Neil Tangri

"The AI infrastructure build-out is so gigantic that in the past 6 months, it contributed more to the growth of the U.S. economy than /all of consumer spending/" - @mims.bsky.social

My takeway is that The US has gone ALL IN BET OF THE 21st Century on AI, while China has gone all in on green tech

More than 200 lobbyists at UN’s plastic treaty talks will limit progress, campaigners warn Environmental group says industry figures will be obstructive and aim to reduce overall ambition of meeting

It's an uphill battle at the #plasticstreaty talks. But then those are the only ones really worth fighting. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Also clearly unconstitutional btw. Is there anyone in the census bureau who will stand up to this illegal order?

Good thread

Hi #Inc5 — did you know the high-profile environmental calamities at Woburn (Travolta’s A Civil Action), Parkersburg (Ruffalo’s Dark Waters), Toms River (@danfagin.bsky.social’s book won the Pulitzer) even Japan’s Minamata ALL involved PLASTICS-associated chemical pollution? 🛢️🏭 #plasticstreaty

Ghana’s waste pickers brave mountains of plastic – and big industry Accra has been picked by a World Bank bond to end the waste crisis. But for informal recyclers, it is a false solution.

Great long form piece on waste pickers. It includes a bit on #plasticcredits but is primarily about the humanity of those who are too often beneath notice. www.aljazeera.com/features/lon...

Plastic credits: A ‘false solution’ or the answer to global plastic waste? As UN meets to negotiate an international treaty to curb plastic pollution, many favour carbon credit-like offsetting.

www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/...

This should be disqualifying. In addition to the 48 other reasons of course.

@leotrasande.bsky.social FTW! #plasticstreaty negotiators need more “hormonal fortitude” to stand up straight and tall! Too many endocrine disrupters have impaired their ability to firmly resist! Leo was killing it tonight!

Exclusive: Trump administration memo urges countries to reject plastic production caps in UN Treaty The United States has sent letters to at least a handful of countries urging them to reject the goal of a global pact that includes limits on plastic production and plastic chemical additives at the start of U.N. plastic treaty talks in Geneva, according to a memo and communications seen by Reuters.

US trying to bully other countries to accept more #plastic pollution at the #plasticstreaty talks. www.reuters.com/sustainabili...

New Global Market for “Plastic Credits” Threatens Livelihoods at Kenyan Dump As governments meet in Geneva to hammer out a plastics treaty, petrochemicals companies find ways to avoid curbs on production.

Delighted to be quoted in this report of yet another #plasticcredit scheme that fails to deliver. (What a surprise). This time, #wastepickers are the victims. www.desmog.com/2025/08/05/n...

Good thread

Video shows flash flood engulfing riverside village in India Dozens are feared trapped after a cloudburst triggered floods in northern India's Uttarakhand state.

Climate change is not only higher temperatures. This is also what climate change looks like. www.bbc.com/news/videos/...

Oil producer pressure, Trump rollbacks threaten global treaty on plastics pollution Hopes for a "last-chance" ambitious global treaty to curb plastic pollution have dimmed as delegates gather this week at the United Nations in Geneva for what was intended to be the final round of negotiations.

Dynamics at the #plasticstreaty negotiations, with the US weighing in on the side of Saudi Arabia, Russia, and Iran. www.reuters.com/sustainabili...

The #PlasticsTreaty negotiations have officially begun! Follow us for updates from the second part of the fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution. WATCH LIVE webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1n... (🧵) #INC52

❝ Petrostates are holding plastics treaty talks hostage. Countries should vote them down - Geneva Solutions As a minority threatens to block final negotiations in Geneva for a plastics treaty, countries should invoke their right to vote to ensure an ambitious agreement is reached, write Philippe Bolo (Franc...

A good letter on the importance of voting at the #plasticstreaty INC. genevasolutions.news/climate-envi...

Eliminating all the billionaires isn't one simple solution?

I think I need to repost this at least once a month. It's just note-for-note pitch perfect. www.instagram.com/reel/DImZN7G...

White House Orders NASA to Destroy Important Satellite The White House has instructed NASA employees to destroy two major, climate change-focused satellite missions. As NPR reports, Trump officials reached out to the space agency to draw up plans for term...

Terrible news. The orbiting carbon observatories generate very valuable data. Will people please stop telling Trump about the scientific assets that we have so he doesn't know to destroy them? www.yahoo.com/news/article...

Petrostates take Trump’s help to fight for plastics at UN summit A group of oil-producing nations could derail efforts to strike a deal tackling plastic pollution at the source.

It's not a surprise if the US goes full MAGA at the #plasticstreaty. What else would you expect from the "drill baby, drill!" crowd? The question is, will the rest of the world cower in fear or dismiss US diplomacy as incoherent and toothless? It's time to vote. www.politico.eu/article/petr...

‘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

Food for thought. www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Great thread here by Josh. Quick thread on a related line of thought underlying much recent discourse about the IRA repeal. It goes like this:

1. Durable policy needs powerful defenders.
2. Who's powerful in the US? Mostly rich people.
3. So make clean energy people rich enough to defend policy.

Wow. That’s an anomaly though. In the US, public water quality is generally better than bottled. But obviously there are exceptions (hello Flint!) and certainly governance matters.

This is my critique of the abundance argument. Our critical need is public goods not more business opportunities for the private sector. How do we build high speed rail, local transit, sewers, lead-free water delivery etc etc faster better and cheaper? That’s the real question.

The baby on this flight is done just d.o.n.e done. As the screaming continues, she really speaks for all of us.

As UN plastic treaty talks face possible deadlock, what are the ways forward? Historically, most United Nations agreements have been reached by consensus. But based on recent events, this no longer seems likely for achieving a fully effective global treaty on plastic pollution,...

Nice piece on #plasticstreaty dynamics and the possible ways toward an effective treaty news.mongabay.com/2025/07/as-u...

This is brilliant

Nature Stories Podcast · SPROUTS · ”Nature Stories” is a weekly audio podcast hosted by Anand Pendharkar, leading Ecologist and CEO of the Mumbai-based conservation organisation SPROUTS. The podcast will features st...

Check out the new podcast series from Anand Pendharkar! open.spotify.com/show/4vC4xpj...

The Consensus Syndrome An effective treaty on plastic pollution will require countries to break the long-standing spell of consensus — and finally put decisions to a vote.

@magnuslovold.bsky.social returns with a banger. Yes, voting is needed at the #plasticstreaty #INC5.2 and it should happen early, before the text is watered down by intransigent parties. backchannel1.substack.com/p/the-consen... I wrote a bit about this, too: www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

This is depressing but also an opportunity. The right's long-term strategy is to destroy any possibility of collective action for the public good, rendering all problems individualistic. Showcasing successful collective action is a path to success as well as out of the right wing wilderness.