Julie Lockwood

Hurricane Melissa a ‘real-time case study’ of colonialism’s legacies Destruction in Jamaica shows why climate justice cannot be separated from reparatory justice, campaigners say

“The storm hit rural Jamaica hardest – people who are poorest, least protected, and historically marginalised. The same communities shaped by slavery, colonial extraction, and racialised policies are now on the frontline of climate disaster.”

www.theguardian.com/news/2025/no...

Man Who Stuffed Parakeets in His Pants Faces Smuggling Charge The man was found with the heavily sedated birds in his underwear as he crossed the border from Mexico in late October, federal prosecutors said.

A man was found with two heavily sedated orange-fronted parakeets in his underwear as he crossed the border from Mexico in October, U.S. prosecutors said. He was indicted on a federal smuggling charge on Friday.

Businesses can’t build resilience without nature strategies Businesses must develop nature strategies and implement them swiftly to mitigate risks and build resilience in a changing world.

"When ecosystems fail, supply chains stall, costs spike, and financial stability is eroded.

The World Economic Forum ranks biodiversity loss and extreme weather among the decade’s top global risks.
 Yet, most companies leave nature out of their strategic plans."
www.eco-business.com/opinion/busi...

There are no remote regions in a globalized world. The Antarctic region (ice-free peninsula, coastal waters, & surrounding islands) has been invaded by ~200 species of plants, animals, & microbes. Antarctica is connected to the world by global ship traffic. #bioinvasions
www.pnas.org/doi/full/10....

‘Unlawful coercion’: Trump can’t withhold funds or demand payment from UC, federal judge rules A federal judge ruled Donald Trump cannot demand that UCLA pay a $1.2 billion settlement that would have restricted academic freedoms.

A huge district court victory for the University of California.

District courts find facts. This one found "overwhelming evidence" that the Trump administration has pervasively violated the First Amendment in its efforts to coerce and intimidate the University of California.

News story here—

Honoring the life of James A. Estes, a pioneering ecologist.

Honoring James A. Estes, a pioneering ecologist whose research on sea otters in Alaska revealed how predators shape entire ecosystems. His work helped define the concept of trophic cascades and inspired generations of ecologists. Read the PNAS Retrospective: https://ow.ly/leKs50XrKBH

Last month, researchers from Teledyne Marine and Rutgers University launched an autonomous underwater glider on an ambitious mission to circumnavigate the globe.

📲 Find out what this historic mission means for the future of ocean research from the @bostonglobe.com: go.whoi.edu/redwing

📢 In a new PLOS Climate Opinion article, the Co-Chairs of the the @ipbes.net Nexus Assessment, @pammcelwee.bsky.social and Paula Harrison, share key lessons for the UNFCCC #COP30

🔗 journals.plos.org/climate/arti...

Title, authors’ names, abstract, and keywords from a paper about global ocean indicators for use at the nexus of science and policy

#Ocean knowledge is key for informing policies to safeguard the ocean & the planet’s health. Von Schuckmann et al. present a framework for verified, significant, scalable, justified, measurable, & accessible indicators to track the state of the ocean to inform decision-making doi.org/10.1016/j.ma...

Check out our note, published today in Oryx Conservation News:

Ants in the pet trade: an urgent call to CITES Parties to protect global ant diversity from emerging trade threats

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

Please share far and wide!

The current aquatic eDNA digital landscape is fragmented, @ednaquaplan.bsky.social has worked on a proposal for it to be FAIREer & more sustainable, contributing to a more efficient biodiversity monitoring.

Find out more about the project coordinated by EMBRC.

www.embrc.eu/project/edna...

Artificial intelligence (AI) is already driving scientific breakthroughs in a variety of research fields, ranging from the life sciences to mathematics. This raises a critical question: can AI be… Launch event: AI for a planet under pressure

Did you miss the launch of AI for a planet under pressure?

This landmark report shows that good use of AI is an opportunity the world cannot afford to miss – it can accelerate science and decision-making about climate change, biodiversity loss, and other crises related to planetary boundaries.

Anastasija Zaiko opened the #GuardIAS conference today: new high-speed, scalable eDNA samplers—surface to deep water, shore to AUV—are making biodiversity detection smarter, faster, and far more reliable. Big step forward for early-warning and #biosecurity surveillance.

Fresh insights at #GuardIAS Conference from @teuneverts.bsky.social : pooled #eDNA sampling is proving a smart, cost-efficient way to track the northernmost Xenopus laevis invasion. With 100+ km² already occupied, this approach delivers fast, actionable intelligence for cross-border management.

@zoopel.bsky.social just presented our MODAS concept at the #GuardIAS Conference: a database flag for alien species detected solely through molecular tools. By integrating these “invisible invaders” into IAS systems, we can prioritise validation, boost early warning, and modernise biosecurity.
#eDNA

Prohibited activities include advising Chinese graduate students. For reference, a recent Georgetown report estimated 16% of STEM graduate students in the US are Chinese nationals.

This would take out entire fields at the knees, which is perhaps the point.

Job opportunity: Postdoc biodiversity and ecosystem monitoring The Department of Biology at Aarhus University is seeking a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher for a 2-year position focused on environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis and ecosystem monitoring. Thi…

🌿 Postdoc Alert!
Aarhus University is hiring a 2-yr postdoc in eDNA analysis & ecosystem monitoring. Work on cutting-edge projects that analyse biodiversity and ecological function across various ecosystems.
🗓️ Deadline: 1 Dec 2025
🔗 More info: tinyurl.com/2dp55uut

Unveiling the trade in wild pigeons and doves (Columbidae) in Indonesia: scale, routes, and conservation concerns - European Journal of Wildlife Research Illegal and unsustainable bird trade is widespread in Indonesia, but while much research attention has been given to the trade in songbirds, much less is known about the trade in pigeons and doves. Pi...

Check out our latest publication: Unveiling the trade in wild pigeons and doves (Columbidae) in Indonesia: scale, routes, and conservation concerns.

link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Please feel free to share far and wide!

New online! Captive rearing and breeding are unlikely to save China’s critically endangered sea turtles

New Jersey Households Can Save $467 Per Year On Energy Costs With Key Policy Actions What can New Jersey do to prioritize affordability, lower energy costs, and the build-out of more clean energy? By following these seven policy actions, local leaders can cut household energy bills by...

And from @evergreenaction.bsky.social, here's a policy package to bring down energy costs in New Jersey:

1. Getting clean energy projects connected to the grid
2. Data centers supplying their own affordable, clean energy
3. Adopting smart EV charging programs
4. Reining in utility profit margins

At the upcoming #CITESCOP20 meeting, we will be supporting a range of proposals from governments to protect Threatened and Endangered species in international trade. See our positions below. www.wcs.org/cites 🌏

Radioactive rhinos (cartoon) South Africa’s rhinos now have an unlikely superpower: radioactivity! Scientists working on the Rhisotope Project inject the horns of live rhinos with a radioactive isotope. This is harmless to the…

South Africa’s rhinos now have an unlikely superpower: radioactivity! Scientists working on the Rhisotope Project inject the horns of live rhinos with a radioactive isotope. Although harmless to rhinos, it makes smuggled horns easy to detect in customs inspections in hopes of deterring poaching.

A warning at #GuardIAS Conference from @bgallardo.bsky.social : drought “solutions” like reservoirs and inter-basin transfers can become #invasion highways. With quagga mussels primed to expand under #ClimateChange, integrating #biosecurity into water-infrastructure planning is no longer optional.

Is Facebook fueling the online trade in aquatic invasive species?

Survey of hobbyists indicates that over half engage in peer-to-peer organism exchange, transport across state lines & release them into the wild.

AI Podcast: open.substack.com/pub/oldenfis....

Paper: www.reabic.net/journals/mbi...

How Pacific nations plan to go from spending up to 25% of GDP on fossil fuels to running on ... Picture dusk falling somewhere in the Solomon Islands. A fisher’s skiff glides home using a whisper-quiet electric outboard motor. In the Cook Islands, a big battery steadies the island grid. In Papua New Guinea’s highlands, solar kits bring electric light...

How Pacific nations plan to go from spending up to 25% of GDP on fossil fuels to running on ...
->The Conversation | More from Lil Dr Glen EcoChat at BigEarthData.ai

A great talk at #GuardIAS Conference today: Amalia Mailli presented a new open, modular #eDNA reference database for Europe’s aquatic IAS. Bringing assays, primers & barcode gaps together in one place—this will boost detection, monitoring and future research across freshwater and marine systems.

A standout #GuardIAS talk from Rein Brys: ddPCR-based #eDNA not only detects #invasive Marbled crayfish in the Hatertse Vennen but also estimates their abundance—revealing a far larger metapopulation and clear impacts on native amphibians. Powerful tools now steering targeted management.
@inbo.be

Excited to see our updated report on New Jersey's Rising Seas and Changing Coastal Storms get published! In addition to new sea level estimates, we highlight changes to coastal storms— including greater intensity and more precipitation—that amplify coastal hazards in NJ share.google/hn924C30ryP6...

The @iea.org’s World Energy Outlook is here

❌ Ignore the hype on an extended shelf life for fossil fuels

Renewables + electrification = an energy revolution ⚡

Let’s unpack what it all means

🧵1/8

Project to restore and expand Scotland’s ancient forests provides a boost to moth biodiversity Patrick Cook and his team share their experience investigating how moths respond to a landscape-scale woodland expansion project at Mar Lodge Estate in the Scottish Highlands. Background Upland lan…

Patrick Cook and his team share their experience in the Scottish Highlands investigating how moths respond to landscape-scale woodland expansion on our blog The Applied Ecologist🌲

Check it out here! 👇
buff.ly/vFbUx4b

🌍🧪