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Mark Walton

@mark-walton.bsky.social
271 followers 132 following 31 posts

Founder and Director of Shared Assets working for a more just land system. NED at Traveller Pride, The Love Tank and Digital Commons working for a more inclusive, healthier and informed future.

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Reposted by Mark Walton
Canal Club Community Centre and Garden @canalcommunity.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
Please sign and share our new petition to save the Canal Club Community Centre and Garden: actionnetwork.org/petitions/sa...
actionnetwork.org
NEW Petition: Save Our Space E2 - Save The Canal Club at Waterloo Gardens
We call on the Mayor and Councillors of Tower Hamlets Council to remove The Canal Club Community Centre, the community garden, our ball cage and playground from the Mayor’s Accelerated Housing Scheme ...
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Mark Walton @mark-walton.bsky.social · 24/03/2026
Well …
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Mark Walton @mark-walton.bsky.social · 22/03/2026
Please. Listen to these two episodes. A fantastic corrective to all the current right wing frothing. TLDL: we are where we are due mainly to Brexit and Liz Truss.
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 13/03/2026
Building housing campaigns often means handling sensitive info. We’ve created a practical data governance guide for grassroots housing organisers. It covers GDPR basics, collecting only what you need, avoiding purpose creep & safer data sharing. 👉 drive.google.com/file/d/1DQO-...
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
Using Land Explorer and want a proper walkthrough? We offer free 1-hour onboarding calls for orgs + community groups. We’ll cover: – Key layers for your work – Smarter searching – Exporting findings – Real campaign examples Email us to book a session hello@digitalcommons.coop
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Guy Shrubsole @guyshrubsole.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
This is really excellent - the creation of a register of 'options over land' will help show if developers are land banking, and allow communities and councils to better understand who controls land in their area. Good work @matthewpennycookmp.bsky.social & MHCLG Land team! bsky.app/profile/matt...
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
We build open source infrastructure for communities to offer an alternative (an antidote) to the opaque and proprietary tech that dominates elsewhere. Our code is public, improvements are shared, and anyone can contribute. Join our contributor space here: github.com/orgs/Digital...
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e. amato @eamato.bsky.social · 03/03/2026
I guess we can add this to our running tab of horrifying policies. [Gift link]
nytimes.com
States Move to Limit Access to H.I.V. Treatment
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Ben Miller @benwritesthings.bsky.social · 28/02/2026
trying to think of a weaker and more contemptible response than this and failing
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
Housing organising involves sensitive data. When it’s mishandled, tenants take the risk, not institutions. Together with Shared Assets, we made a GDPR guide for housing justice groups that’s about care, not compliance. Get it here: drive.google.com/file/d/1DQO-...
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Andy Wightman @andywightman.scot · 23/02/2026
Today I publish Who Owns Scotland 2025, an annual analysis of landownership across rural Scotland. The most significant finding is the continuing trend over past 15 years of fewer and fewer owners owning more and more of rural Scotland. andywightman.scot/2026/02/who-...
andywightman.scot
Who Owns Scotland 2025 - Land Matters
SCOTLAND’S CONCENTRATED PATTERN OF LANDOWNERSHIP CONTINUES TO GET WORSE Today I publish Who Owns Scotland 2025, the second annual report on landownership in Scotland. The first (Who Owns Scotland 2024...
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Platform Places @platformplaces.bsky.social · 22/02/2026
Read more in our article for the Winter issue of STIR, exploring inspiration & how-tos, from Leicester & London to Bristol & Sheffield: #CommunityAssets #MycelialNetwork #StirToAction www.stirtoaction.com/articles/pla... 3/ 🧵
stirtoaction.com
How community property portfolios build local power & wealth
Platform Places: Community property portfolios
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The Museum of English Rural Life (MERL) @themerl.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
A common fictional narrative shows people with nonconforming identities finding self-acceptance in towns and cities. This #LGBTQHistoryMonth, archivist Lottie Wood explores how author E. M. Barraud found the opposite, through rural work and the Women’s Land Army. merl.reading.ac.uk/news-and-vie...
merl.reading.ac.uk
"I am the farm worker going home at evening": gender fluidity, rural landscapes, and the Women's Land Army
Archivist Lottie Wood explores gender and landscapes in E. M. Barraud's reflections on her time in the Women's Land Army.
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
✨ We’ve just launched a new open source contributor space for people who want to support tech for good. If you’re a developer, researcher, designer, or data person, you can now see what we’re working on and where support is needed. 🙏 github.com/orgs/Digital...
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Ben Miller @benwritesthings.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
I Never Thought The Leopards Would Eat My Face, sobs woman who wrote innumerable opinion columns about how there were reasonable concerns about how regulations banning leopards eating people’s faces endangered women
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
✉️ We just sent our monthly newsletter! It covered... 💚 A new GDPR handbook for housing justice groups 🛠️ A new open source contributor space that's now live And more! Subscribe for future updates: digitalcommons.coop/contact/
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Mark Walton @mark-walton.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
I bumped into a very sweaty agitated man on the towpath in an affluent part of London once. It was Boris Johnson out for a jog. Terrifying. It’s true … you really don’t feel safe in London sometimes.
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Guy Shrubsole @guyshrubsole.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
Ban on Palestine Action ruled unlawful by High Court! Palestine Action should never have been proscribed as a 'terrorist organisation' - Cooper's doing so was massive overreach, setting a dangerous precedent for the banning of non-violent direct action groups www.theguardian.com/uk-news/live...
theguardian.com
High court rules ban on Palestine Action is unlawful – live
Protest group’s co-founder wins legal challenge against decision to proscribe it under anti-terrorism laws
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Postcard From The Past @pastpostcard.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
We now know how the rich live.
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Jess Craig @jesscraig.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
What could help make more Nudges possible? Community businesses often struggle to get money quickly, to buy properties when they become available. Pre-agreed financing has been essential for Nudge but a more agile facility to fund community buyouts is needed.
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The Love Tank CIC @thelovetankcic.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
Mpox diagnoses in the UK increased in January 2026. Vaccination is available through routine NHS sexual health appointments for eligible groups. @bashhuk.bsky.social @ukhsa.bsky.social @england.nhs.uk www.thelovetank.info/news/mpoxfeb26
thelovetank.info
MPOX cases increasing: new data from UKHSA — The Love Tank CIC
New figures from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) released today show a sharp increase in the numbers of MPOX cases diagnosed (formerly known as monkeypox) in the UK.
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
Campaigning is more effective when the system is visible. Groups use Land Explorer to: 🔦 find who owns land & buildings 💪 spot unregistered or hidden land & more.. We run 1-hour onboarding calls for orgs who want to use it in their campaigns. ✉️ Email: hello@digitalcommons.coop
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Jon Moses @jon-moses.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
Exciting news: this May sees the national release of OUR LAND. A beautiful documentary feature film about the @righttoroam.bsky.social campaign, directed by Orban Wallace. Trailer here 👇 www.youtube.com/watch?v=est-...
youtube.com
Our Land Trailer
YouTube video by MetFilm Distribution
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
☎️ We now offer 1-hour Land Explorer onboarding / training calls for your group or org Groups use the tool to find out who owns land, investigate sites, & connect local issues to wider ownership patterns, especially when info is hard to access or fragmented. Email hello@digitalcommons.coop !
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 07/01/2026
The UK housing crisis has a hidden layer: the info organisers need to build campaigns is paywalled & fragmented. That's why we’re working with Shared Assets to build tools shaped by organisers themselves. Uncover who owns what by using Land Explorer (it's free) digitalcommons.coop/land-explorer/
digitalcommons.coop
Land Explorer
Land Explorer makes land data open, accessible, and actionable.
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 27/12/2025
We just sent out our last newsletter of 2025. Highlights include... 💻 We’re hiring a part-time full stack developer (21 hrs/week): deadline 10 Jan 2026 🗺 The Co-operative World Map just passed 84,000 co-ops, with major new data added And more.. ✉️ subscribe here: digitalcommons.coop/contact/
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
We’ve been working on a big update to the Co-operative World Map this month 🌍 It’s built with our tool Mykomaps & will soon show >84,000 co-ops worldwide, giving a much clearer picture of the scale and diversity of the global co-op movement. If your co-op isn’t on it yet, get in touch!
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
We just sent out our last newsletter of 2025. Here's a preview... 💻 We’re hiring a part-time full stack developer (21 hrs/week): deadline 10 Jan 2026 🗺 The Co-operative World Map just passed 84,000 co-ops, with major new data added And more... Subscribe here: digitalcommons.coop/contact/
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We're Right Here @right-here.org · 12/12/2025
As Big Local comes to an end after 15 years & £200m+ invested, @londonfunders.bsky.social and @localtrust.org.uk are launching a new learning series to explore what happened. The series will draw out lessons to apply to future place-based funding. Learn more:
londonfunders.org.uk
Big Local Unpacked: What we can learn from 15 years of community-led change | London Funders
London is entering a pivotal moment for community-led change. As devolution accelerates and place-based funding gains momentum, the sector has a rare chance to learn from what came before. This new…
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
💻 We’re hiring a Full Stack Developer! This is a fully remote, flexible role (~3 days / 21 h/week). You'll be contributing to the delivery pipeline across our open source tools. Come help make the digital commons a reality! 🔗 👉 for more info + application form: digitalcommons.coop/we-are-recru...
digitalcommons.coop
We are recruiting - full stack developer
We're looking for a new full stack developer to join Digital Commons and become part of the team delivering projects like LandExplorer, Data for Housing Justice and the Cooperative World Map. We've wo...
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Digital Commons Cooperative @digitalcommons.bsky.social · 01/12/2025
🌱 The Powys Food Map is live! Built with Mykomaps + launched by the coop Cultivate. It brings together farms, food projects, hubs + community groups across Powys, Wales so people can actually see their local food system in one place. Take a look 👇 www.cultivate.uk.com/bwyd-powys-f...
cultivate.uk.com
The Powys Food Map - Bwyd Powys Food
This map shows the food system across Powys, including community food provision, growing, commercial producers and events.
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Right to Roam @righttoroam.bsky.social · 30/11/2025
The Countryside Right of Way (CRoW) Act succeeded in giving partial access across the nation.
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UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) @ukceh.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
New analysis of 1960s land use maps, many created by schoolchildren and students, reveals fresh insights on the timing and extent of habitat losses caused by post-war agricultural intensification and urban growth in England and Wales. www.ceh.ac.uk/press/maps-c... 🧪 1/ #maps #LandUse
A split image showing Canford Heath, Dorset: left side features a 1960s land utilization survey map with color-coded zones; right side displays a present-day satellite view, highlighting urban development over former heathland.A historical land use map of Downham Market, Norfolk from the 1960s, shaded to show various land types like arable, urban, and woodland.Four digitised maps showing land cover changes in Wolverhampton, England from 1930 to 2020, highlighting shifts from broadleaved woodland and grassland to arable land and urban areas.
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e. amato @eamato.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
Swore you’d finish that project by the end of 2025? I can help.
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Tom Chance @tomchance.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
Please support this! It's not just about rivers/woods/moors. It's also about communities being able to refer to 'environmental' interests in towns/cities, things like buying a building with plans to retrofit it, or create habitats in & around a building...
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Everyone Hates Elon @everyonehateselon.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
James Dyson owns more UK land than the actual KING. But he pays an effective tax rate of LESS THAN 1%* on his total wealth. Here’s a novel idea @keirstarmer: to fund schools and hospitals, TAX THE BILLIONAIRES. 📍Station Lane, Bristol - near James Dyson’s £20m country estate Dodington Park
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The Love Tank CIC @thelovetankcic.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
Food for thought: hosting HIV PrEP research dinners. "Hosting dinners like this for Black queer men is a valuable way of including perspectives & creating spaces for us to freely talk about sexual health." @idiosyncraticxl.bsky.social @benvyle.bsky.social www.thelovetank.info/news/bqmdin
thelovetank.info
Food for thought: The Love Tank hosts HIV PrEP research dinners — The Love Tank CIC
The Love Tank  is hosting community-based dinners to better understand the HIV PrEP needs of Black queer men, in a research collaboration with the  University of Durham .
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Joe Sarling @joesarling.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
"CyanLines is the bold plan to link & transform Manchester’s green and blue spaces...The vision is to develop a network of over 100 miles of...routes over ten years, starting with the city centres of Manchester & Salford...& linking to the rest of Greater Manchester’s boroughs" Link: cyanlines.com
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Right to Roam @righttoroam.bsky.social · 10/11/2025
Access to green and blue spaces shouldn’t be a privilege reserved for the few. It should be something everyone can enjoy, explore, and connect with. Why do you support a Right to Roam, and what does it mean to you? Tell us here -> forms.gle/zCmuYkevUAov...
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e. amato @eamato.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
Some end of year projects have pushed to 2026, so I’ve got time and space for new ones! DM or @ko-fi.com link in bio! #writing #editing
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Mark Walton @mark-walton.bsky.social · 05/11/2025
Questionable safety advice from @themerl.bsky.social on bonfire night
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Lex McMenamin (they/them) @lexmcmenamin.com · 04/11/2025
thank you for the outpouring of support! those of us laid off from Teen Vogue yesterday are now sharing our GoFundMe to help us cover our emergency expenses now that we've lost our incomes, as we get back on our feet.
gofundme.com
Donate to Help Laid-Off Teen Vogue Staffers Recover, organized by Lexi McMenamin
More than half the team at Teen Vogue was laid off this week by our parent co… Lexi McMenamin needs your support for Help Laid-Off Teen Vogue Staffers Recover
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Guy Shrubsole @guyshrubsole.bsky.social · 29/10/2025
'Communities must have the right to own environmental assets' Great letter from @tomchance.bsky.social of the Community Land Trust Network to @miattafahnbulleh.bsky.social, asking her to amend the Devolution Bill to strengthen Community Right to Buy: www.communitylandtrusts.org.uk/news-and-eve...
communitylandtrusts.org.uk
Communities must have the right to own environmental assets | Community Land Trust Network
We have written on behalf of 100s of community land trusts to urge the government to add 'environmental interests' to the definition of Assets of ...
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The Love Tank CIC @thelovetankcic.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
The Love Tank urges continued mpox vaccination uptake as new European cases identified. www.thelovetank.info/news/mpox
thelovetank.info
The Love Tank urges mpox vaccination uptake as new European cases identified — The Love Tank CIC
The Love Tank  joins other organisations in calling for uptake of mpox vaccinations (formerly called monkeypox) as new cases are identified in Europe and the USA.
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The Museum of English Rural Life (MERL) @themerl.bsky.social · 16/10/2025
🐏 New Absolute Units 🐏 Same-sex relationships have always been part of rural England, but they've been underrepresented in our collections. In the first of 2 episodes, @timjerrome.bsky.social shares his work tracing queer rural lives in The MERL archives. merl.reading.ac.uk/explore/abso...
The Absolute Units art. Three giant sheep hover over the English countryside.
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Nancy Thompson @thmpsnnancy.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
Could We End Corporate Money In Politics? open.substack.com/pub/thinkbig...
open.substack.com
Could We End Corporate Money In Politics?
Backers of a referendum before Montana voters next year believe they’ve found a vulnerability on Citizen United
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Robert Reich @rbreich.bsky.social · 17/10/2025
15 years ago the Supreme Court decided corporations are people under the First Amendment. Today, sold-out politicians block progress on all fronts to appease their corporate donors. Citizens United is among the worst decisions in history. It corrupts our system every day.
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Scottish Land Commission @scottishlandcom.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
In our latest blog, Kathie Pollard explores how Scotland’s next Land Use Strategy could play a vital role in bringing coherence across government policies that set the direction how land is used and managed in the years ahead. Read more: buff.ly/DwBwqZt
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Joseph Evans @josephevans.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
This is a really welcome development - IPPR called for land to be included in the government's plans for a Community Right to Buy, to facilitate more community ownership of environmental assets at a time when nature is in managed decline See our full report here: www.ippr.org/articles/dri...
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Guy Shrubsole @guyshrubsole.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
England's Community Right to Buy must enable communities to own environmental assets. Excellent to see this cross-party amendment to the English Devolution Bill tabled by @vikkislademp.bsky.social @simonforstroud.bsky.social @sianberry.bsky.social: publications.parliament.uk/pa/bills/cbi...
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