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Alastair McKinstry

@amckinstry.bsky.social
1.3K followers 746 following 128 posts

Climate Scientist, #GreenParty, #IFUT.ie branch chair in University of Galway. #Galway #ConnemaraGreenway. Sé/é/He/him. Also at @amckinstry@mastodon.ie and matrix: @alastair:mckinstry.ie

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Reposted by Alastair McKinstry
Saul Staniforth @saulstaniforth.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
One from the archives In 1984 Dunnes shop worker Mary Manning refused to handle South African goods & was backed by her shop steward, Karen Gearon. Both were suspended. 9 colleagues came out in support. The strike lasted 3yrs & forced the Irish govt to ban the import of all SA goods. All heroes
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Pádraic Fogarty @whittledaway.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Sometimes I think we're making progress in our attitudes to nature, and then I read an article like this which reminds me that we haven't moved on much at all 😒 www.westmeathindependent.ie/2026/09/25/s...
westmeathindependent.ie
Silt removal will help river flow – ‘Boxer’ | Westmeath Independent
The removal of 1,100 tonnes of silt upstream of Lough Derg, between Banagher and Victoria Lock, will be of "enormous benefit" to an improved flow of the River Shannon, local OPW Minister Kevin 'Boxer'...
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Colin Murray @colinmurray.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Another one of the days when most of NI is holding its breath and the national news outlets in London have barely registered that anything has happened.
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Charles Keener @charleskeener.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Amnesty International, the world's largest human-rights group, is explicitly calling for ICE to be abolished.
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John Fugelsang @johnfugelsang.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Streisand Effect, Activate.
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Donncha O’Connell @donnchalaw.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Staff at the University of Galway are set to begin industrial action next month following an overwhelming vote by members of the Irish Federation of University Teachers (IFUT ) in favour of action up to and including strike action. www.advertiser.ie/galway/artic...
advertiser.ie
University of Galway staff to begin industrial action on World Teachers’ Day
Staff at the University of Galway are set to begin industrial action next month following an overwhelming vote by members of the Irish Federation of University Teachers (IFUT ) in favour of action up ...
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Alan Dunne @aldunne.eurosky.social · 26/09/2026
the unions know the score
image of liberty hall in Dublin image of a sign outside Liberty Hall readkng ‘Go With Your Conscience!’ and ‘Don't Play Ball With Genocide’
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Abilu Tangwa. @abilutangwa.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
When farms stop yielding, hunger does not knock — it breaks the door. Across the Horn of Africa, soils that once fed nations are turning barren. This is not “bad weather.” This is climate change rewriting our food systems in real time.
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Cosáin Climate @cosaingalway.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
In 2016, Galway City Council recorded data from several passive radar "Driver Awareness Signs". The limited amount of data was obtained under FOI. They never publicised the information and never repeated the exercise. No journalist ever proactively wrote a news report featuring the word "notorious".
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Daryl Feehely @darylfeehely.com · 26/09/2026
A nation lets out a collective FFS 😫 Somehow, the FAI have made this even worse. Gavin Bazunu, hold your head high. I'm sure the black arm bands will bring solice to Natalie Abudayyeh as she rots in an Israeli jail for no reason other than playing for her country. #StopTheGame #Speirgorm
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Niamh NicGhabhann Coleman @niamhroisin.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Courage to the players, who should not be in this position 🇵🇸 🇮🇪
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Ed Maibach @maibached.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Happy Stanislav Petrov Day He passed in 2017. As Encyclopedia Britannica puts it, “He is survived by his two children, two grandchildren, and the entire human race.” If you don't know his story, please take 3 minutes now to learn it. @gchalliance.bsky.social @docsforclimate.bsky.social
sammatey.substack.com
Happy Stanislav Petrov Day
Take five minutes to not destroy civilization
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Aarne Granlund @aarnegranlund.eurosky.social · 26/09/2026
”Net annual CO₂ emissions increase by 0.47–1.8 gigatonnes (1.2–4.8% of 2024 global energy-related CO₂ emissions).” AI seems to be like SUVs and compounding aviation growth, continuing the high supply and demand of fossil fuels. #AI #Growth #ClimateHeating www.nature.com/articles/s44...
nature.com
AI-driven productivity gains enable more CO₂ emissions than they avoid in a global energy–economy model - npj Climate Action
npj Climate Action - AI-driven productivity gains enable more CO₂ emissions than they avoid in a global energy–economy model
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Ola Løkken Nordrum @olaln.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Head-in-the-sand stuff from RTE. “Exceptional weather” = means months of climate-change-driven heatwaves, but somehow RTE seems baffled that trolley numbers are high. Extreme heat doesn’t stop being dangerous because we call it a “great summer”. This is climate denial by euphemism.
rte.ie
What will this winter trolley season bring?
On any given day, there remain hundreds of patents waiting for admission to a hospital bed, placed on a trolley, chair, or other area of a hospital.
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Katie Martin @katie0martin.ft.com · 25/09/2026
I have blamed The agents That hacked Your website And which You probably Reasonably thought I controlled Forgive me I am rich And unaccustomed To taking responsibility
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Grant Hamilton 🐨 @ecologygrant.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Too true. There are two existential threats to humanity (ignoring the AI BS for now)- the #biodiversity crisis AND climate change. Very few people I speak with outside of academia, or directly involved with ENGOs, know about the biodiversity crisis 🧪
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Alexander Clarkson @aphclarkson.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
That's because the anti-intellectualism of the populists and Far Right is in direct contradiction to the basic foundations of any civilisation
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Justin Mason @jmason.org · 25/09/2026
www.reddit.com/r/JustEatUK/... - hilariously bad failures from a US-default parser encountering the concept of soda bread
reddit.com
From the JustEatUK community on Reddit: AI vs Soda Bread
Explore this post and more from the JustEatUK community
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Hannah Daly @hannahdaly.ie · 24/09/2026
Minister Darragh O'Brien has announced a €2000 oil boiler scrappage scheme for older boilers, on top of grants up to €12,500 for heat pumps. I spoke on Morning Ireland about the latest incentive to get Irish homes off heating oil. www.rte.ie/radio/radio1...
rte.ie
Govt to propose boiler scrappage scheme
Kieran McCarthy, Director of KMC Homes in Cork, and Hannah Daly, Professor of Sustainable Energy at University College Cork, discuss the decision by Energy minister Darragh O'Brien to bring a boiler s...
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ICCT Europe 🇪🇺 @iccteu.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
NEW ANALYSIS: Charging hubs in a small share of locations could cover most energy demand from electric trucks across Europe. 🚛 The ICCT and @fraunhoferisi.bsky.social have quantified charging demand from battery electric trucks across the EU, Norway, Switzerland, and the UK between 2030 and 2045. ⚡
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Mark Sugrue 🇪🇺 @marksugrue.com · 24/09/2026
Academic freedom in America...
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Urban Truth Collective @urbantruth.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
The WAR ON WALKING has taken many forms around the world. It’s often as simple as how we signal who space is and isn’t for. Once our eyes are opened to all the ways we’ve prioritized cars over people, we can’t unsee it. Frustrating photo contributed by @stadsplanering.bsky.social. #WarOnWalking
Background photo from North Macedonia, where “sidewalks are mostly used to park cars” as explained by photo contributor Carl-Henrik Barnekow. Text says “Don’t buy the lie that there’s a war on cars. They’ve been waging a war on walking for a century.” Via the Urban Truth Collective. #WarOnCars #UrbanTruth
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David Henig @davidheniguk.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Oh, we're still on the "significantly reformed EU" nonsense are we? Like the UK has the power to dictate terms as a returning hero or some such? Same EU as per the last 40 years at least. Be part of it or not. Full stop. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
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Feljin Jose @feljin.ie · 22/09/2026
Fact: No
Agriland

Opinion: Could climate change be a good news story for Irish agriculture?

By Richard Halleron

September 21, 2026

3:30 PM
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Conor Molloy | 🇮🇪 🇪🇺 🇺🇦 🇨🇦 🇬🇱 @conormolloy.eurosky.social · 22/09/2026
Folks, if you want cheaper electric ⚡ get on to your TDs to accelerate wind connections to grid i.e. pylons. TL:DR up to 5 years to connect a wind farm to grid! #BuildOurGrid #Speirgorm Energy firms seek planning changes to allow onshore wind farms to run . . www.irishtimes.com/environment/...
irishtimes.com
Energy firms seek planning changes to allow onshore wind farms to run indefinitely
Limiting the operation of turbines to 20 to 25 years makes no sense, wind energy companies say
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Ketan Joshi @ketanjoshi.co · 18/02/2026
DAY TWO OF ME ENDLESSLY PROMOTING SOMETHING I'M PROUD OF Here's a new video summary, focusing on the flimsy evidence behind the claim AI tech will make global emissions plummet by gigatonnes and how similar that is to something you might recognise..... ketanjoshi.co/2026/02/17/b...
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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
This is David Nihill. This routine has been doing the rounds on Facebook for years, but if you haven't heard it, it's a lovely story and he tells it well. The grapefruit ladies did the Irish proud. #SpeirGorm
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Silicon Republic @siliconrepublic.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
“With this project, we are testing whether we can actively accelerate that recovery by creating new starter structures for corals to grow on which also mimic reef structure to help re-establish functioning reef habitats," explained deep-sea ecologist Anthony Grehan.
siliconrepublic.com
Scientists bet on 3D-printed coral reefs to revitalise marine life
University of Galway experts are part of a team testingartificial reefs placed on the seabed off the west coast of Ireland.
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Ray Cunningham @ray-cunningham.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Everyone is to blame except the guy who cancelled plans to reform the RSA and roll out reduced speed limits in built-up areas www.irishtimes.com/politics/202...
irishtimes.com
Road safety minister blames ‘everyone involved’, including road users, for rising death toll
Seán Canney’s remarks come after four deaths at the weekend and as EU ministers gather to discuss road safety
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Michael Clemens @mclem.org · 19/09/2026
This miracle is the fruit of generations of enormous and bipartisan investments of public research support for our universities. Future versions of this miracle are what we are currently losing, due to the US Administration’s decision to shatter the public’s partnership with our universities. 
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KIM F-M @kimf-m.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Democracy is not self-executing. It requires a certain set of norms, habits, and social trust. And, those muscles have to continually be built up and passed on. You can't passively just sit there and say you're in a Democracy if you're not actively engaged in it. youtube.com/watch?v=mgfO...
youtube.com
A Conversation with Barack Obama
YouTube video by Colgate University
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Peter Gleick @petergleick.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Given the outrageous, dangerous, and outright false statements made about how the polio (and other) vaccine was a "fraud" (at the Children's Health Defense conference), here's a reminder of what a massive success it was. RFK Jr. & his minions must be stopped from destroying the US healthcare system.
Graph of the number of cases and deaths from polio from 1910 to 2022, showing how polio completely disappeared after the introduction of the vaccine -- one of the most important health advances of the 20th century. Data from the US Public Health Services; the Center for Disease Control.
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Dilek Sayedahmed @dileksayedahmed.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
I truly, deeply, sincerely do think the guy flipping burgers at McDonalds should be able to afford rent, bills, and groceries with his paycheck alone. That's kind of the whole point of having a job and I can't believe this is considered a radical position.🤷🏽‍♀️
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Maria Christou @mariacervin.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
"Consume everything. Digest nothing" Sums up AI in two phrases. Perfection! #StopAI @olivia.science
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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
What the hell is wrong with people?
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Josiah Mortimer @josiahmortimer.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Enormous drop in oil demand this year due to Trump's war in Iran. As predicted, he has accidentally accelerated the green transition (with, of course, a very heavy and deadly cost in how it's happened) www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-glo...
carbonbrief.org
Analysis: Global fossil-fuel emissions set to fall in 2026 amid Hormuz crisis - Carbon Brief
Global fossil-fuel emissions are set to fall by in 2026 amid the fallout from the Hormuz crisis, according to Carbon Brief analysis.
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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
NSF has reduced the research budget for all atmospheric, ocean, and earth sciences by ~80%. 80%! A lot of us will not be conducting new research or training new students for the foreseeable future.
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Green Party / Comhaontas Glas @greenparty.ie · 15/09/2026
The Greens are proposing increased investment in the horticulture sector, addressing labour shortages and extending the Basic Income Scheme for the Arts to small scale producers and growers.
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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Watching a video about Cromwell, and while all the speakers appear to be proper historians, it's clear that none of them have ever spoken on this subject to an Irish person, because not one of them can pronounce 'Drogheda' properly. Given the history, they should make the effort. #SpeirGorm
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Prof Richard Betts @richardabetts.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Remind me again why we think very high emissions scenarios can be ruled out?
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Alex Andreou @sturdyalex.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
This German comedy sketch (with English subtitles) perfectly captures so much of what is going on right now in the UK, the US, and across Europe. "Playing the 'Nazi Card' in the Third Reich", by Browser Ballett.
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Ireland against Fascism @irlagainstfascism.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Apparently our President Catherine Connolly told him a few home truths, he doesn't seemed to have liked it much 🤪😂 Pics from Uachtaràn na hÉire
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Ireland against Fascism @irlagainstfascism.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Good luck to Sweden today in their election. PLEASE, for the sake of us all: Boot the nazis out of your government ❗️❗️
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John Gibbons 🇵🇸 🇺🇦 🇪🇺 @thinkorswim.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Shocking , but true; those suffering the worst impacts of #climate breakdown have done little or nothing to fuel the crisis. That’s on the wealthy 10%, which includes the majority of people living in Ireland. www.carbonbrief.org/two-thirds-o...
carbonbrief.org
Two-thirds of global warming since 1990 caused by world’s ‘wealthiest 10%’ - Carbon Brief
Of the 0.61C increase in global average temperatures over 1990-2020, a new study estimates that 65% was due to the emissions of the wealthiest 10%.
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Peter Gleick @petergleick.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
This pipeline has been moving 4% to 5% of global oil supply, according to Reuters! Another example of the incredible vulnerability of our reliance on fossil fuels. www.bbc.com/news/article...
bbc.com
Saudi Arabia shuts key oil pipeline after drone attack launched from Iraq
Iraq removes a military commander and opens investigations into the attack that came from an area bordering Iran.
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George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
The UK government ceasing automatically to support almost anything the government of Israel does is a major shift. The next step should be to rescind the ban on #PalestineAction, to stop treating protesters as terrorists, and to acknowledge that those seeking to disrupt a genocide may have a point.
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Craig Hughes @craig.rungie.com · 09/09/2026
“$30 trillion TAM* *10% chance of $0 trillion cos reasons”
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Giles Wilkes @gilesyb.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
It's always the way, isn't it giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...
Graph shows far right support higher where the number of foreign nationals is lowest
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National Academy of Sciences @nasonline.org · 02/09/2026
Small changes in the ocean can trigger global consequences. 🌊 The new summary from the 2026 US-UK Scientific Forum on ocean tipping points explores how researchers are working to understand, predict & respond to shifts in ocean systems. Read here: royalsociety.org/-/media/abou... @royalsociety.org
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Helen Czerski @helenczerski.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
It's really hard to take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere: removing something so dilute is like removing tiny needles from a gigantic haystack, again & again, at huge energy, financial & environmental cost. Very useful thread here on why we can't just assume CO₂ removal is a magic climate pill:
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