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Alastair McKinstry

@amckinstry.bsky.social
1.3K followers 747 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
Environmental Pillar @envpillar.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
No extra funding for nature, carbon tax U-turn – the Government is clearly walking away from its climate, nature & energy security commitments in Budget 2027. Great to see coverage of our reaction to Budget 2027
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Climate Change Advisory Council Ireland @ccacireland.bsky.social · 12h
What does Ireland need to do to become more climate resilient? The Council has identified four priorities: 1. Prepare for a wider range of extremes 2. Properly cost adaptation 3. Accelerate flood protection 4. Strengthen community preparedness and recovery. Read more: shorturl.at/B4kAc
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Early Childhood Ireland @earlychildhoodireland.ie · 9h
Even though some of the measures announced by the Government this week are welcome for children and families, Budget 2027 failed to recognise the crucial role of the workforce in delivering high-quality Early Years and School Age Care. These are some of the announcements made on Tuesday:
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Reposted by Alastair McKinstry
Glen Peters @glenpeters.bsky.social · 22h
A very notable thing about this graph is that it is not a long list of developed countries. Developing countries also list high on the list, well above the EU average (and long above the US). EVs are better than ICE, people are noticing, and the transition is happening...
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Simon McGarr @tupped.bsky.social · 17h
This is an inexplicable vote by Regina Doherty, Nina Carberry, Seán Kelly Barry Andrews, Barry Cowen, Billy Kelleher Ciaran Mullooly
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Josh Zingher @zingherpolisci.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
As a broader point, the Administration is war with data collection. The goal is simple: you can't prove racial discrimination in court if the government doesn't collect data by race. You can't show climate change if the government dismantles climate monitoring. This is Authoritarianism 101.
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Carl T. Bergstrom @carlbergstrom.com · 07/10/2026
Terry Tao @teorth.bsky.social: Indiscriminate brute-force application of AI to mathematics is depleting the field of good questions without renewing this resource or providing commensurate value. OpenAI: We hear you. Here's a .zip file with 377 hasty AI solutions to important open problems.
nytimes.com
OpenAI Releases Findings on 377 Math Problems, Further Roiling Field (Gift Article)
After a previous solution angered mathematicians, the company characterized the new release as being more responsive to concerns about A.I. disrupting research.
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Shade 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🇮🇪🦄💙📚🎃 @sharrow.eurosky.social · 06/10/2026
Then why are we not future proofing with solar farms and 100% grants for solar at home and heat pumps?
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Ray Cunningham @ray-cunningham.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
The government is throwing money at fossil fuels, and spending a pittance on breaking our dependency on fossil fuels. Storing up problems for the future
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Feljin Jose @feljin.ie · 06/10/2026
Ok but my fares are going up by €300
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Daithi @daithig.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Apologies to some journalists, but anytime I see something like "Minister X secured an extra amount for this", I just keep thinking "you're not their PR, you can write that differently".
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Roderic O’Gorman TD @rodericogorman.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Having written off 4 years of carbon tax revenue (and no indication yet how that hole will be filled) the Tanaiste spends a section of his speech talking about how important energy transition is to his Government. But what the the measures he is actually announcing?
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The Green Party of England & Wales @greenparty.org.uk · 06/10/2026
“The loss of biodiversity and ecosystem collapse is a threat to our national security. This is central to what Greens are campaigning around across the country.” Adrian Ramsay speaking ahead of his panel - When Nature Fails: The Defence and Security Case for Climate Resilience - at Conference.
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Jason Kint @kint.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Eye popping. Court just unsealed Summary Judgment motions in New York Times v OpenAI / Microsoft. Easy to see why the AI companies had so many redactions (pink). Their own people wrote the lede for NYT, the "largest theft of labor in human history"... "more and more substitutive..." /1
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Green Party / Comhaontas Glas @greenparty.ie · 05/10/2026
Graphic pointing to a house saying if you call this a data centre your energy bill would be cheapergreen party propose a data centre levyLevy would pay for grid improvisation
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Reposted by Alastair McKinstry
An Taisce @antaisce.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
An Taisce is also calling for greater support for public transport, including Leap card credits and a reversal of the recent increase in general transport fares. extra.ie/2026/10/03/n...
extra.ie
An Taisce calls for fuel supports for those in need and at risk of fuel poverty
An Taisce has warned that Ireland is subsidising fossil fuel use at up to five times the EU average.
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Reposted by Alastair McKinstry
Darren Dahly @statsepi.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Looking forward to seeing my fellow IFUT members today on the quad for a one hour work stoppage in pursuit of a credible pay proposition from government. www.ifut.ie/content/ifut...
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Elizabeth Boyle @thecelticist.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Members @ifut.bsky.social staged a 1-hour walkout today at Maynooth as part of the Irish public sector pay dispute. Grateful also to the Postgraduate Workers' Organisation for their support. Solidarity with our colleagues in other unions who have begun working to contract. Power to the people! ✊️
Members of Maynooth University Postgraduate Workers' Organisation supporting the 1-hour walkout by the Irish Federation of University Teachers. A crowd of IFUT members and supporters gather while staging a one-hour work stoppage as part of the Irish public sector pay dispute. IFUT members and supporters gather during a one-hour work stoppage. A flag from the Climate Justice University Union is prominent in the bottom half of the photo.
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GylesNaMopaleen @gylesnamopaleen.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Just giving this a bump after the Green Party resolution about "Zionism is Racist". TL:DW: three prominent Jewish people in UK discuss their anti-zionist views.
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Reposted by Alastair McKinstry
The Irish Times @irishtimes.com · 05/10/2026
Replacing beef farming with forestry would boost incomes and help meet climate goals
irishtimes.com
Replacing beef farming with forestry would boost incomes and help meet climate goals
Afforestation is the most significant climate change mitigation option available to Ireland’s land use sector
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Reposted by Alastair McKinstry
Carol Ballantine @cballantine.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
This is written to fly under the radar, from today’s Sunday Independent (Ireland). The press council upheld a complaint about an offensive and transphobic opinion column by Brenda Power. Sindo was required to publish the decision. @mams4transrights.bsky.social @jesalady.bsky.social
A half page article from the Sunday independent with the headline OMB2590 A woman and the Sunday independent.
The article outlines the complaint, the appeal and the decision. 
The complaint relates to an opinion column deploring the fact that an unnamed td provided a character reference for a man convicted of sexual violence against children. A sentence in the column argued that this case threw light on the possibility that a man would “identify as a woman” in order to commit sexual violence.
The press council concluded that “a reference to a protected group [trans people] in this context should have been extremely carefully scrutinised”. It found that the Sunday independent was in violation of principle 8 of the press council code of practice.
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The Irish Times @irishtimes.com · 03/10/2026
Ireland is the last stand for rare coastal machair habitats in the EU – but it’s failing
irishtimes.com
Ireland is the last stand for rare coastal machair habitats in the EU – but it’s failing
Funding nature restoration looks like an easy line to leave blank in the budget. That would be an expensive mistake
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Alex Pigot @alexpigotireland.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Noeline Blackwell is an amazingly good and brilliant person 👏👏👏👏👏
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Carla Denyer @carladenyer.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
The ‘Zionism is Racism’ motion has passed at Green Party conference. While there are many parts of the motion I can agree with, there are some that I could not, so I did not vote for it. Here is a joint statement from the Green Party leadership team and all of us Green MPs:
Joint statement: 

As Greens, we will always uphold universal human rights.
We will never tolerate any form of discrimination or harassment.
We will continue to stand in opposition to genocide, ethnic cleansing, apartheid and the illegal occupation.
We will continue to call out the heinous crimes of the Netanyahu government.
And we will continue to work to ensure that the Green Party is an anti-racist party in every way. 
We know there is no conflict between supporting the rights of Palestinians and the rights of Jewish people.

Zack Polanski
Rachel Milward
Mothin Ali
Siân Berry MP
Ellie Chowns MP
Carla Denyer MP
Adrian Ramsay MP
Hannah Spencer MP
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Charles Keener @charleskeener.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
www.dailykos.com/stories/2026...
dailykos.com
We can police ourselves!
A cartoon by David Horsey.
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George Conway ⚖️🇺🇸 @gtconway.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
“He’s gotta resign. … We have to let our own people and everybody else know why it had to be done—because of what’s on the tape, because he lied.” — White House speechwriter Patrick J. Buchanan to White House chief of staff Alexander M. Haig, August 2, 1974
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Oisín McGann @oisinmcgann.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Look, these people are just operating to different standards.
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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
I don’t think everyone realizes how bad things are for US science: For the fiscal year that just ended, the Trump regime withheld $1.4 billion from the National Science Foundation’s research budget, which is about 1/5 of its primary research budget.
nytimes.com
National Science Foundation Diverted $1.4 Billion in Science Funds Mandated by Congress (Gift Article)
The move, affecting about one-fifth of the National Science Foundation’s primary research budget, is the latest sign of how the White House is asserting more control over grants.
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M Meerkat @kackbro.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Naomi Klein Is Spot On.......
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HydrologyNL @hydrology.nl · 01/10/2026
Glacial degradation in Switzerland reached an unprecedented threshold this summer with the formation of a supraglacial lake near the Allalinhorn summit (4,027 m). Cryospheric data since 2000 highlights the acceleration: 📉 -5% ice volume in 1 year 📉 -20% in 5 years 📉 -43% total loss since 2000
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Dr Abeba Birhane @abeba.blacksky.app · 29/09/2026
Huge congratulations to our colleagues at @iccl.bsky.social on this win! In a landmark ruling on 25 Sep, the ICCL secured a precedent that will reshape how Big Tech companies defend themselves in GDPR class actions that impact their operations across the entire EU enforce.ie/digital-data...
enforce.ie
ICCL secures landmark precedent against Big Tech - Enforce
Landmark ruling will reshape how Big Tech companies defend themselves in court for EU-wide GDPR class actions
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Alastair McKinstry @amckinstry.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
It works in reality in cases where you have a limited number of actual likely possibilities - what object are you looking at from space in a forest, for example. But not when picking from a large set like human faces. You need to know what you're/its doing.
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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 𝘊𝘰𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘯 𝘗𝘩𝘶𝘪𝘮𝘤í𝘯 🎃 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 @handle.invalid · 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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