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Dr. Sarah Fortner

@erthsarah.bsky.social
5.5K followers 2.5K following 1K posts

Climate mitigation, adaptation, and environmental justice through education, research, action and advocacy. Explorer.

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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 7h
Just remember: “The fossil fuel industry has become extraordinarily adept at profiting from instability. When conflict drives up prices, companies do not lose, they gain. In the current crisis” www.climatechangenews.com/2026/04/30/w...
climatechangenews.com
What fossil fuels really cost us in a world at war
Governments are under pressure to respond to rising fuel and food costs and deepening energy poverty. It's time for a power shift
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
College student radio hosts interview people working locally and across the state for climate justice and sustainability. I have enjoyed these immensely. They often find folks at community events. Happy to pass on suggestions:) podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s...
podcasts.apple.com
Sustaining the Conversation
Education Podcast · Interviews with Minnesotans who dedicate their time to climate and sustainability, hosted by Carleton College's Office of Sustainability
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
A strategy that is building unexpected curricular connections is gathering local data and sharing it with quantitative colleagues. This week, I’ve shared 3 years of Cannon River chemistry data for a stats class, temperature sensor data to CS, and student farm soil physical and chemical properties.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
And it has been signed! Well done California for supporting students in Climate Leadership. The future looks brighter when we act for it.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Proud of Carleton students for their climate leadership attending the UMACS conference and presenting posters and workshops. Their projects collectively involved more than 20 partners, engaged students, campus and local decisionmakers.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Minnesota calm. Yesterday and today.
Prairie Lake and woods
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Just a reminder: “At the national scale, the benefits of deep emissions cuts for current and future generations are expected to far outweigh the costs” nca5.climate.us
nca5.climate.us
Fifth National Climate Assessment
The Fifth National Climate Assessment is the US Government’s preeminent report on climate change impacts, risks, and responses. It is a congressionally mandated interagency effort that provides the sc...
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Some local policy relevant case studies. fas.org/publication/...
fas.org
A Guide to Better Data Center Policy for Local Governments
This report serves as a landscape assessment and toolbox from which local governments can negotiate an informed position when it comes to the levers available to them and includes a first-of-its kind ...
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Reposted by Dr. Sarah Fortner
Katie Mack @astrokatie.com · 20/09/2026
Fully electric aviation has some major challenges (mostly: batteries are heavy and don't get lighter as they get used up) but I love the idea of decreasing aircraft emissions through a hybrid approach, perhaps as a step toward new, clever solutions for fully electric air transport in the future.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
At the Clean River Partners Watershed-wide Clean-up and proud of these @carleton.edu and St. Olaf students connecting with each other and the land! Our watershed and clean water and keeping water issues and climate solutions in the foreground is important in our state.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Dropped off a Kabocha, a Japanese winter squash at home. I may have been told, “don’t paint it, just eat it” by student farm workers and I will take their advice. It has also been fun to see different culturally relevant foods this year. International students informed several choices.
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Reposted by Dr. Sarah Fortner
Minnesota Private Colleges @mnprivatecolleges.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Campus news spotlight: Carleton College’s Center for Community and Civic Engagement has created deep roots in the classroom and the surrounding communities. Read more: www.mnprivatecolleges.org/news-events/... #Minnesota #LiberalArts #HigherEd #CivicEngagement #CommunityEngagement @carleton.edu
Julia Scatliff O’Grady ’85, Carleton College’s founding director of Acting in Community Together
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Planning for the climate we will have is especially important in agriculture. This approach using case studies from places in located in future conditions are useful in many sectors. extension.umn.edu/natural-reso...
extension.umn.edu
Climate analogs: A tool for guiding on-farm decisions
Although weather variability is inherent to farming, research about trends in our future weather patterns indicates that planning for change, such as more drought, warmer temperatures, and increased p...
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
This education resource on AI is great, for me it’s inspired some testing of machine learning on long term locally relevant water, air, climate, datasets. It’s amazing to be able to do this so quickly now & appreciate paired ethical support! Thank you SERC! serc.carleton.edu/geo_ai/index...
serc.carleton.edu
GeoAI
Project site exploring the integration of transformer-based generative AI in geoscience education, covering educator and student use, ethical considerations, disciplinary impacts, and community-shared...
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Climate educators, what open education resources or approaches are you using to integrate AI for social good?
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Ojala et al. explores how black and white thinking vs dialectical (flexible) thinking relate to climate behaviors. Some high schoolers feel they can’t do enough, and do less. Others see being role models as part of bigger work needed. www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
tandfonline.com
Trying to live sustainably in a not so sustainable society: dialectical thinking and black-and-white thinking are important for climate engagement among late adolescents
Young people use different thinking strategies to deal with conflicts related to climate engagement. The aim of this study was to investigate whether dialectical thinking, i.e. being able to transc...
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Reposted by Dr. Sarah Fortner
Climate.us @climate.us · 08/09/2026
Gov't plan to revise key climate report lists no scientists as authors and offers no information on how the plan will be peer-reviewed. You don’t have to be a climate scientist to know this isn’t how science should be done. Use your voice! Comments due Sept. 9: buff.ly/irGbLiR #NCA5
climate.us
Climate experts respond to the government’s plan to amend the Fifth National Climate Assessment
Experts question the need for the proposed amendment, its scientific objectivity, and whether it complies with the strict rules and procedures that are supposed to guide federal government production…
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Happy New Student Week @carleton.edu - resource fair, farm stand & tours abound. Most of all find opportunities to sign up for activities and meet people who care about climate action, food systems, and environmental justice!
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Reposted by Dr. Sarah Fortner
Dana R. Fisher (aka the Apocalyptic Optimist) @fisherdanar.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
On the UNEP's report on limiting the risk of crossing irreversible thresholds, how we must democratize big-tech, AI, and data centers (which are contributing to the exploitation of labor and environmental degradation), and my chat with @alexhanna.bsky.social danarfisher.com/2026/09/05/o...
danarfisher.com
On Overshoot and Democratizing AI
I had planned to take this weekend off since it’s Labor Day here in the states, but there’s just too much to say… This week, the UN Environment Programme released its new report: …
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
There is plenty of literature on how engaging climate in behavioral and individual ways is connected to other levels of change we MUST impact. I truly enjoy learning from students how they see their work and what they think they should do as students in their class choices or student employees.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Tour of the new heat pumps and Darcy well @carleton.edu providing geothermal energy to Parish, Douglas, Rice, Page houses. The last photo is temperature sensor monitoring in the well by the Geology Department. This system exchanges heat with groundwater. It complements the district system.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
Heartbreaking & reading a quote from a former neighbor who played soccer with Pierre Damas Bel makes this especially sad. This is our neighbors, this is a future lost. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/01/u...
nytimes.com
Haitian Student, Despondent Over Ankle Monitor, Dies in Apparent Suicide
The 20-year-old was fitted with a tracking device under a Trump administrative initiative targeting Haitians in Springfield, Ohio.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Hear hear! “Knowledge is power. Let’s…stand with our youth, and move from climate ache to community action, together.” www.wildroseeducation.com/post/erasing...
wildroseeducation.com
Erasing the Map: Why the Colorado Youth Climate Program is Essential in a Changing World
When critical climate data is erased from federal sites, how do we equip the next generation? The Colorado Youth Climate Program (CYCP) steps in to turn climate anxiety into real-world agency. Discove...
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
Well done to the many youth advocates behind this! share.google/AikdXqZKAGJx...
share.google
California's climate literacy seal bill passes | National Center for Science Education
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
Thirty-one years apart, about the same place on the Llewellyn Glacier.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
This is very useful: elements that resonate: 1) use backward design- if AI has changed the landscape create the learning goal needed, 2) experiential learning and designed human, place, & community engagement- demonstrate where humans are needed and purpose is. aiandeducation.mit.edu/report/
aiandeducation.mit.edu
Report – AI and Education
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
phys.org/news/2026-08...
phys.org
Climate change exposes up to 560 million children globally to at least one additional month of dangerous heat per year
New research by Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) shows that globally, up to 560 million children ages 0–9 (43% of all children in this age group) experience at least one additional month (30 or more d...
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Sustainable land management @carleton.edu
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
Kranz et al ask: “How do current educational intervention studies on climate literacy incorporate the political perspective of mitigation and adaptation on climate change?” Not a lot is the answer even though integration into policy at all scale = action. www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14...
mdpi.com
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Leaving a lively local public hearing this rings true. “The closer citizens feel government is to their everyday lives, the more credible it becomes.” Local government is still the most trusted… publicpolicy.cornell.edu/masters-blog...
publicpolicy.cornell.edu
What Americans Really Mean by “Good Government" - Cornell Brooks Public Policy
Why is trust in government so low? See how Cornell’s Master of Public Administration trains leaders to improve transparency, communication, and public impact.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
This interrupts many researchers that make strides year over year & young people who have dreams based on established research fields & education paths. “only a fraction of NSF’s current $8.8 billion budget now going to support academic research and training” www.science.org/content/arti...
science.org
Is NSF’s new call for research proposals good news? Scientists and staffers have doubts
The long-delayed 12 solicitations only cover some disciplines—and promise to give them much less money
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
“We therefore recognize the need for an approach to climate education that supports people from systemically advantaged communities to face “the end of the world as we know it”… www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
tandfonline.com
Critically engaged and complexity-informed climate education: Or, how to face “the end of the world as we know it” without freaking out
This article introduces Critically Engaged and Complexity-Informed Climate Education (CECE), a pedagogical approach that does not aim to “solve” climate change and biodiversity loss, but to compost...
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Devastating, adding so much pain and suffering. My heart is with my former community in Springfield.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
My approach to developing a course in intro climate action methods is: 1) asking students what they want 2) asking folks engaged in organizational, city scale, & advocacy work what they do, 3) asking climate scientists what they think 4) reading education , org change and psychology research.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Horrific. 1.5 million kids. www.npr.org/2026/08/03/n...
npr.org
Over 4 million people are no longer receiving food aid amid sweeping changes to SNAP
SNAP, also known as food stamps, has seen a rapid and consistent participation decline since last July. The drop comes as the program faces historic cuts and changes.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
The Mendenhall Glacier is almost out of site from one of the lookouts near Nugget Falls. It was just a few feet from the falls on my first trip in 1995.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
Know your community and include climate in relevant conversations in ways people understand. Learn those ways. climatecommunication.yale.edu/news-events/...
climatecommunication.yale.edu
How Local Governments Can Use Communication to Drive Climate Action
56% of voters want local government officials to do more about climate change. Here’s how.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
So many summer sustainability research & action projects @carleton.edu. Shout out also to the student farmers & Arb crew.
Arb crew standing by truckFarmers thinking through harvestSummer farm team in annex
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Meanwhile on as the Juneau Icefield glaciers retreat… alaskapublic.org/news/2026-06...
alaskapublic.org
Forest Service admits Herbert Glacier cabin canceled due to mining interests, after previously denying it
A U.S. Forest Service ranger attributed the initial denial to a "miscommunication between myself and the communications team that led to the incorrect statements."
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
High school and college students are asking for the education they need. A letter from a Massachusetts high schooler, Leigh Blander, on a climate education bill. marbleheadcurrent.org/2026/07/13/l...
marbleheadcurrent.org
LETTER: Climate education for all - Marblehead Current
To the editor: Last February, I joined more than 250 high school students from across Massachusetts at the State House for a Youth Climate Advocacy Day. I spent the day talking to my legislators about...
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
Shifting timing preserves traditions #climateadaption www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/vi...
cbsnews.com
Twin Cities Marathon shifts later due to climate change
The Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon weekend will be pushed back to mid-October in 2027 after several years of hot temperatures​ and unfavorable conditions for runners.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
These climate extremes hits home for many of us in Minnesota. We need to protect elections and act on climate change as if it impacts every sector and our way of life, because it does.
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Reposted by Dr. Sarah Fortner
Terry McGlynn @hormiga.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
If you have time to browse bluesky this weekend, you have time to submit your comment on the proposed OMB rule to politicize science funding agencies. This one is important. Here's my comment if some inspiration will help. 🧪 scienceforeveryone.science/submit-your-...
scienceforeveryone.science
Submit your OMB comment this weekend.
This one is important. It's due on Monday.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
Joining our oldest at the end of his HS study abroad in Germany & visiting our family in Heidelberg. We arrive in the heat dome. I sorted our lodging choices by the presence of Air Conditioning many months ago, eliminating 90% of our options. Hard to retrofit dense older housing.
102 when we arrive on Sat….
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
Time for more hooks including integrating climate solutions into other hot topics. Extreme weather remains a big focus, because it’s timely. climatenewstracker.org/nearly-nine-...
climatenewstracker.org
Nearly nine in ten journalists and production staff say new approaches are needed in climate reporting - Climate News Tracker
Climate News Tracker and Kantar survey finds strong engagement with climate journalism, but concerns that current coverage is not fully meeting audience needs by Climate News Tracker    Nearly nine in...
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Reposted by Dr. Sarah Fortner
Patrick Siegman @siegman.biz · 15/06/2026
Federal courts overturned Berkeley's first-in-the-nation ban on fossil gas appliances in new buildings, but #SanFrancisco has adopted a workaround that's persuaded virtually all new construction to go all electric: of 387 building permits submitted, just 8 have received exemptions. 🎁link:
sfchronicle.com
San Francisco is about to roll out a far-reaching new rule for major home renovations
City planners expect a surge of permit applications before the new San Francisco rule takes effect. Here’s how it works.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
And we’re off to a full time summer farm season. One student, Ruby, who is supporting our state funded mulching productivity experiment, has already dubbed it, “My Summer of Peppers”. Ruby will be supporting daily battles with weeds, ground squirrels, and also tracking data on time spent on plots.
Peppers! A view of vegetables going into the garden
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Reposted by Dr. Sarah Fortner
Gretchen Goldman, PhD @gretchentg.bsky.social · 09/06/2026
The strong collective response of the science community to the proposed OMB rule has demonstrated the broad unity that’s possible when we all work together. We'd do well to apply this same level of activation to the larger assaults on science and democracy. My new post: blog.ucs.org/gretchen-gol...
blog.ucs.org
The Science Community Is Stepping Up. Let’s Go Bigger.
The scientific community is fighting a proposed change to research funding. Let's keep this momentum going to take on more attacks on science.
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
Reading Null & others(2026), “Enhanced Climate Resilience Through Dam and Barrier Removal” exploring 1) does dam removal contribute to climate resilience? 2) what are the metrics to measure climate resilience? It’s informative to our local riverfront. wires.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...
wires.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
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Dr. Sarah Fortner @erthsarah.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
Spent some time today thinking about a class I’m planning, methods in climate action. It will be informed by organizational and local/municipal strategies for climate action & how experts including frontline NGO leaders do their work.
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