iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research @tyndallcentre.bsky.social · 8h

🌍We're hiring a Senior Research Associate in Climate Change Policy, People and Action at the Tyndall Centre, University of East Anglia Research what motivates governments and people to mitigate and adapt to climate change, and work with partners to generate impact beyond academia ➡️ buff.ly/uLH0Yis

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Callan Bentley @callanbentley.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Here's some good s#it in my paleontology teaching collection. ⚒️

Five coprolites in a box. They range in color from yellow and red through brown (naturally).

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Robin Hayward 🌳 🏳️‍⚧️ @canopyrobin.com · 25/09/2026

We're publishing new guidance to support trans people who do fieldwork (any work outside the office)! Now we need your help to get them seen so please share! inclusivefieldwork.leeds.ac.uk/trans/

a cartoon of three fieldworkers. One has a small trans flag. The logos of the university of leeds, research england, and canopy robin are shown, as well as the URL: InclusiveFieldwork (dot) Leeds (dot) AC (dot) UK (slash) trans

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Geology @geologytime.bsky.social · 03/06/2025

Halite CRAZY GEOMETRIC! Natural skeletal halite with great geometric shape! Rudna Mine, Lubin, Lower Silesia, Poland [video: SpiriferMinerals.com] #crystals #gems

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Gawen Jenkin @gawenjenkin.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Definitely the green on today. Fascinating secondary lead mineral Sample here is from Wheal Alfred in Cornwall just a few miles from where I grew up. Despite many visits with a mate and some excavations we found nothing. It is now a caravan park 😢. www.mindat.org/photo-20694....

Green, gorgeous pyromorphite hexagonal prisms on quartz

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Fernando Salvaterra @salvaterra.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

All the minerals from the mineral cup 2025. They are now uploaded as high-res PNG files as stock art here: 💎 salvaterra.itch.io/minerals-sto... #mincup #mincup25 #mincup26 #minerals #sciart #bsnm

a poster with 32 colourful illustrations of mineral pieces from the set of contenders in the mineral cup 2025. the minerals are such as calcite, haüyne, silver, hematite, tugtupite, kyanite, wavelite, etc. some are green, some are blue, golden, grey, white, in a wide variety of shades and hues.

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Mineral Cup & Ore Cup @mineralcup.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

#MinCup26 Round 2 Match 2 It’s a match of opposites as heavy metal toxic #Skutterudite is up against the colourful sparkly aluminum silicate jewelry gem #Vesuvianite. VOTE: www.mineralcup.org/2026/vote-re... RESULTS: www.mineralcup.org/2026/vote-re...

Split photo of the pointy end of a rough, geometric metallic crystal and a translucent yellow striated tower with a blunt top

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Mineral Cup & Ore Cup @mineralcup.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

#MinCup26 Round 2 Match 1: It’s a visually-striking start to Round 2 as deep blue pigment #Azurite is against lead- and zinc-rich #Sphalerite. VOTE: www.mineralcup.org/2026/vote-re... RESULTS: www.mineralcup.org/2026/vote-re...

Split photo with deep blue translucent crystals jut upwards in a cluster like modern skyscrapers on the left. They have lightly striated faces, and are long with pointed tips. On the right is a metallic grey triangular crystal with deeply striated faces. The face itself is geometrically broken with jagged edges, evoking a cyberpunk-futuristic vibe.

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authodizer @doktrock.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Sphalerite (var schalenblende) from the Pomorzany Mine, Olkusz, Poland. A favorite desk specimen, given to me by a mine geologist there. Exhibits typical concentric brown to yellow fine grained mineral layers, along with galena, pyrite. #MinCup26 #MineralMonday ⚒️

Polished slab about 8 cm across with complex layered minerals.

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Geology @geologytime.bsky.social · 15/04/2025

Super Saturated Blue Azurite Geode Pair ✨ From Mikheyevskoe Mine, Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia Video: Pacific Minerals #minerals #azurite #geodes

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Elizabeth V @geolizzy.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

At this point I’m tired of hearing about rare earth minerals so I’m voting for #riebeckite which is found in Scottish curling stones 🥌 #MinCup26

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Vicky Veritas @vickyveritas.bsky.social · 27/06/2023

🧪 Salt tectonics is the study of significant thicknesses of rock salt within sedimentary basins, how and why salt structures evolve and the three-dimensional forms that result, and the physics of salt mobilization. Salt tectonics is a fascinating branch of geology in itself… Cont. 👇🏼 and in ALT

ISS image of an oval-shaped salt glacier, about 14 km (8 mi across) in the Zagros Mountains in Iran.

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wyotitania @wyotitania.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

My taste buds are firmly Team Halite. And look how pretty good ole NaCl can be! All different colors of the rainbow, thanks to traces of other elements in the structure. #MinCup26

Mostly clear halite crystal

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halite

Blue halite

Source: https://www.geologyin.com/2014/05/blue-halite.html

Pink halite

Source: https://en.meteorologiaenred.com/pink-halite.html

Green halite

Source: https://www.geologyin.com/2017/06/extremely-wonderful-new-find-of.html

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MineralExpert.org @mexporg.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Excellent #Pyrrhotite crystal from the tungsten mine in the Felbertal, Hohe Tauern, Austria. #MinCup26 #MinCup #mineral #crystal #mineralogy #mineralexpert #sulfide

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Dr. Erik Klemetti Gonzalez @eruptions.site · 07/09/2026

It has been a while, but I have a summary of all the activity at Anak Krakatau over the last few days. Long and short: big explosive eruption, but not out of character for the volcano (or Indonesian volcanoes for that matter). It is a hot air travel mess, though: eruptions.site/2026/09/07/s...

eruptions.site

September 2026 Eruption at Anak Krakatau

Location: Anak Krakatau, Indonesia Situation: Anak Krakatau, literally “child of Krakatau” has had some large explosive eruptions over the past week including ash plumes that reached ~5…

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telescyote 🔭 @cosmicyote.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

The opening of the name description for Andalusite on mindat is kinda hilarious "Named by Jean-Claude Delamétherie in 1798 for the supposed type locality, "Andalusia region", Spain, although he seems to have been not very familiar with Spanish geography and the type locality is not in Andalusia."

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J. Brian Balta @drjbbalta.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

When you synthesize monazite with specific cations in a lab, you can make quite the rainbow. Here are La, Nd, Gd, and Yb monazites (technically xenotime for Yb, almost the same structure but different enough that it has its own name). Nd was always my favorite. #mincup26 #mincup #monazite

A sequence of synthetic monazites, each crystal made in a lab from flux growth methods. In order, La, Nd, Gd, and Yb monazites (last is technically xenotime).

Two crystals of Nd monazite, tip of tweezers for scale.

Multiple crystals of La-monazite, tweezers for scale.

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KSircombe @ksircombe.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Vote #Monazite: the phosphate with the most-est for #MinCup26 ⚒️🧪 * Hangs out on beaches * Provides rare earths for your phones and earbuds * Sophisticated #geochronology mineral * Fascinating crystal structure * Beautiful shades of yellow & orange * Has a street named after it (Mount Garnet, QLD 🇦🇺 )

Yellow street sign reading “MONAZITE ST” with a black left-pointing arrow mounted on a metal pole. The sign stands beside a dry grassy roadside in a rural or suburban area. A light-coloured building is visible on the left, a narrow road and scattered trees extend into the background, and part of a green vehicle is visible on the right. Above, a partly cloudy sky with patches of blue fills most of the image.

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Janelle Shane @janelleshane.com · 07/09/2026

If you had to make one of today’s #MinCup26 contestants into a laser, it would be #Monazite. Extract the handy cerium out of it, and infuse that into some other crystal to make a UV laser. Maybe even a nice pulsed UV laser!

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Brandon Bishop @brandontbishop.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

#Monazite --surprisingly!-- is actually relevant to the rare earth stuff. It'll happily form crystals with Cerium, Lanthanum, or Neodymium rare earth elements in addition to radioactive Thorium. That Thorium bit has also made it an important geochronometer for rocks it occurs in. #MinCup26

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wyotitania @wyotitania.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Holy moly! #MinCup26

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Vicky Veritas @vickyveritas.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

‘’Phantoms’’ in minerals are snapshots of earlier stages of growth captured inside due to changes in pressure, temperature, or hydrothermal chemistry as in this #quartz. More 👇🏼 www.geologyin.com/2023/12/phan... #MinCup26 ⚒️ sci-fi 🧪 🖖🏼 scifi Geosciences #WomenInSTEM geology #geosky #GIS 🍎 🪐 🔭 🌋

Translucent Quartz crystal with imprints of earlier growth stages of the mineral.

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MineralExpert.org @mexporg.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Fresh find of smoky #Quartz in Mt. Blanc Massif, France #MinCup26 #MinCup #mineral #crystal #mineralogy #mineralexpert

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Susie Leopold @blastylavagrrrl.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Perfectly preserved #dumortierite within #quartz. #MinCup26

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wyotitania @wyotitania.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

As much as I want to vote for the underdog asagiite, quartz has my heart. Look at this amazing sample of rutilated quartz! Quartz is just such a varied and amazingly useful mineral. It’s a powerhouse in #MinCup26 for a reason. (But I’m voting because I’m obsessed with rutile crystals in quartz!)

Golden rutile crystals in a quartz crystal. Source: https://www.findgemstone.com/blog/how-is-rutilated-quartz-formed/

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OUGS Social Media @ougeolsoc.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Bournonite for me in #MinCup26! Connections with Cornwall where I lived (Wheal Boys, St Endellion), and the French Alps where I am now! (La Mure coal mine, with its super wee railway!)

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Mineral Cup & Ore Cup @mineralcup.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

#MinCup26 Round 1 Match 2: Flowery pink #Erythrite is against shiny silver #Skutterudite in this match of cobalt minerals. Will you pick the weathering product or the mineral it comes from? VOTE: www.mineralcup.org/2026/vote-re... RESULTS www.mineralcup.org/2026/vote-re...

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Nadine, Hunter of Rocks @nadwgab.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

I'm voting for azurite, but I will admit that smithsonite is very pretty! Here's a display at the NHM in London showing off its diverse forms. It's always a hard one for me to identify when I'm looking at specimens! #MinCup26 #minerals

A display case full of various smithsonite minerals (ZnCO3, rhombohedral). A lot of them are botryoidal and have a lumpy appearance. The colours range from bright turquoise, yellow, white, brown and green. One specimen is a cut and polished slice with turquoise coloured bands, another is a cut and polished circular piece with yellow concentric banding which makes it look like an eye.

On display in the Natural History Museum, London.

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Banjoherder @banjoherder.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

First day of the Mineral Cup 2026 #MinCup26 I won't be swayed by the glitsy colour of Azurite. Plus anything that looks like a mouldy Broccoli gets my vote every time. Image Credit: "Smithsonite-sg02b" by Robert M. Lavinsky

"Smithsonite-sg02b" by Robert M. Lavinsky is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

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Ele Willoughby @minouette.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

For Round 1 Match 1 of #MinCup26, it’s an easy choice for my art application voting scheme. While the rarely mined smithsonite can be a source of zinc used in paints, azurite is a natural pigment used from antiquity to the 18th century. Vote for the beautiful blue azurite!

Rembrandt, The Night Watch
1642

Medium: Oil
Support: Canvas
Size: 379.5 x 453.5 cm
Art period: Baroque
Rijksmuseum Amsterdam
Painting

This is one of Rembrandt’s most dramatic and famous paintings and it contains azurite pigment. The lighting transforms this huge group portrait of civic guards into high drama. “It depicts the eponymous company moving out, led by Captain Frans Banninck Cocq (dressed in black, with a red sash) and his lieutenant, Willem van Ruytenburch (dressed in yellow, with a white sash). Behind them, the company's colours are carried by the ensign, Jan Visscher Cornelissen. Rembrandt incorporated the traditional emblem of the arquebusiers in the figure of the young girl who carries a dead chicken on her belt, referencing the clauweniers (arquebusiers) and a type of drinking horn used at group banquets.” (Via Wikipedia)

Raphael, Saint Catherine of Alexandria
ca 1507

Medium: Oil
Support: Poplar
Size: 72.2 x 55.7 cm
Art period: High Renaissance
National Gallery London
NG168

“Saint Catherine of Alexandria was also known as Saint Catherine of the Wheel and The Great Martyr. She was a Christian saint and virgin, who was martyred on the spiked wheel in the early 4th century at the hands of the pagan emperor Maxentius (in later versions Maximinus or Maximianus).” (Via ColourLex)

Here, in a blue dress (painted with azurite), green shirt and red robe slung over one shoulder she holds one hand to her breast as she looks to the heavens in a Tuscan landscape.

“Hieronymus Bosch, The Haywain Triptych
ca 1510-16

Hieronymus Bosch, The Haywain Triptych consists of four parts: the left panel named ‘Paradise’ shows the origin of sin on Earth with Adam and Eve being expulsed from Paradise by Archangel Michael. The center panel depicts mankind in sin trying to avail themselves of the earthly possessions symbolized by the hay. The right panel depicts the fires of Hell, while the back sides of both side panels show an old pilgrim trying to find his way in a dangerous world.
The triptych was thoroughly investigated by The Bosch Research and Conservation Project. The results of this investigation were published in a magnificent book referenced below. An extensive interactive online feature at the website of the project complements the book and shows all the images from the book in high resolution.
The pigment analysis reveals a limited palette consisting of the cheaper pigments employed in the Renaissance period, such as azurite, lead-tin yellow, vermilion, carmine kermes, and ochres.
Medium: Oil and tempera
Support: Oak
Size: Height including frame: 147.1 cm
width including frame: 224.3 cm
Art period: RenaissanceMuseo Prado Madrid
Inventory number: P02052
Painting at the website of the BOSCH PROJECT”

Via ColourLex

Diego Velázquez, Las Meninas
1656

Medium: Oil
Support: Canvas
Size: 318 cm x 276 cm
Art period: Baroque
Museo del Prado
Inventory number: P01171

“This renowned canvas depicts the infanta Margarita surrounded by her meninas
(the young noblewomen who attended her), servants, and dwarfs and buffoons (the stunted
Mari-Barbola and young Pertusato, harrying the enormous dozing mastiff) in the austere
setting of a palace salon. At the rear of the room a door opens onto a stairway where we see
the backlit figure of a gentleman whose name has survived along with the painting: Don
Jose Nieto. Brush in hand, Velazquez himself stands before an enormous canvas of which
only the back is visible; he seems to gaze questioningly at the spectator, as if it is the viewer
he is painting. The key is found in a mirror with a heavy ebony frame hanging on the wall in
the middle background. Reflected in its silvered surface are the blurred figures of the king
and queen.”

Alfonso E. Pérez Sánchez, Julián Gállego, Velázquez, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1989, p. 52. Via ColourLex

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Patrick Kapty @patrickkapty.bsky.social · 20/09/2025

Vivid blue azurite crystal group perched on malachite matrix La Sal Mining District Utah, USA #azurite #malachite #crystal #mineral #mineralogy #geology #gemology #gemstone #inlay #nature #lasalminingdistrict #utah #usa

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Kerstin Neuhaus @microtopico.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

This are both of today's #MinCup26 contenders in one image: #Smithsonite, the white mineral at the bottom, and blue #Azurite at the top. The green mineral in between is #Malachite, which develops from #Azurite since it's unstable in air. I'll vote color! 🟦 📸 Robert Lavinsky, CC BY-SA 3.0

A chunk of rock which is yellowish-white at the bottom, dark green in the middle, and dark blue on top.

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Mineral Cup & Ore Cup @mineralcup.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

#MinCup26 Round 1 Match 1: It's carbonate-vs-carbonate with copper-rich #Azurite against zinc-rich #Smithsonite. Which has your vote? VOTE: www.mineralcup.org/2026/vote-re... RESULTS: www.mineralcup.org/2026/vote-re...

Split photo of bright blue azurite and peach-colored smithsonite crystals.

The azurite forms clusters of round nodules with a matte, almost velvety-looking texture.

The smithsonite crystals are mostly discs with parallelogram faces. There are some black and gold-colores minerals mixed in.

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Gareth Fabbro @fitzgabbro.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

In preparation for #MinCup26, here's a feed of all the mineral cup posts: bsky.app/profile/did:...

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KSircombe @ksircombe.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

#MinCup26 ⚒️🧪 Here we go! www.mineralcup.org/2026/bracket

"Illustrated announcement poster titled 'September is Mineral Cup Month!' in pink hand-lettered text on a light gray background. Below it is a 32-mineral single-elimination tournament bracket titled 'Mineral Cup 2026,' with 16 mineral names listed down the left side (including Azurite, Smithsonite, Sphalerite, Anorthite, Cuprite, Orpiment, Monazite-(Ce), Andalusite, Hafnon, Putnisite, Calcite, Julienite, Arsenopyrite, Halite, Chrysocolla, and Xocolatlite) and 16 down the right side (including Erythrite, Skutterudite, Bournonite, Vesuvianite, Quartz, Asagiite, Stichtite, Talc, Pyromorphite, Gypsum, Pyrrhotite, Cylindrite, Riebeckite, Gadolinite-(Y), Cassiterite, and Graphite), connected by bracket lines converging toward a blank champion line in the center. A yellow banner reading '10 years old!' is angled across the middle of the bracket. Below the bracket, a simple line-drawing of a smiling person gestures toward the chart, and beside them stands a large smiling crystal/gem character with closed eyes. Text underneath reads: 'The Mineral Cup is a 32-mineral elimination bracket competition with an online vote everyday… www.mineralcup.org.' Small print on the bracket notes daily voting takes place on www.MineralCup.org in September, with the hashtag #MinCup26."

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Gareth Fabbro @fitzgabbro.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

The snow really picks out the lava flows here, part of the Purico Complex—a bunch of domes that sit around the edge of a caldera. science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-...

science.nasa.gov

Rare, Widespread Snow in the Atacama Desert - NASA Science

Back-to-back winter storms in August 2026 brought snowfall to northern Chile, from the Andes to near the Pacific coast.

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University of East Anglia (UEA) @uniofeastanglia.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

More reasons to choose UEA ⬆️ UEA has risen to 31st in the UK in the latest Daily Mail University Guide (2027). See our courses in Clearing: www.uea.ac.uk/study/cleari...

uea.ac.uk

Clearing

University of East Anglia

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University of East Anglia (UEA) @uniofeastanglia.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

Results Day is here! 📣 Got questions about Clearing? Whether your plans have changed or you're still deciding what's next, our team is here to help: 01603 944834 📞 Call us today (8am-8pm). 💻 Browse our Clearing courses online. ️🏛️ Book your visit to campus on our website. #ResultsDay

A student in a burgundy UEA hoodie sitting in the Square with the Lasdun Wall in the background.

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Gareth Fabbro @fitzgabbro.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

IPlayer just asked me if I want to continue watching this game…

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Marianne Denton @mariannedenton.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Having this livestreaming on my work computer since Friday has finally paid off.

youtube.com

[V1cam] Kīlauea volcano, Hawaii (west Halemaʻumaʻu crater)

YouTube video by USGS

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Dr Charlie Gardner @charliejgardner.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

Today's the day! The heat has relented and Reform finally have their chance to persuade King's Lynn and West Norfolk' Council to turn their back on climate action I'll be live-tweeting from the debate

eastangliabylines.co.uk

Heatwave halts Reform bid to scrap climate emergency

A council debate on scrapping West Norfolk's climate emergency was postponed after extreme heat made the chamber unusable

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Dr. Erik Klemetti Gonzalez @eruptions.site · 02/07/2026

Day 3 of the Volcano World Cup Round of 32 has two close matches with the Netherlands barely over Scotland and Germany sneaking past France at the moment. Will these scores stand? It is up to you! eruptions.site/2026/07/02/v...

Fissure vent on Piton de la Fournaise on Reunion Island.

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Jo Kibble (Political Animal) @politicanimal.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

That 4% of the population who oppose or strongly oppose the use of renewable energy sure do seem to get a lot of airtime and column inches.

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Migration Observatory @migobs.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

How does migration affect the UK’s public finances? Overall, the impacts are small, but people on different immigration routes have significantly different impacts. Here’s why, in 3 posts…

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