Tanya Ha

Balcony solar takes US by storm, as 27 states announce new plug-and-play PV laws In more than half of US states, Republican and Democratic lawmakers have introduced legislation that would boost adoption of DIY solar systems.

In more than half of #US states, Republican and Democratic lawmakers have introduced legislation that would boost adoption of DIY #solar systems.

Balcony solar takes US by storm, as 27 states announce new plug-and-play PV laws In more than half of US states, Republican and Democratic lawmakers have introduced legislation that would boost adoption of DIY solar systems.

reneweconomy.com.au/balcony-sola...

“…it will produce about 15% to 20% of the electricity her family uses and save her about $100 per year. Every time Phillips gazes at the device, she said, she’s amazed that ​“this is just a thing that I plugged in, and I’m generating my own power.””

Three in four women unaware menopause can trigger new mental illness, poll finds Royal College of Psychiatrists says impact on mental health often overlooked and calls for improvements in care

www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

The frequency of billion-dollar disasters has increased dramatically » Yale Climate Connections The U.S. now experiences a billion-dollar disaster about every two weeks, on average.

"The U.S. now experiences a billion-dollar disaster about every two weeks, on average." 😩

As communities struggle to recover from increasingly devastating climate disasters, the Big Oil companies fueling them are making trillions—and paying nothing. We can't afford to let Big Oil off the hook.

There's a call out for amateur astrophotographers to help support space-based missions and science projects!

Jove is an excellent target, and if you can acquire high-quality images from your backyard telescopes, then see the below post for more info.

This is cool community science!

🔭🧪

Three frames. 1. Afro-American mother and and child walking along street, dressed for winter, behind them a silhouette of armed man. Child says, “Momma, who was Jesse Jackson?” Mother says, “He was a leading civil rights activist.” 2. Still walking along street, behind them silhouette of man holding up “ICE OUT” placard. 3. Still walking. Silhouette shows man from frame 1 seizing placard and aggressing man from frame 2. Child says “Momma, what were civil rights?”

Vale Jesse Jackson.
My @smh @theage cartoon.

‘Opening up worlds’: Linda Burney joins UTS board with a mission to boost Aboriginal participation Former minister helped develop Australia’s first Aboriginal education policy in the 1980s and brings decades of expertise to embattled university * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Linda Burney has been appointed to her first public role since leaving federal parliament, joining the board of the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) in a move the New South Wales government hopes will restore faith in the embattled institution. Burney, the first Aboriginal woman to be elected to the federal House of Representatives, ended her two-decade career in politics in early 2025, departing as the minister for Indigenous Australians in mid-2024 and formally leaving office at the end of the 47th parliament. Continue reading...

‘Opening up worlds’: Linda Burney joins UTS board with a mission to boost Aboriginal participation

Very good dog invades course but falls short of medal glory at Winter Olympics A local dog has missed out on a historic medal at the Winter Olympics despite a lung-bursting stretch in the homestretch

Gorgeous! ❤️⛷️🐕
“Even if he had completed the entire race, Nazgul’s time would not have counted as he is male. And a dog.”
www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/f...

Jon Kudelka, much-loved Australian political cartoonist, dies aged 53 Award-winning Tasmanian artist’s work was published by the Australian, the Saturday Paper and the Hobart Mercury

“He loved his family, friends, making art in many forms, and firmly calling out political and anti-science bullshit with his typically dry wit and compassion.”

You will be missed Jon Kudelka ❤️😥

www.theguardian.com/media/2026/f...

Engines Off for Our Kids - Feb 10 - online

At school/childcare drop-off and pick-up, many children across Australia are unknowingly being exposed to harmful levels of transport-related air pollution from idling cars.

Tonight, we're launching 'Idle Off', a practical, community-led initiative with @parentsforclimate.bsky.social

RSVP here 👇

$500k of ad inventory for sustainability campaigns. 🍾

Apply at SBS

www.sbs.com.au/aboutus/wp-c...

Food delivery riders brave Australia’s ‘brutal’ 40C heat so we don’t have to – but who’s protecting them? Australia’s gig workers should not be forced to choose between their health and a paycheck when temperatures soar, experts say

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

‘Her name was Mothball and she changed my life’: the true story behind Diary of a Wombat Jackie French was used to the quirks of wild animal behaviour – and then she met a carrot-mad wombat with an appetite for destruction. A bestseller was born

This is the best most beautiful thing I’ve read in ages! ❤️🥲 Thank you ⁦‪Jackie French

www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...

@toryshepherd.bsky.social reporting for @australia.theguardian.com

‘The urgency of it was pretty terrifying’: the Australian charities grappling with Trump’s foreign aid freeze a year on Education, food and health programs have been cut, resulting in preventable deaths, aid groups say

This is heartbreaking and infuriating. Trump’s cuts have terrible, tragic consequences.

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

‘Not radical, it’s fair’: Australian households would receive compensation in proposed ‘polluter pays’ levy scheme Superpower Institute report fleshes out 2024 call from Labor heavyweight Ross Garnaut to re-embrace carbon pricing 12 years after Tony Abbott axed it

Interesting
www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Aurora australis set to light up Australian sky as agencies monitor ‘severe’ solar storm The spectacular aurora australis, also known as the southern lights, may be visible as far north as Victoria and New South Wales

www.theguardian.com/science/2026...

Close up of my dogs face with his snout large

Close up of my dogs face showing his tiny teeth below his snout

I live in a suburb that has lots of dogs. And dogs are awesome.

One of my goals this year is to start a thread of all the doggo friends I meet in these parts and share them.

So …. welcome to the #DogsOfBalmain thread!

Of course to begin, here is little mate.

Bop snout and teef.

Study debunks Trump claim that paracetamol causes autism Taking drug in pregnancy does not raise chances of autism, ADHD or intellectual disability, ‘gold standard’ review finds

www.theguardian.com/society/2026...

Dried flowers and pressed petals: how an artist is turning tributes to Bondi terror attack victims into a lasting memorial Nina Sanadze and a team of volunteers have started the painstaking process of preserving the sea of flowers left after Australia’s worst terrorist incident

This is beautiful
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

‘Not regulated’: launch of ChatGPT Health in Australia causes concern among experts Calls for clear guardrails and consumer education before wider rollout of OpenAI’s health advice platform

This is terrible!
www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

A small film of spring flowers from my garden because we recover from stress 60% more quickly when we look at plants & if we find them beautiful our brains release dopamine, lifting mood. Pause for a few moments to help your synaptic soup 🌿🧠:

Which option do we choose - act or delay?

These are the 'warning' stripes highlighting global choices. Do we act rapidly and keep global temperatures below 2°C, or delay and end up in a 3°C world (or worse)?

As the climate data for 2025 continues to be released, it's time to update various data visualisations.

First - the global climate stripes for 1850-2025. A third darkest red stripe is added.

The last 11 years have been the warmest 11 years on record. A sequence that is unlikely to be broken soon.

Astronauts head back to Earth early in NASA’s first medevac The crew returning from the ISS are expected to splash down on Thursday evening (AEDT) in the Pacific Ocean near San Diego.

Phew!
www.smh.com.au/world/north-...

viney plant with white eggplants that loo, well like, eggs.

Friendly reminder that we call eggplant eggplant because the "normal" eggplant used to look like this

Beyond the music: What happens to abandoned camp gear at festivals? A single one-person tent contains as much plastic as 8,750 plastic straws.

The West Vic Brolga did a neat video about this the other day.

I really like the work that they and the rest of the Gazette team are doing across regional Vic.

The person down the street who filled their front yard with paper daisy plants did a kindness for everyone 😊🌱

Walking through post-festival camp full of abandoned gear feels like 'shopping' With campsite trash accounting for more than half of the rubbish accumulated at music festivals, there are calls for a "cultural shift" in the behaviour of those attending.

www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01...