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Patrick Bigger

@pmbigger.bsky.social
5.3K followers 926 following 700 posts

Research Director @cplusc.bsky.social // co-director @transitionsec.bsky.social Political economy in the climate+ecological crisis. Terrible taste in music. climateandcommunity.org // transitionsecurity.org // bit.ly/pb_pubs

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Reposted by Patrick Bigger
D @wildfirediva.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
‘We’re near a breaking point:’ firefighters say US government is failing them amid intense wildfire season www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
‘We’re near a breaking point:’ firefighters say US government is failing them amid intense wildfire season
US grapples with federal firefighter shortage as crews say they’re spread thin and lack resources during unrelenting year of fire
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Henry Farrell @himself.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
@mattduss.bsky.social "The problem here is the opposite of what Moskowitz claims: Hawkish Democrats aren’t being marginalized enough in the Democratic Party." www.thenation.com/article/worl...
thenation.com
The Reality Today Is That Foreign Policy Hawks Are a Minority in the Democratic Party
It is damn time we all started acting like it.
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Climate and Community Institute @cplusc.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
NEW: If you live in the US, your electricity might cost an additional $376/year by 2030. Why? Utilities are passing on $1.4 trillion in costs—largely to deal with AI expansion and climate disasters—to customers over the next five years. stopgreedbuildgreen.climateandcommunity.org/posts/the-bl...
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Jessica McKenzie @jessimckenzi.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
New @thebulletin.org by MIT physicists Lisbeth Gronlund & David Wright: The Pentagon's $3.2 billion bet on space-based boost-phase missile defense ignores basic orbital dynamics, offering no real protection while fueling a costly, destabilizing arms race in space. nice, good talk
thebulletin.org
Defeated by physics
The Pentagon's $3.2 billion bet on space-based boost-phase missile defense ignores basic orbital dynamics, offering no real protection while fueling a costly, destabilizing arms race in space.
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Chris Hayes @chrislhayes.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
I don’t think there’s really even a colorable argument that this isn’t mass murder. theintercept.com/2026/09/02/m...
theintercept.com
The U.S. Has Killed 227 Civilians in Boat Strikes During “A Year of Murders”
“The boat strikes are, perhaps, the most stark testament to the lawlessness of the Trump administration.”
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Moira Birss @moira.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
I'm sooo excited to share this new episode of @thedigradio.bsky.social, hosted by @astra.bsky.social & featuring @madisoncondon.bsky.social, @dwallacewells.bsky.social & me on climate catastrophe, insurance profiteering, & how solidarity can help keep our homes safer. thedigradio.com/podcast/insu...
thedigradio.com
Insuring Catastrophe w/ David Wallace-Wells, Madison Condon, Moira Birss
Featuring David Wallace-Wells, Madison Condon, and Moira Birss on how insurance companies profit off climate catastrophe—and, in doing so, ensure that people and the planet suffer the consequences. Gu...
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Patrick Bigger @pmbigger.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
This is obscene for all sorts of reasons, not the least of which is the climate dimension as I wrote about back when the US extrajudicially kidnapped Maduro in January climatecommunityinstitute.substack.com/p/trumps-ill...
climatecommunityinstitute.substack.com
Trump’s Illegal Invasion of Venezuela Forebodes an Environmental Disaster
Rebuilding Venezuelan oil production would produce new annual emissions higher than the carbon footprints of France, the UK, or Thailand
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Patrick Bigger @pmbigger.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
This is obscene for all sorts of reasons, not the least of which is the climate dimension as I wrote about back when the US extrajudicially kidnapped Maduro in January climatecommunityinstitute.substack.com/p/trumps-ill...
climatecommunityinstitute.substack.com
Trump’s Illegal Invasion of Venezuela Forebodes an Environmental Disaster
Rebuilding Venezuelan oil production would produce new annual emissions higher than the carbon footprints of France, the UK, or Thailand
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Patrick Bigger @pmbigger.bsky.social · 29/08/2026
Great reporting from Gary on the climate crisis in 2026. I told Sarah for the piece, “There is simply no reason... that an entire city with a proud industrial heritage in the richest country in the history of the world should not have access to one of the core inputs of modern life.”
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Sammy Roth @sammyroth.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Friday was the hottest day *ever recorded* for Earth's oceans, on average. Oceans continue to absorb more than 90% of the excess heat from global warming: www.sfchronicle.com/climate/arti... via @sfchronicle.com
sfchronicle.com
Earth’s oceans just broke a heat record. The implications will be massive
Human-caused global warming and a strong El Niño are adding excess heat to the oceans, threatening marine life and providing storms with more energy and moisture.
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Anna Kornbluh @annakornbluh.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
universities are not run by leftist profs they are run by corporate profiteer board members siphoning public $$ to tech partnerships "An Inside Higher Ed analysis of SEC filings turned up dozens of presidents paid handsomely for sitting on corporate boards." www.insidehighered.com/news/governa...
the 10 presidents in Inside Higher Ed’s analysis who earned the most from outside board service in 2025.
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Dave Levitan @davelevitan.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
The war in Iran is gonna be one of those things that students learning about it in the future will be like "wait... why?" and their teacher or prof will just shrug and remind them it was eventually named Trump's Folly or The War for Nothing or whatever
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Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò @olufemiotaiwo.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
get in losers we're doing Green Economic Populism @cplusc.bsky.social
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Climate and Community Institute @cplusc.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
We're seeking a Senior Associate, Finance and Operations who blends operational savvy, financial management, and commitment to supportive and transparent culture. Learn more and apply: climateandcommunity.org/careers/
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Climate and Community Institute @cplusc.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
The Green New Deal for Public Schools Act would invest $1.6 trillion over 10 years to provide healthy, green upgrades to every K-12 public school in the nation while tackling educational, environmental, and racial inequity. 🧵
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Patrick Bigger @pmbigger.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
@cplusc.bsky.social is hiring again! We're looking for someone to join our operations team. This role will be critical to implementing some big changes we're aiming to make that will allow us to be even more effective winning transformative climate+economic policy. climateandcommunity.org/careers/
climateandcommunity.org
Work With Us - Climate and Community Institute
Job opportunities at the Climate and Community Institute
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Mark Joseph Stern @mjsdc.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
Agree with @jamellebouie.net that it's pretty clear Elon Musk wanted to eviscerate USAID *for the purpose of killing as many African people as possible.* Mass death wasn't an accidental byproduct of his "deep state" paranoia; it was a key mission of DOGE. www.nytimes.com/2026/07/29/o...
One might even see his destruction of the United States Agency for International Development — responsible, so far, for an estimated 700,000 deaths worldwide — as consistent with his concern with falling white birthrates relative to those in places such as sub-Saharan Africa, where U.S.A.I.D. was active. After all, one way to secure a future for Western children, in this zero-sum view of the world, would be to starve African ones.
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Patrick Bigger @pmbigger.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
The world is a little dimmer today. Writing this for my friend and colleague Sarah Knuth was agonizing and we miss her so much, but we also celebrate Sarah's memory and push forward on the struggles that she cared about so deeply. climateandcommunity.org/bio/sarah-kn...
climateandcommunity.org
Sarah Knuth (In Memoriam) - Climate and Community Institute
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Eugene McCann @ejmccann.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Sad news. RIP Sarah.
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John Stehlin @jstehlin.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Still reeling from this. Sarah was kind of an academic aunt to me through grad school and after. She was brilliant, but she used her brilliance to collaborate and to make everyone around her feel smarter, funnier, and more hopeful. Unreal to inhabit this dumber, drearier world without her.
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Patrick Bigger @pmbigger.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
The world is a little dimmer today. Writing this for my friend and colleague Sarah Knuth was agonizing and we miss her so much, but we also celebrate Sarah's memory and push forward on the struggles that she cared about so deeply. climateandcommunity.org/bio/sarah-kn...
climateandcommunity.org
Sarah Knuth (In Memoriam) - Climate and Community Institute
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jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 22/07/2026
uh...yes?
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Mark Gongloff @markgongloff.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Trump's whole-of-government assault on clean energy isn't just a disaster for the planet, it's a catastrophe for the whole economy, with effects that will grow exponentially Gift link to my column for @opinion.bloomberg.com www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
bloomberg.com
Quashed Cleantech Opportunities Are Costing Us Billions
Ever wonder about the financial implications of your life choices? Taking one job over another, spending Christmas with your nephew instead of working through it at your financial firm, that time Bitc...
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Baltimore Banner Sports @sports.thebaltimorebanner.com · 20/07/2026
“We’re not asking for permission to be here. We’re playing.” In February, USA Rugby banned transgender women from competing in women's matches. It was, on paper, a massive blow to the Baltimore Ferals, one of hundreds of teams affiliated with International Gay Rugby. Instead, they kept playing.
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Chris Lang @reddmonitor.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
New report by the Oakland Institute reveals that the rush for critical minerals is not about a green transition. More than 70% of mineral demand comes from industries outside the energy transition, like aerospace, military, Big Tech, and AI sectors. reddmonitor.substack.com/p/rush-globa...
reddmonitor.substack.com
RUSH: Global Scramble for Minerals Wages War on People and Planet
New report from the Oakland Institute highlights how the military, AI, and corporate interests are driving the global rush for critical minerals.
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Karin Kirk @karinkirk.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
It's the time of year when this NASA page about wildfires and climate change becomes sadly relevant. But the good news is that the page is still up! It walks through the ways we know that our warming climate is causing larger and more destructive wildfires - the evidence is clear.
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Basav @basavsen.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Terrible air quality in the nation's capital today, brought to you by Exxon, Chevron, BP, Shell, the American Petroleum Institute, et al.
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Tressie McMillan Cottom @tressiemcphd.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
Okay okay okay let’s go
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Patrick Bigger @pmbigger.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
As fire season heats up and wildfire smoke begins to choke cities up and down the East Coast, a reminder that this administration has gutted the Forest Service, making fire prevention and responses even harder. Read more from @cplusc.bsky.social fellow Sara Nelson on our substack
climatecommunityinstitute.substack.com
Setting Fire to the Forest Service
The Trump administration’s USFS reorganization plan is bad news for people and the planet
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Climate and Community Institute @cplusc.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
Moratoria are one of few levers of democratic intervention able to pause Al data center developments. We hope they are a step toward more deliberate governance and the beginning of a conversation around reorienting public investments toward critical social infrastructure rather than private profit.
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Patrick Bigger @pmbigger.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
As fire season heats up and wildfire smoke begins to choke cities up and down the East Coast, a reminder that this administration has gutted the Forest Service, making fire prevention and responses even harder. Read more from @cplusc.bsky.social fellow Sara Nelson on our substack
climatecommunityinstitute.substack.com
Setting Fire to the Forest Service
The Trump administration’s USFS reorganization plan is bad news for people and the planet
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Dave Weigel @daveweigel.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
And of course next year Memphis will have a GOP congressman, bc Rs used Callais to split the city up into safe red districts.
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Revolving Door Project @revolvingdoordc.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
Check out this new report we worked on with @cplusc.bsky.social. "The AI and data center buildout is not the spontaneous outcome of an imagined 'free market.'...We are witnessing a corporate takeover of state capacity."
stopgreedbuildgreen.climateandcommunity.org
AI First: How the Federal Government is Prioritizing AI Over People and Planet
The data center boom shows that world-altering infrastructure can rapidly expand when the interests of state and capital are aligned.
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Zack Labe @zacklabe.com · 01/07/2026
"Climate Shift Index (CSI) levels of 5 — the highest possible — are forecast across the eastern U.S., meaning human-caused climate change made this extreme heat at least 5x more likely. This signals an exceptional climate-influenced event." 🔥 ➡️ Learn more: www.climatecentral.org/climate-shif...
Graphic showing the Climate Shift Index for July 2, 2026 using data from the 18z GFS model for minimum temperatures. The graphic shows the change in likelihood due to climate change. Many areas are seeing a maximum of temperatures being at least 5x more likely due to climate change. This tool is available at https://csi.climatecentral.org/climate-shift-index.
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Zeteo @zeteo.com · 30/06/2026
3 Tech Giants Driving the AI Data Center Boom Avoided $50 Billion in Taxes Last Year A new report from @cplusc.bsky.social reveals how the Trump administration is actively facilitating the data center contagion sweeping the nation. @premthakker.bsky.social breaks it down: zeteo.com/p/50-billion...
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Climate and Community Institute @cplusc.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
The climate crisis is here with a vengeance: A brutal heat dome is settling over the Midwest and East Coast, with 150 million people facing extreme temperatures.🧵
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Climate and Community Institute @cplusc.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
NEW: The AI boom didn’t happen spontaneously. It’s the result of a corporate takeover of state capacity, setting the stage for Big Tech to make a killing while inflicting deep, lasting pain on the working class. @zeteo.com covers our latest research 🧵
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Ian Smith @iankmsmith.ft.com · 29/06/2026
What happens with the AI boom ends, for the economy and for markets? Our piece on an interesting report from the Bank for International Settlements 👇 AI ‘exuberance’ risks ending in lengthy investment bust, BIS warns www.ft.com/content/e81c...
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Patrick Bigger @pmbigger.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
If you'll be in London during Climate Week, join us for this agenda-setting panel on the war/warming interface!
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Daniel Aldana Cohen @aldasky.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
I think this is right, though my guess is most capitalists opposed decarb bc it threatens more public power & regulation, not bc decarb as such is a problem. Ofc some sectors are structurally antagonistic to decarb. But most capitalists can be mobilized to insane ends to resist being told what to do
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Stanley Pignal @spignal.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
Things that you can buy for about $8000, wheels edition. - Electric Brompton folding bike - BYD Seagull electric car, 300km range. I'm sure tariffs will help us.
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advait @advaitarun.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
I'm trying not to get too mad at the take machine telling Democrats not to talk about climate change. But a lot of it is unproductive shadowboxing that serves to constrain the space for ambitious policymaking. Latest on the blog: advaitcore.substack.com/p/climate-po...
advaitcore.substack.com
Climate policy denial
Correcting a narrative violation. Plus: Plugging new (old) writing, and sharing some capsule reviews
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molly conger @socialistdogmom.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
wrapping up my rumination on the right wing conspiracy theory that the unite the right rally was a hoax, i have some actual receipts that help answer the question of what a nazi rally costs and who pays. spoiler alert: it’s not the southern poverty law center.
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Patrick Bigger @pmbigger.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
I know that almost no one in the US really loves thinking about The Bus, but our new report from @cplusc.bsky.social and @jstehlin.bsky.social is outstanding. It would be pretty cheap and easy for many cities across the US to make buses fast and free, reducing emissions and costs for working people
climatecommunityinstitute.substack.com
Fast and Free Buses Can Work in NYC and Beyond
New report shows how bus transit can quickly lower costs and emissions across the US
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Transition Security Project @transitionsec.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
“Expiring military leases on Hawaii’s public lands around 2029 create a once-in-a-generation window to re-examine the costs of the military’s footprint.”   We're excited to support this crucial analysis on the true cost of the U.S. military In Hawaii. 👇 www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2026/05/27/n...
hawaiinewsnow.com
New report challenges military’s economic impact claims in Hawaii
A group of Hawaii and international experts say expiring military leases on Hawaii’s public lands around 2029 create a once-in-generation window to re-examine the military’s footprint costs.
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It's Going Down @igd.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
Hundreds inside an ICE concentration camp are on a work and hunger strike at Delaney Hall in New Jersey and other hunger strikes have been announced in New Mexico and Southern California. In Tacoma, WA, over 100 detainees announced the formation of the 'Union of People Kidnapped by ICE.'
As people rally outside of Delaney Hall, detainees inside the facility push up against a window, their bodies and hands seen from the outside. Antifascist flag flies in front of Delaney Hall as people gather in protest.
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Transition Security Project @transitionsec.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
As Pentagon demand for minerals grows, Canada’s mining expansion is accelerating extraction on Indigenous territories. Read Nessie Nankivell’s recent essay on how US military demand is intensifying extraction on indigenous lands at our website. 👇 transitionsecurity.org/military-min...
transitionsecurity.org
Military Minerals: How US Military Demand Is Intensifying Extraction on Indigenous Lands
As Pentagon demand for minerals grows, Canada’s mining expansion is accelerating extraction on Indigenous territories.
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Transition Security Project @transitionsec.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
“From Canada’s underbelly came the uranium for the U.S.’s nuclear bombs, nickel for armoured plates on its battleships, and aluminium for its warplanes.” 🖋️ Nessie Nankivell writes on mineral extraction and the US military for @breachmedia.ca 🔗👇 breachmedia.ca/elbows-up-ca...
breachmedia.ca
Elbows up? Canada is letting Pentagon take ‘unprecedented’ stakes in Canadian mines  ⋆ The Breach
By fast-tracking critical minerals, Canada is not simply building a green economy. It is being further integrated into the U.S. war industry
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Scott L Greer @scottlgreer.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
“for most Israelis, Palestinians are a nuisance but no longer a nation. Dealing with Palestinians as a nation—the real innovation of the Oslo Accords—has become a marginal concern of the left; apartheid is the middle position; expulsion is the right-wing position. I am not exaggerating.”
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