iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

This is very bad. IMO the only point at which using AI to review grant proposals is acceptable is to screen for eligiblity (ie are there too few partners, is it over budget?) at the 'desk reject' stage - and even then there must be a right of appeal. www.timeshighereducation.com/news/ai-only...

timeshighereducation.com

AI-only research grant rejection in UKRI-funded call sparks alarm

Artificial intelligence used to cull half of applications submitted by cybersecurity scholars, before they got to human eyes

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

AI may or may not pose a threat to humanity. But climate change and biodiversity loss absolutely, certainly does. It would be fantastic if we could get just half of all the panic and urgency that's sprung up around AI in the last week or so and channel that into responding to environmental crises.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Accusations of academic misconduct are very serious. That's why there's process to be followed. It takes time to weigh up the facts and crucially give the person accused a right to respond with evidence. Shame on all the academics that knew that but jumped on the pile-on anyway.

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Prof Chris Jackson @seismatters.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

There’s a *lot* of people talking who shouldn’t be talking. They should be listening. But hey, if there’s engagement and a few extra followers to be had, why let that stop you 🤷🏾‍♂️

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

What drives up living costs: +food prices from drought & fertiliser shortages; +insurance premiums due to floods + fires; +energy prices because puppeteers decide to have a war. FAO elected leaders: not taking climate action or moving off fossil fuels will cost you an election.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

Commentary from me in the Japan Times this week, in which I reflect on Japanese offshore wind developers' appetite for investing in Scotland and the wider UK - and how Japan-driven offshore wind must support a just transition both at home and overseas: www.japantimes.co.jp/commentary/2...

japantimes.co.jp

Blow winds blow: Time to harvest wind power off Japan’s coast

Japan is investing heavily in offshore wind abroad while its domestic sector still lags due to policy and infrastructure hurdles.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

Spoke to DW News about FIFA supremo Gianni Infantino, and his rather frequent use of private jets to travel between World Cup venues: www.youtube.com/shorts/n7ovy...

youtube.com

FIFA World Cup: Infantino's private jet travel fuels criticism | DW News

YouTube video by DW News

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

I've written in @thediplomat.com about the UK-Japan Offshore Wind Compact, which will see up to £9bn Japanese investment in UK offshore wind. Great for reducing emissions - but must bring fair, secure and meaningful jobs, and economic benefits, under a just transition for people and places nearby.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

Looking forward to this, hosted by Taiwan Climate Action Network as part of London Climate Action Week. I'll share insights from our UK-Taiwan work on adaptation to extreme heat in Glasgow (+ Taipei), and wider insights into climate justice and resilience. londonclimateactionweek.org/event/the-du...

londonclimateactionweek.org

Events - London Climate Action Week

Discover climate summits, forums, workshops, and more during London Climate Action Week — a city-wide celebration of climate action and awareness.

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The FootPol Podcast @footpolpodcast.bsky.social · 19/06/2026

⚽ Morocco's World Cup story doesn't end in 2026. Today's FootPol archive revisit explores the politics of the 2030 World Cup with @ljmabon.bsky.social of @openuniversity.bsky.social; what hosting could mean for Morocco's development, society and global profile. www.buzzsprout.com/2253650/epis...

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 14/06/2026

🎯 See also: various countries and operators touring the conference and trade fair circuit for over a decade with the results of their one 'successful' CCS demonstration project.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 10/06/2026

So pleased to bring @ouscotland.bsky.social Mock COP to Tiree, via our Ecological Citizens Network+-funded project. One of if not the first Mock COPs to involve Gaelic, an accordion, and walkie-talkies. Thank you Tiree CDT and Tiree High School for making it happen. www.bbc.co.uk/naidheachdan...

bbc.co.uk

Co-labhairt COP aig Àrd-sgoil Thiriodh

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Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

I am on it bsky.app/profile/sund...

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

There's a whole study which needs done - by someone smarter than myself - on the phenomenon of politicians going running in football tops when seeking election. Do they go running in football tops when they're not seeking the public vote? Do they vary up the shirts they wear when nobody's looking?

Andy Burnham jogging in a retro Everton shirt.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

What in fresh hell is this? Why do I need an AI-generated summary of a paper when an ABSTRACT - which serves the EXACT SAME FUNCTION and is written by the scientists that WROTE THE BLOODY PAPER - is positioned directly below? If you want a plain-language summary, just get the authors to write it.

A screenshot of an AI-generated article summary on a journal website.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

The Strait of Hormuz is still closed, the UK is hurtling towards an energy and supply chain crisis, and it's barely even a footnote in our news. Replace the PM if you want, but does it register that whoever's in charge is likely to have chaos coming across their desk within months if not weeks?

A screenshot of the BBC News homepage, with very litte mention of the consequences of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz or its effect on energy prices.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

Totally agree with this. Can already see how this will play out in the UK. A very small number of elite institutions and courses will be protected with no or very limited use of AI; whilst AI will be forced onto the rest of us from on-high in the name of 'industrial strategy' or 'growth targets'.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

If you're interested in mangroves, Indonesia and/or batik, you may enjoy this online event with the Trees4Trees conservation organisation and batik artist Sodiqin, who will share their experiences of working together. Sunday 17 May 2026, 10amUTC/11am UK time: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/ecocreativ...

eventbrite.co.uk

EcoCreative Cluster talk: Trees4Trees & Sodiqin on mangrove dye (Indonesia)

Meet Trees4Trees and Sodiqin from Indonesia to learn their collaboration involving mangrove conservation and batik-making with mangrove dye

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

You know you've spent too much time trawling through climate, environment and urban plans for Fukuoka when you recognise the Mayor as soon as he appears on-screen in Michael Portillo's new series.

Two men sit at a yatai in Fukuoka, Japan.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

Green steel in Japan from Kitakyushu! Our Environmental Management module #T330 @openuniversity.bsky.social explores Kitakyushu's journey from pollution to SDGs. Now Nippon Steel has broken ground on an electric arc furnace, continuing 125 years of steel in the city. asia.nikkei.com/business/mat...

asia.nikkei.com

Nippon Steel's blast-to-electric-furnace shift faces energy, price hurdles

Green transition by Japan's largest steelmaker raises questions about challenges

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

The APC for an OA paper in Nature Climate Change is £9,390. That's huge profit given the authors aren't paid by the journal. So why do Nature also need to sell advertising space? I have enough difficulty not buying more classic Parma tops as it is, without advertising intruding into my working day!

A screenshot of Nature Climate Change, showing targeted advertising. In this case, the targeted advertising is for classing Parma football shirts, reflecting the poster's chronic addiction to collecting classic Parma tops. And Raith Rovers tops. And 1990s Japanese tops.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

350.org JP & Greenpeace JP use appointment of new President/CEO of Kyushu Electric Power to reiterate call for cancellation of GENESIS Matsushima, a coal plant upgrade in remote Nagasaki. Statement notes local importance of plant, calling for renewables as part of sustainable local jobs + economy.

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Japan Beyond Coal @beyond-coal.jp · 08/04/2026

国際環境NGOの 350.org Japan とグリーンピース・ジャパンが共同で、電源開発株式会社の新社長に宛て、「GENESIS松島計画」の中止を求める要望を提出しました。石炭火力の延命ではなく、より持続可能な選択肢の検討が必要です。 world.350.org/ja/press-rel...

world.350.org

【プレスリリース】石炭火力発電増設計画「GENESIS松島」の中止を求める要望を電源開発に提出しました

プレスリリース 2026年4月8日国際...

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

I wonder how much learning has been done in the UK Govt from early 2020, and how that will be applied to upcoming major supply disruptions, whole sections of the economy shut down, job losses/furlough, de-facto travel restrictions. How can we handle that better to protect the most vulnerable?

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

Feeling a bit fragile after celebrating Raith Rovers' Challenge Cup success yesterday, so spending my Bank Holiday morning watching a video of JFE's steelworks in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Prefecture, a facility so large it has its own internal rail network: www.youtube.com/watch?v=8u8Z...

youtube.com

【ロング版】潜入！製鉄所走る構内鉄道　運転士目線でも撮影　溶銑入れた300㌧の鍋軽々運ぶ　広島・JFEスチール西日本製鉄所福山地区

YouTube video by RCC NEWS DIG Powered by JNN

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

Bad times for a country with several cities and regions that are increasingly reliant economically on inbound tourism...

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 31/03/2026

Watched livestream of the final service on the Rumoi Main Line in Hokkaido today. About halfway through, realised I was using my coasters from the last service of the Yubari Branch Line, which closed in 2019. Appreciate these lines aren't economically viable, but desperately sad to see nonetheless.

A computer screen showing the last run of a train service in Hokkaido, Japan. In front are two coasters from the last run of another rural train line which closed in 2019.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 20/03/2026

The other thing worth noting is this isn't like Japan, where people my age have - broadly speaking - enjoyed a steady quality of life and good public services in spite of a stagnant economy. Instead, it's everything getting worse and worse year on year, as the UK is gradually asset-stripped.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

A "strike package" may be the most horrible phrase I have ever heard: indiscrimiante bombing, needless death and escalation, as if announced by a middle manager on LinkedIn.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 17/03/2026

Last week I visited Karatsu for research into Nijonomatsubara, a magnificent coastal pine forest planted 400 years ago to protect fields and settlements from winds. Great to meet local NPO KANNE to hear about their conservation activities connecting people and nature!

A view along a deep, thick coastal pine forest from the top of a castle.

A small office front, with posters and leaflets about coastal forest conservation.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Getting a grim sense the next couple of years could be like the pandemic all over again. Nobody travelling anywhere, most people working from home or on furlough, desperately trying to cling onto their jobs and homes.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

Despite what the blue-tick bros are saying, right now I honestly think spending an hour a day learning how to grow one's own food and decarbonise a tenement flat would stand me in far better stead for the next few years than spending an hour a day experimenting with AI tools.

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Tim Waterman @tim-waterman.co.uk · 06/03/2026

I dropped out of high school, gained a huge amount of often difficult life experience, then went to community college, and now I'm a professor in a prestigious university. There HAS TO BE A PLACE for non-traditional students. www.theguardian.com/education/20...

theguardian.com

Vice-chancellor calls for review into student loans for those without A-levels

Adam Tickell, of University of Birmingham, says money is loaned to people who ‘are not really capable of graduating’

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

Once more louder for those at the back: Black Mirror was a warning, not an instruction manual.

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Zack Polanski @zackpolanski.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

The choice is stark. Reform are the party of foreign wars and high bills. The Greens want de-escalation and energy security through renewables. Solar and wind prices don't fluctuate when rogue US presidents launch illegal bombing campaigns.

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The Open University @openuniversity.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

Sixty years ago, Jennie Lee's vision created The Open University 🎓 Welcoming all backgrounds, millions have started life-changing journeys. #OUfamily #TheOpenUniversity #OU60 💙

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Andrew Sissons @acjsissons.bsky.social · 15/02/2026

The Dawlish - Teignmouth railway line feels like the absolute front line of climate adaptation in Britain (a test we are not passing so far). And yet somehow, somehow, this article manages to go in-depth on the problems with the line without mentioning the climate once. The sea is literally higher!

bbc.co.uk

Fresh fears for South West's rail link in Dawlish after storms

Taxpayer money has flowed into fixing the rail line connecting Cornwall with the rest of the UK - but the elements have other ideas.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

Continuing @britishacademy.bsky.social - supported work into evidence landscape for seawalls in Indonesia, with a visit to Balai Teknik Pantai, a huge test facility for prototyping sea defences for all Indonesia. Thank you for hosting us so well, and for answering all my STS-alike questions 😅

A series of concrete blocks, which represent trial-scale stepped seawalls.

A large indoor wave tank. There is a model of a breakwater in the middle of the water, and a pile of rubble to the rear.

A small wave tank, with a small-scale model of a stepped seawall, and waves breaking against it.

A group of people in hard hats and high-vis vests stand round a table of small-scale concrete tetrapods and seawalls.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 08/02/2026

We've been in Jakarta continuing @britishacademy.bsky.social -funded work into evidence-driven policy for seawalls in Indonesia. Visited some very challenging sites on the Jakarta coast, and had the opportunity to meet the Ministry of Higher Education, Science & Technology to discuss our work.

A group of people stand next to some concrete steps next to a seawall. The steps are about 30cm below the wall top, due to subsidence.

A seawall in Jakarta. To the left are fishing boats in the water. To the right, at a lower level than the water, are houses and a pavement.

A group of people round a table in a meeting room.

Five people in a line, making a 'U' shape gesture.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 01/02/2026

Helpful thread here on UKRI + strategy. Vital in any cross-disciplinary calls that arts, humanities + social sciences have a central and transformative role, and hopefully aren't seen as 'service sciences' stuck on at the end of the pipe to assess public opinion or 'convince' the public about tech.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

Really grim to see this, but sadly it seems to be the direction of travel that's been on the cards for a few years now: curiosity-driven research funding for the elites, policy support- and industrial collaboration projects for the rest of us. www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-r...

researchprofessionalnews.com

MRC instructs grant review boards to slash funding rates - Research Professional News

Boards asked to recommend just three applications for funding, as BBSRC also suspends calls

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 29/01/2026

A pleasure to be back in Tiree to progress the Ecological Citizens Network+-funded project on coastal change Tiree CDT & myself are leading. Grateful to everyone who came to the drop-in session (was talking non-stop for 2.5 hours!) and shared their thoughts on our plans for the project and beyond.

Small white houses and low lying scrub, early in the morning sunlight. A single-track road runs through the image.

A small room set up for a drop-in session. There is a map of the island of Tiree on a large screen, and a physical map next to a PowerPoint presentation.

A map annotated with post-it notes, showing places where action to respond to coastal erosion and climate change could be undertaken on Tiree.

A fence hanging in the air, following the erosion of a small dune. Rubble has been deposited over the sand to prevent further erosion.

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The War on Cars @thewaroncars.bsky.social · 29/01/2026

Lots of folks getting radicalized by the snow across much of the country right now. What gets plowed, when it gets plowed, and how often it gets plowed reveals a lot about your city's priorities and who it values.

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beccadownes @beccadownes.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

Peer review science relies, more than we care to admit, on what @zey.bsky.social calls "load bearing frictions" that make it difficult to fake good science, and on trust that most ppl also value science itself & won't cheat just for personal gain. This creates the wrong environment for that to hold.

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Markus Eichhorn @markuseichhorn.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

A reward structure that favours productivity over quality will always incentivise the use of tools that make it easier to generate papers. Who cares if anyone actually reads them?

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

Writing - and the thinking that comes with it - is one of the parts of my job I enjoy the most. If you asked me to make a list of parts of my job that I wanted to outsource to AI, the writing up of research would probably be bottom of the list by a very long way. It's a giant NOPE from me.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

Notwithstanding the fact this would have been a legitimately scary experience for those involved, it is heartening to see Scottish people in the replies and quotes at the rate of one person per hour pointing out this is basically the episode of Still Game with Robbie Coltrane.

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Leslie Mabon @ljmabon.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

Interesting from @beyond-coal.jp about apparent lack of meaningful engagement on possible CCS project off Chiba. Remember too this is near part of Japan that was due to host a major offshore wind project that was shelved. Residents will have legitimate concerns about infrastructure + process.

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