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Jim Vanderwal

@jimvanderwal.bsky.social
327 followers 400 following 211 posts

Climate change ~ Clean air ~ Clean water Surviving year 6 of the equivalent to a boil water advisory for the air Unceded MST territory He/him

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Reposted by Jim Vanderwal
Dr Elisa Perego @elisaperego78.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
My new research is out. "Long Covid perspectives" addresses the recognition of #LongCovid as disease entity and patient-led advocacy movement, the paradigm shifts driven by LC advocacy-research, and challenges ahead (Perego 2026, preprint 2023) www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi...
Cover of book Covid studies Title of chapter by Elisa Perego
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The Weather Network @weathernetwork.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
A new report is forecasting a warmer and wetter future for northeastern B.C., as well as more extreme weather emergencies for communities battered by some of the province's biggest natural disasters over the past decade. ow.ly/nEUa50ZRRLz
ow.ly
Northeast B.C. faces warmer future, more extreme weather threats: Researchers - The Weather Network
New federally-funded report says local communities could see average temperatures rise by 3 C by the 2050s
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Don’t share AI slop videos even if it’s for lols like a cringy Pierre Poilievre video It’s all creating more eyeballs on this crap which is exactly the point
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Alan Richardson @alanrichardson.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Wake up, Vancouver, Nardwuar is currently losing!!!
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
🎯
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Robert Jago @rjjago.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Here's something I've been working on for a while, that I'll be getting into a lot more soon. This is where Land Acknowledgements come from, this is what they mean, and this is how you've all been doing them wrong.
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
💯
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Simon Spichak @spichaksimon.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
For @thesicktimes.org, I covered a petition that over 1,700 people have signed calling for a pause to a trial that's applying for ethical approval to test a psuedoscientific program for #LongCOVID called The Lightning Process. thesicktimes.org/2026/09/22/p... 1/n
Screenshot of Sick Times article. Title: "People with Long COVID demand pause of McMaster University clinical trial"

DEK: The trial, run by researchers at McMaster University in Canada, is testing the Lightning Process, a pseudoscientific mind-body program that outside experts have heavily criticized.

Image: A college buildingey points you should know:

A petition signed by 1,700 people asks for a pause and independent review of a trial run by McMaster University researchers who want to test the Lightning Process.
 
The Lightning Process is a pseudoscientific mind-body program to try to treat Long COVID that has been accused of exploiting people with Long COVID and related diseases.
 
The trial is designed in part by a Lightning Process practitioner and prescreens participants for motivation using a questionnaire that isn’t validated for Long COVID.
 
There are very few trials and little funding in Canada for Long COVID research, and advocates believe that studying the Lightning Process instead of pathobiological pathways is a waste of funding.
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Matthew Cortland (they) @matthewcort.land · 11/09/2026
Everyone should get the 2026-2027 flu vaccine and the 2026-2027 covid vaccine, unless a competent medical professional has advised against it based on individual medical circumstances (e.g. a history of GBS). shouldntneedtobealawyer.com/posts/what-i...
shouldntneedtobealawyer.com
What Is Public Health? Which Vaccines Should You Get? | Shouldn't Need to Be a Lawyer by Matthew Cortland
Health care in the United States operates on a foundational assumption: our public health systems work. Health care assumes that there is a
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Not as high as Aug / Sep 2025, but wastewater Covid levels up in Metro Vancouver. 6 years in, stay safe people 😷
Graphs of Covid wastewater levels in Metro Vancouver at Iona and Lulu Island treatment plants, showing increase in August/September 2026.
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
We can talk about the broader reasons why (society is ableist, want to forget “the pandemic” etc). However! Primary care providers could play a key role - and many aren’t aware and think that Long Covid is “over” or psychosomatic. Lots of tools exist eg bc-clmf.org/primary-care...
bc-clmf.org
Essential Primary Care Toolkit for Patient Assessment | BC Centre for Long COVID, ME/CFS, & Fibromyalgia (BC-CLMF)
Discover our comprehensive primary care toolkit designed for effective patient assessment. It includes a patient symptom inventory, medication treatment handouts, and valuable resources like webinars ...
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Emily M. Bender @emilymbender.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
It seems like there's a new round of "stochastic parrots has been proven wrong" discourse going on, so I'm going to re-up this: medium.com/@emilymenonb... >>
medium.com
Stochastic Parrots 🦜: Frequently Unasked Questions
It’s been a bit over five years since the Stochastic Parrots paper (Bender, Gebru et al 2021) was published (and somewhat longer since…
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Yes exactly. Very apt to describe as equivalent to a boil-water advisory … meant to be temporary until permanent measures are taken.
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Timnit Gebru @timnitgebru.blacksky.app · 03/09/2026
At a certain point I have to ask myself if I got all this pedigree and spent decades doing research and building things to then spend the rest of my life attempting to come up with good arguments as to why the Cookie Monster isn't real.
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betsy ladyzhets 😷 @betsyladyzhets.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Today @thesicktimes.org: Lots of details from me on the Department of Defense grant funding a new Long COVID clinical trials program. The story includes context on past DOD medical research funding, comments & slides from Michael Peluso (PI of the new program), and more:
thesicktimes.org
Department of Defense funds $8 million grant for Long COVID trials - The Sick Times
A new U.S. clinical trials program called PROBE-PASC was announced on Friday at a Long COVID conference in Amsterdam. The program received initial funding of $8 million from a Department of Defense (D...
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
If you want to understand the indirect economic impacts of wildfire, imagine losing *7 weeks* of business during the busiest part of the summer season. Not just the area affected by fire, but the entire area from Cache Creek to Hope The economic impacts of climate change playing out in real time.
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Alaina Wood @thegarbagequeen.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Please be mindful about what you say online right now about climate change — especially if you are a scientist. Young people on TikTok, Instgram, and Reddit are giving up on their activism and future education/careers because they are interpreting our posts as saying that things are truly hopeless.
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Erin Biba @erinbiba.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
There are many uses for AI in science - modeling, data analysis, certain diagnostics - none of those are LLMs and frankly not even really “AI” as we’ve come to know it at all and TBH we need a different name for this kind of “AI” so the science stuff can stop getting dragged into this argument.
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
Justin has succeeded in creating some BC community drama, just the tonic we needed to take our minds off all the stupid things going on in BC and around the word. Thank you for your service 🫡
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Justin McElroy 🇨🇦 @jmcelroy.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
🏰🏰🏰 ENCHANTED FOREST 🍑🍑🍑 KEREMEOS FRUIT STANDS INTERIOR ROADSIDE ATTRACTION FINAL IS HERE
cbc.ca
Search for B.C.'s best roadside attraction: Interior final | CBC News
Voters will determine whether the Enchanted Forest or Keremeos fruit stands will represent B.C.’s Interior as the search for best roadside attraction heads towards the semifinals
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Excellent government messaging on AI 🎯
Screenshot of BC Wildfire Service Facebook post

Wildfire response involves a lot of planning, training, experience and decision-making.
Or we could just ask Al what to do next.
Just kidding.
We don't ask Al summaries or chatbots how to respond to wildfires because when you're responding to emergencies, the quality of your information matters. The same goes for the public.
Al may be useful for making your grocery list, but it isn't a source of real-time emergency information.
It can miss context, simplify complex situations or rely on information that's already out of date.
When you need to know what's happening, go straight to the source.
• Active wildfire information: BC Wildfire Service dashboard or mobile app
Road conditions and closures: www.drivebc.ca
Evacuation alerts and orders: Your local authority or First Nation and EmergencylnfoBC
Smoke conditions: BC Wildfire Service app or
www.firesmoke.ca
During an emergency, don't trust a summary. Trust the source.
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Tyler Olsen @tyolsen.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
STORY: After my 93-year-old grandmother was evacuated from a Summerland seniors home, no one could tell us where she was. My family wasn't alone. I went hunting for answers for how this happened.
thetyee.ca
‘They Lost Granny’ | The Tyee
My grandmother was evacuated from Summerland. We spent days trying to find her.
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
I have no words
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
If Mike Flannigan is scared about potential for new fire starts, pay attention ⬇️
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
**BC has experienced more area burned during 2017-2026 (red) as compared to 1950-2026 (green)**
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Jen St. Denis @jenstden.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
British Columbia's premier David Eby is about to do a press conference on the wildfire situation, including Summerland. Officials from BC Wildfire Service, Ministry of Emergency Management & Climate readiness, etc., will also be in attendance. #bcpoli
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
I mourn for the Okanagan that once was. As a kid in the 70s and 80s, fire was always a part of the landscape, but now it rapidly engulfs and consumes. Sending strength to those who have been evacuated, and comfort to those who have lost homes and places they love.
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Katie Mack @astrokatie.com · 07/08/2026
You can find a whole set of pre-order links on my webpage, here: www.astrokatie.com/book-htbau And I can also now share this VERY DRAMATIC cover reveal video, made for me by the awesome folks at Scribner!
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Tyler Olsen @tyolsen.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Last day of the Riley Creek Fire near Lillooet
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Joel Wood 🇨🇦 @joelwwood.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Pretty crazy how much of the Thompson-Nicola Regional District has burned in the past 10 years. Kamloops is in the middle of the TNRD (Source: Michael Grenier on Facebook)
Map showing area burned (in red and orange) in past 10 years. These areas are about 1/4 to 1/3 of the area
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Victoria Rose Richards @aerialembroidery.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
'You'll choke too' - an aerial embroidery landscape inspired by all the wildfires happening right now... I'm upset every time I smell smoke outside and somehow we have people starting them maliciously too! But we all breathe the same air so they'll choke too (1/2 - see thread for close-ups)
An embroidery hoop containing a sewn landscape from above. It shows a forest on the right, a line of fire and charred ground with smoke on the left. The smoke is felted wool.
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
Bradley Creek fire is now well north and east of Hwy 97 into Spallumcheen. Fire is moving quickly … areas previously under alert have switched to evac orders over the day. Throughts and 🙏 with friends & family in Vernon area who have evacuated, heartbreaking to see my hometown in this state💔 ❤️‍🩹
Satellite image of the North Okanagan with FIRMS data showing heat from Bradley Creek wildfire
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Castanet.net @castanet.net · 02/08/2026
Wildfire jumps Highway 97 at north end of Okanagan Lake, entire OKIB reserve evacuated #VernonBC
castanet.net
Wildfire jumps Highway 97 at north end of Okanagan Lake, entire OKIB reserve evacuated - Vernon News
UPDATE 10:20 p.m. The Bradley Creek wildfire has now jumped Highway 97 at the north end of Okanagan Lake, forcing the highway's closure.
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Tyler Olsen @tyolsen.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Nearly a day later, expanded evacuation order zone near Lillooet not showing up in the BC Wildfire app. Not great!
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Anna Mehler Paperny @mehlerpaperny.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
BC's Mental Health Act violates Charter rights (sections 7 and 15), court finds: You can't assume an involuntarily hospitalized person lacks capacity to consent or withhold consent to treatment. Win for disability rights activists: www.bccourts.ca/jdb-txt/sc/2... ht @ivacheung.com
bccourts.ca
2026 BCSC 1416 Council of Canadians with Disabilities v. British Columbia (Attorney General)
Council of Canadians with Disabilities v. British Columbia (Attorney General),
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Dr Noor Bari @njbbari3.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
I’d go as far as saying this headline is dangerous misinformation.
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David Keegan @drdavidkeegan.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
I don’t understand how this got published. It would be akin to saying “seatbelts don’t save lives” because of a study when people who didn’t use them properly had just as bad injuries as people who didn’t use them at all.
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Touching tribute to Michael Coyle. Not mentioned in the article - he was a knowledgeable and thoughtful advocate for covid awareness and clean air, and made many positive contributions here to share information and help others.
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Dick Zoutman @dickzoutman.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
This 👇🏽 is terrific news! Now we need to replicate this across all of Ontario and Canada!!
ospe.on.ca
A Major Win for Indoor Air Quality: Toronto's Board of Health Moves to Adopt Stronger Ventilation Standards
The Ontario Society of Professional Engineers celebrates a major win for indoor air quality with stronger ventilation standards in Toronto.
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Adam Radwanski @aradwanski.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Not the kind of climate change column I’ve normally written, or want to write, but I felt I had to. www.thestar.com/business/opi...
thestar.com
I've covered climate policy for years. The haze over Toronto finally shattered my optimism
The wildfire smoke has choked my faith in Canada's climate future, writes Adam Radwanski. We used to at least be trying. Now we're betting against energy transition.
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Negro Frolics @desmondcole.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Ontario's jails are using an artificial intelligence tool that disproportionately places Black prisoners in maximum security The government anticipated its tool AI would produce biased outcomes, but used it anyway My latest @breachmedia.ca investigation breachmedia.ca/black-prison...
breachmedia.ca
Black prisoners are assigned harsher living conditions in Ontario jails—thanks to AI ⋆ The Breach
Ontario jails are using a program that claims it can predict prisoners’ behaviour, disproportionately putting Black prisoners in higher-security facilities
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Hey ChatGPT, can you take away the towers and replace them with single family homes?
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Matthew Cortland (they) @matthewcort.land · 13/07/2026
As I prepare for surgery in a couple of days I wanted to dash off a quick 'actionable analysis' post that's our tag line here at Shouldn't Need to be a (Public Health) Lawyer.... Here's how to protect yourself from Cyclosporiasis, the explosive diarrhea parasite taking the country by storm
patreon.com
Cyclosporiasis Is Here: How to Protect Yourself | Shouldn't Need to Be a Lawyer by Matthew Cortland
Cyclospora infection is often asymptomatic, but when symptoms occur, illness is characterized by anorexia, nausea, flatulence, fatigue, abdo
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BetaKit @betakit.com · 01/07/2026
Cory Doctorow argues that the best way to reclaim our digital sovereignty is to jailbreak Canada. @doctorow.pluralistic.net
betakit.com
Digital elbows up | BetaKit
Cory Doctorow argues that the best way to reclaim our digital sovereignty is to jailbreak Canada.
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Adam Radwanski @aradwanski.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
I appreciate that he’s addressing this head on and for the most part I think he at least makes a reasonable argument, whether or not one agrees with it. But one bit that I think is dubious and reckless is claiming that sticking with the existing plan would’ve made life more expensive for Canadians.
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andrea bennett (they/them) @akkabah.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
In Richmond, 90 is the new 80. But in the BC Interior, life expectancies are shorter than 20 years ago. @tyolsen.bsky.social for @thetyee.ca thetyee.ca/News/2026/06...
thetyee.ca
BC’s Life Expectancies Are Diverging, Exclusive Data Shows | The Tyee
In Richmond, 90 is the new 80. But in the BC Interior, life expectancies are shorter than 20 years ago.
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Gabrielle Peters @mssinenomine.bsky.social · 27/06/2026
A Q&A with Dr. Jennifer Baumbusch on the anniversary of the deadly 2021 BC heat dome about her memories, lessons learned and her research on heat. substack.com/@mssinenomin...
substack.com
Heat Beat: Q&A With Dr. Jennifer Baumbusch on the Anniversary of the Heat Dome
This is the first in a series of posts about heat and the five year anniversary of the BC heat dome.
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Conservation Value Solutions @win-with-nature.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
From @globalecoguy.bsky.social on Linked In - stunning and VERY telling about which climate change solutions we can trust to generate the impact we need...
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Mark Roseman @markroseman.com · 25/06/2026
Look what Nova Scotia manages to PUBLICLY report about it's primary care waiting list. In BC? We get nothing. To get any data, we can wait for cherry-picked scraps from MOH or wait months for FOI requests. Widespread lack of transparency is enabling health system failure in BC.
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Jim Vanderwal @jimvanderwal.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
Read this article. Great insights into the dynamics of this community and region, and the underlying governance challenge. “In the context of millennia, five years doesn’t seem so long”
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