th January. This will include: Traditional dinner of haggis (with vegan and gluten free variants offered), neeps, tatties (and whisky!) Recitations and performances alongside the dinner (please get in touch if you’d like to do a turn!) Dancing after the dinner, led by our live band, the fabulous Muckers! See more info at hackneycycling.org.uk/burns-night

Not long until our yearly social / fundraising céilidh!

www.tickettailor.com/events/hackn...

Dinner and dancing, perfect to chase away the January blues.

But when I asked an organizer what they wanted to see out of press coverage, they told me they wanted people to see the beautiful things they are building here, and not just the worst stories of the worst of ICE's crimes.

What people are doing here is beautiful. It's a tragic beauty, but a real one

Zack holding up artwork saying make hope normal again

Loved every minute of the Yorkshire tour - thanks to everyone who showed up this weekend!

And love this picture that Anna, age 7, gave me as I was leaving 💚

Nothing. Keep going, you’re amazing. It’s people like you that help keep my head above the rising tide. 💪

You can not reason with a leader who should be in a padded cell.

Email invitation to Dr. Emma Hilton from Sex Matters about meeting the new chair, Dr. Mary-Ann Stephenson.

FOI reveals that within the first week in office, Dr Mary-Ann Stephenson requested a meeting with Sex Matters to discuss "mutual priorities and ways to work together going forward"

"Court considers that society may reasonably be expected to tolerate a certain inconvenience to enable individuals to live in dignity and worth in accordance with the sexual identity chosen by them at great personal cost" - Goodwin, 2002.

Dear Sir Paul, Re: Royal Society Code of Conduct I am sure that many scientists have written to you about the specific question of Elon Musk’s Fellowship and whether, under the Royal Society’s Code of Conduct, his retaining that Fellowship is appropriate. I will not rehash these issues. Instead, as a female scientist with extensive experience of activities aiming to increase equality, diversity and inclusion in the engineering and physical sciences sector, I am writing to you (in a personal capacity) to ask you to reconsider the statements you have recently made in this context to the UK press about the Royal Society’s Code of Conduct and how it is applied. A 2018 report from the joint National Academies of the United States of America, concluded that “sexual harassment is common in academic science, engineering, and medicine” and that “greater than 50 percent of women faculty and staff and 20–50 percent of women students encounter or experience sexually harassing conduct in academia”. This report described codes of conduct that make clear that sexual harassment is unethical and will not be tolerated as a “powerful incentive for change”. The authors also noted that sexual harassment can have significant and damaging effects on the integrity of research. In my own praxis, I have found that clear and consistently-implemented codes of conduct that address these issues make female scientists and engineers safer, and allow them to focus more effectively on their research. For codes of conduct to have such a positive effect, it is vital that sanctions for actions which transgress the code are meaningful and substantial.

I was hence aghast to realise that in an interview with the Financial Times published on 9/1/26, you appear to have suggested that the Royal Society “should only expel fellows if their science proved “faulty or fraudulent or highly defective””. Moreover, in a further interview with the Guardian on 11/1/26 you suggested that the code “may need to be looked at again”, with the implication that your aim would be to remove the option of sanctions on Fellows for reasons not strictly related to faults or defects in their research. I suggest that changing the Royal Society’s code of conduct so that the likelihood of serious sanctions for sexual harassment is reduced, would directly endanger women who interact with the Royal Society at events or otherwise, and would provide a licence to harass to the already powerful people on whom the Society bestows fellowship. The implications of your words - that under your leadership the only infringements of the code which are likely to receive the sanction of the Fellowship being removed are those related to research misconduct - already risk empowering harassers. You stated, in the Financial Times interview, that “there’s many bad people around, but they have made scientific advances”. Given this awareness of the possibility of bad actors in our scientific community, it is wholly irresponsible to suggest that the Royal Society would not act to sanction these people if they harass more vulnerable scientists. I am hence writing to request that you retract any suggestion that the Society’s Code of Conduct should be changed so that the only reason a Fellow might be sanctioned by the removal of their Fellowship is “faulty or fraudulent or highly defective” research. This action is necessary to safeguard female scientists, a requirement placed on the Society by safeguarding legislation and UK statutory guidance. Yours sincerely, Professor Rachel A. Oliver.

Following coverage over the weekend of Sir Paul Nurse's comments that suggested that the only reason that a Fellow should be expelled from @royalsociety.org is scientific misconduct, I have written to him to explain the risks such an attitude poses of increasing sexual harassment in STEM.

Heidi Alexander: “protect the right to protest in Iran!”

Everyone Else: “what about the right to protest in the UK, which your government is working hard to remove…?”

Fund the work of the Trans+ Solidarity Alliance Trans+ Solidarity Alliance is a trans-led not-for-profit working in partnership with cis allies on our mission to work towards, real and lasting positive change for trans+ people in the UK.We’re a sma...

Just donated to this.

The Trans Solidarity Alliance @transsolidarity.bsky.social did vital work in 2025. Unlike the transphobes they don't have wealthy fascist donors to support their work, so please contribute to their fundraiser and lets get them some of the funds they need for 2026.

I’ve seen first-hand the utter devastation road deaths cause — families shattered in seconds, lives permanently changed. To dismiss this as an “utter non-problem” is wrong and deeply offensive.

The acceptance of this devastation reflects a lack of knowledge and ambition. We can do so much better.