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Andy Russell

@andyrussell.bsky.social
1.3K followers 552 following 117 posts

Climate impacts and policy at Queen Mary University of London, and Climate and Environment Thematic Research Lead at UK Parliament (ex of CCC, BEIS, Defra). Floods and coastal erosion. Adaptation policy. Maybe some HE thoughts and reflections on running.

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Reposted by Andy Russell
Dr. Kristina Hill ☠️ 🏳️‍🌈 thinks this is a bad timeline @kzhill.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
There’s SO MUCH legacy contamination in coastal soils. We found more than 1400 administratively active sites in the SF Bay Area alone. And there are thousands more that could have residual contamination. In Hawaii, they’ve seen petroleum in groundwater produce explosive levels of methane…
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Ian Dunt @iandunt.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Burnham speech: An astonishing moment of radicalism and commitment iandunt.substack.com/p/burnham-sp...
iandunt.substack.com
Burnham speech: An astonishing moment of radicalism and commitment
It’s easy to be cynical, but it would be false. Something extraordinary is happening here.
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
After years of putting public engagement on the back burner - busy, busy, busy! - it was back with a bang at Green Man 2026. Ran a stall and gave a talk/quiz. We spoke to over 1,000 people over the weekend 😅
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
I suspect the number of reposts this gets because of the irony will mean the cancellation announcement will have more reach/impact than the event itself would have had.
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Grantham Research Institute at LSE @granthamlse.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
We regret that our event on Extreme Heat: Improving governance and strengthening action around the world has been cancelled due to the red extreme heat warning issued by the UK Met Office. Our apologies to everyone who was planning to attend the event.
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George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
You can listen to the, ahem, robust exchange of views I had with Richard Tice of Reform UK and others on Any Questions? here: www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
bbc.co.uk
Any Questions? - Hamish Falconer MP, Baroness Laing, George Monbiot, Richard Tice MP - BBC Sounds
Alex Forsyth presents political debate from St Norbert's Community Hall in Spalding.
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
Such a busy #EGU26 and, for some reason, I’ve not really spoken about any of my main research. Still, it’s been great to talk to people in different areas.
First slide from my presentation on “How well are Londoners prepared for flooding?”
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Heather Ford @hl-ford.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
Great work by @harryjgrosvenor.bsky.social looking at ocean heat content during the mid-Pliocene/Piacenzian warm period. Happy to have such awesome collegues @charliejrwill.bsky.social and Chris Brierley
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
This is a sad situation and “only” the closure of a small campus of a larger university (not a whole uni). Hopefully we don’t see the a complete closure any time soon… www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
‘If I think about what this means, I want to cry’: what happens when a city loses its university?
When Essex University’s Southend campus opened, it was a message of hope for a ‘left behind’ UK seaside town. Its closure will be felt far beyond its 800 students, some of whom will not get their degr...
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Philip Cowley @philipjcowley.bsky.social · 01/02/2026
Thoughts in the FT on why I don't like the idea of an automatic by election if an MP changes party - but understand why some people do, along with a possible compromise... How to deal with defecting MPs - giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... via @FT
giftarticle.ft.com
How to deal with defecting MPs
Voters should be able to force parliamentarians who change parties to face the electorate
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
Great to see this POSTnote on Legacy Landfill published! This was one of the things I was very keen to be involved with whilst seconded to Parliament #landfill #climatechange #environment post.parliament.uk/research-bri...
post.parliament.uk
Management of legacy landfill
This POSTnote outlines evidence on environmental risks from legacy landfill sites in England, related policy and regulation, remediation and reducing risks.
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Met Office - weather and climate @metoffice.gov.uk · 23/01/2026
Take care if you are travelling in heavy rain, even moderate rain can reduce your ability to see and be seen. Please don't walk or drive through flood water. Take a look at some of our tips and advice to stay #WeatherReady bit.ly/3iEb7kd
Consider the impact of heavy rain
Check if your property is at risk from flooding
Check flood advice in your area
Prepare a flood kit
Avoid driving through flood water
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 06/01/2026
This looks like a great role that I’m sure some people here would be interested in: www.wildlifetrusts.org/jobs/head-cl...
wildlifetrusts.org
Head of Climate and International Policy | The Wildlife Trusts
The Wildlife Trusts are a grassroots movement of people from a wide range of backgrounds and all walks of life, who believe that we need nature and nature needs us. We have more than 944,000 members, ...
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 17/12/2025
This is brilliant news! My daughter loves learning Spanish so, if she goes to uni in a few years, it’s great to know this is an option again. Such a shame for students who’ve missed out over recent years though. www.gov.uk/government/n...
gov.uk
Young people from all backgrounds to get opportunity to study abroad as UK-EU deal unlocks Erasmus+
The UK and EU have agreed that the UK will join the Erasmus+ scheme in 2027, along with further progress in other areas of the UK-EU reset.
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European Geosciences Union (EGU) @egu.eu · 15/12/2025
⏳ Abstract submission countdown is already on! -30 DAYS to go! 👇 Your next steps? ✔️Your Copernicus.org login details ✔️ An EGU membership (www.egu.eu/0ZFO4P) ✔️ Your abstract🥳! Submit here: www.egu26.eu or email egu26@copernicus.org for help. 📅 Deadline: 15 January 2026, 13.00CET
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Tim Osborn @timosbornclim.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
I currently have three funded PhD positions available for applications. Links for more info and to apply are in my profile page: research-portal.uea.ac.uk/en/persons/t...
PhD Positions

I have three funded projects currently available.

Closing date 10 December 2025:

Redeveloping Central England Temperature: Modernising a Historic Climate Series (CASE project with Met Office) (main supervisor: Tim Osborn; co-supervisors: Stephen Packman, Met Office, Ed Hawkins, University of Reading, Andrew Friedman, UEA)

Closing date 7 January 2026:

Causes and Syndromes of Extreme Wildfires in Tropical and Extratropical Forests (main supervisor: Matt Jones; co-supervisor: Tim Osborn)

Closing date 7 January 2026:

Predicting and Mitigating Megafires under Climate Change (CASE project with WTW) (main supervisor: Matt Jones; co-supervisor: Tim Osborn)
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
Interesting placement of the Türkiye and Australia pavilions. I hope they’re playing nicely together! #COP30
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
Really enjoying Peter Betts’ The Climate Diplomat so I thought I’d bring him along to Belém. #COP30 #climatechange
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Simon Evans @drsimevans.carbonbrief.org · 09/11/2025
#COP30 AGENDA FIGHT: Battle looms over which issues to discuss at COP30 (an "agenda fight") Proposed late additions to agenda: * trade * finance * deforestation * ambition * reporting Hence, now on 4th version of agenda (!) This must be resolved before negotiations begin 🧵 1/
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Queen Mary University of London @qmul.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
From London to the Amazon! Queen Mary is sending five researchers to #COP30 in Belém, Brazil, to collaborate with international partners and showcase how the University is taking action to combat climate change through research www.qmul.ac.uk/media/news/2...
qmul.ac.uk
Queen Mary experts head to COP30 in Brazil
Queen Mary University of London is sending a delegation of five researchers to Belém, Brazil, to participate in COP30, the 30th annual United Nations Climate Change Conference. Set in the Amazon from ...
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
Work on the Geo #SciencePolicy interface? Heading to #EGU26 ? Why not submit (your second, EOS!) abstract to "Strengthening Policy Through Science: Insights from the interface"?! meetingorganizer.copernicus.org/EGU26/sessio...
meetingorganizer.copernicus.org
Session EOS4.6
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 19/09/2025
Being careful with my wording, I suspect that there could be a possibility that focusing on short term, narrow targets (eg. house building) could, possibly exacerbate future risks (eg. flooding, overheating) www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Ministers tell Environment Agency to wave planning applications through
Exclusive: Officials say they have been told to do as little as legally possible to prevent approvals for housebuilding
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Environmental Audit Committee @commonseac.parliament.uk · 08/09/2025
We've launched our Environment in Focus inquiry, asking you for your ideas on what the committee should look in to. Find out more: committees.parliament.uk/work/9336/th...
Image of a wind turbine in a sheep field with text reading: We want to hear from you about your priorities fro the environment, climate change and nature.
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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 06/09/2025
This is fine -dot- gif
theguardian.com
Climate crisis will increase frequency of lightning-sparked wildfires, study finds
These wildfires tend to burn in more remote areas and grow larger faster, posing a higher risk to public safety and health
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 04/09/2025
Department “Away Day” today a full 1 floor “Away” from my office. It looks like being very much a full “Day” though, so that bit is accurate.
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
Excellent news this week that I’ve been promoted to Reader (from SL). Very happy but always amazed at how slow the academic promotion cycle is; my application went in almost 9 months ago!
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Peter Stott @stottpeter.bsky.social · 01/09/2025
New analysis from @metoffice.gov.uk showing that the record-breaking hot UK summer of 2025 has been made much more likely by human-induced climate change and such a hot summer would be expected about once every 5 years in current climate. www.metoffice.gov.uk/about-us/new...
metoffice.gov.uk
Summer 2025 is the warmest on record for the UK
Provisional Met Office statistics confirm that summer 2025 is officially the warmest summer on record for the UK.
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 26/08/2025
Some super interesting reflections from a UK (and EU) climate diplomat of the Paris Agreement period. Will definitely get hold of the book when it’s out #climatechange #climatepolicy www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Counting down to zero: the final warning from a climate diplomat
The long read: Before Peter Betts died in 2023, he wanted to pass on what he had learned over many years of negotiating at Cops – including how Paris 2015 was saved at the last bell
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 19/08/2025
Defra fellowships for 2026/27 are open applications up to 16th September: defrajobs.co.uk/roles/resear...
defrajobs.co.uk
Research and Development Fellowship Programme 2026/27 - Defra Jobs - UK Government
We’re delighted to launch our 2026 R&D Fellowship Programme for Defra. Join us in using science and analysis to tackle some of today’s biggest policy challenges. For a third year, we’re offering the b...
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 04/08/2025
Storm Floris looks like it could cause a lot of disruption. Stay safe and think about how to adapt plans. news.sky.com/story/storm-...
news.sky.com
Storm Floris latest: 'Do not travel' and 'danger to life' warnings as storm hits UK
Storm Floris is hitting the UK, bringing winds of up to 90mph. A yellow weather warning is in force for millions in the north of the country, with an amber alert fast approaching. Follow the latest be...
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Akshat Rathi @akshatrathi.bsky.social · 02/08/2025
"A weather station in the Norwegian part of the Arctic Circle recorded temperatures above 30C (86F) on 13 days in July." www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Nordic countries hit by ‘truly unprecedented’ heatwave | Climate crisis | The Guardian
Scientists record longest streak of temperatures higher than 30C in region in records going back to 1961
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The Flood Hub @thefloodhub.bsky.social · 08/07/2025
Would you know how to form a #community #flood group? What are the first steps when getting started? Any important things to consider? Download our ‘Guide to Forming a Flood Action Group’ booklet for an in-depth manual 🔨🤝 thefloodhub.co.uk/wp-content/u...
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Hayley Fowler @hayleyjfowler.bsky.social · 07/07/2025
New PhD - full funding for UK/Irish applicant - start Jan 26 - Design and evaluation of multi-functional Blue Green Infrastructure under climate change tinyurl.com/42s8rade: Clare Walsh, Vassilis Glenis & myself, Newcastle Uni. Part of Co-Centre for Climate + Biodiversity + Water lnkd.in/e5g6nz6V
lnkd.in
Co-Centre for Climate + Biodiversity + Water | LinkedIn
Co-Centre for Climate + Biodiversity + Water | 2,488 followers on LinkedIn. Solutions focused research into climate, biodiversity & water issues on the islands of Ireland & Great Britain | The...
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 01/07/2025
For the 2nd time in 5 years my kids' school sports day has been cancelled because of hot weather (not Covid, that was a 3rd cancellation). I'm glad they've made the call - its too hot to make sure 100s of kids are ok - but maybe need to think about the timing in the future! #heatwave
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UN Environment Programme @unep.org · 20/06/2025
Big step to #BeatPollution! Countries have just agreed to establish a new global science-policy panel to support the management of chemicals and waste and to prevent pollution. The panel will equip countries with the science needed #ForPeopleForPlanet: bit.ly/45z01DE
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Katie Mack @astrokatie.com · 19/06/2025
Chatbots — LLMs — do not know facts and are not designed to be able to accurately answer factual questions. They are designed to find and mimic patterns of words, probabilistically. When they’re “right” it’s because correct things are often written down, so those patterns are frequent. That’s all.
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Helen Czerski @helenczerski.bsky.social · 14/06/2025
Hooray that the big UN ocean summit this week made some progress. The two biggest ocean scandals (of many) still continue: the horribly destructive practice of bottom trawling still happens, and many Marine Protected Areas still allow fishing. More work needed! www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Is the ocean ‘having a moment’? This was the UN summit where the world woke up to the decline of the seas
A slew of global leaders met in the south of France to discuss the future of the oceans. There was ‘momentum’ and ‘enthusiasm’, but there were critical voices too
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 27/05/2025
PDRA job: latest Resilience of Anthropocene Coasts and Communities postdoc job looking at evidence and policy impact. We’re open to a range of approaches. 2 years, start ASAP, lots of collaboration opportunities. #academicjobs #researchjobs #postdoc #policyjobs qmul-jobs.tal.net/vx/candidate...
qmul-jobs.tal.net
Postdoctoral Research Associate in Critical Environmental Policy Studies - QMUL Jobs
Description
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 21/05/2025
I had a chat with a New Scientist writing after a presentation at EGU and, from reading it back, I was being quite frank about the issues 😬
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Kate Spencer @profkatespencer.bsky.social · 20/05/2025
The inter-linked risks of climate change and our waste legacy will be felt along our eroding coastlines. Nice interview of @andyrussell.bsky.social at @egu.eu. www.newscientist.com/article/2480... @newscientist.com. Details of our @qmul.ac.uk @ukri.org project at www.ukcoastalandfillresilience.org
newscientist.com
Toxic waste is spilling onto beaches as rising seas erode landfills
Waste from old landfill sites is spilling onto beaches as rising seas erode coastlines - and some of it is toxic
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 08/05/2025
Had a brilliant day in the Scottish Parliament yesterday (with 2 of my TRL colleagues @louisereardon.bsky.social and Ruth) meeting lots of the climate and environment experts. Lots of ideas for new collaborations!
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 30/04/2025
The Climate Change Committee has published its 2025 Progress Report on adaptation! This is the first full assessment of the 3rd National Adaptation Programme (NAP) www.theccc.org.uk/publication/... I used to work at the CCC and write big chunks of these reports. It’s not good news…
theccc.org.uk
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 26/04/2025
My colleague Prof Spencer has been working on legacy landfill for some years now and we’re hoping to develop new ways forward with our current project www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
More than 100 landfills in England may be leaching ‘highly hazardous’ waste
Inadequate record keeping means councils do not know whether former waste sites contain toxic substances
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 24/04/2025
Really interesting meeting of the Parliamentary Office for Science and Technology (POST) Board yesterday... there are some really interesting analyses coming up!
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 15/04/2025
It’s recess in Parliament so a great time to take some of the research group on a tour
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 11/04/2025
🤬🤮🤦‍♂️: PR campaign may have fuelled food study backlash, leaked document shows www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
PR campaign may have fuelled food study backlash, leaked document shows
Eat-Lancet report recommended shift to more plant-based, climate-friendly diet but was extensively attacked online
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Andy Russell @andyrussell.bsky.social · 04/04/2025
Always surprised how “FTSE hits lowest level since January” is treated as a crisis but “warmest year ever recorded” fails to get much interest these day. www.theguardian.com/us-news/live...
theguardian.com
FTSE 100 hits lowest level since January as IMF warns Trump tariffs ‘a significant risk’ to global economy – business live
Kristolina Georgieva warns against retaliation to US levies while US president insists ‘markets will boom’ after sweeping tariff announcement
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Rob Ford @robfordmancs.bsky.social · 03/04/2025
With Greens at 72% also that means we will have five party competition in most wards (as we did last year in nearly all constituencies). Don’t think that’s ever come close to happening before.
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Simon Lee @simonleewx.com · 02/04/2025
The April issue of Weather is online! Featuring... – Storm Ciarán: an insurance viewpoint – Thunderstorms in Finland, June 2021 – Hurricane-force winds in Storm Lyly – Easter weather on Snowdon – AI weather forecasts + more! Check it out: rmets.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/14778696... @rmets.org
Front cover: Cumulonimbus calvus and Cumulonimbus capillatus (with the mature anvil of the latter, showing some weakly defined mammatus (supplementary feature mamma), occupying the top half of the image) clearing rapidly eastwards after the passage of a line of heavy, wintry showers, late in the afternoon of 11 March 2021. The showers produced gusty winds and small hail (~5mm diameter or less) mixed with rain and sleet. Viewed looking north-northeast from Stoke Hill, near Exeter (Devon). (© Matt Clark)
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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 30/03/2025
This is cool. The Guardian recreated a searchable climate future risk tool (wildfire, extreme heat, drought, hurricane, and coastal flood) for the US that was developed by FEMA but deleted by the Trump administration’s ‘climate’ purge.
theguardian.com
Trump’s ‘climate’ purge deleted a new extreme weather risk tool. We recreated it
The Guardian has recreated a searchable climate future risk tool developed by Fema but then deleted
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