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Rob Ralston

@policyrelevant.bsky.social
5.4K followers 2.4K following 635 posts

Lecturer in Public Policy at Edinburgh Uni researching corporate power and planetary health - currently global plastics treaty | ‘most improved PhD student’ 2017-18 | part-time Kieran Tierney Ultra

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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
great to see a communicado official with such prolific use of the term ‘sham’
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Center for Climate Integrity @climateintegrity.org · 28/09/2026
Alito’s recusal follows a recent investigation by @consumerwatchdog.bsky.social into his financial ties to the fossil fuel industry — and the warnings he received from ConocoPhillips and Phillips 66 that climate deception lawsuits could adversely affect his investments.
climateintegrity.org
Watchdog group reveals Justice Alito’s financial, ethical conflicts in Big Oil lawsuit before the court | Center for Climate Integrity
Justice Alito must recuse from Suncor v. Boulder under the court’s own Code of Conduct, watchdog says.
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Jennifer Clapp 🇨🇦 @jennifer-clapp.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Was happy to speak with Swissinfo about the important topic of corporate power in food systems! Featuring new data too from @etcgroup.bsky.social and insights from Taarini Chopra! www.swissinfo.ch/eng/agribusi...
swissinfo.ch
How a handful of big agriculture companies have taken over food production
Just a few companies, including Swiss ones, account for a disproportionate share of the market for agricultural inputs like seeds, machinery and chemicals.
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Katharine Hayhoe @katharinehayhoe.com · 20/09/2026
Elite athletes, musicians, actors & more often use cultural importance as an excuse for why they're exempt from cutting their emissions. In this new analysis led by @manuelsuter.bsky.social, we argue the opposite: visibility and influence should raise the bar, not lower it! Read more:
nature.com
The climate responsibility of cultural influencers - npj Climate Action
In socially influential fields such as elite sport, music, and film, cultural relevance is often invoked as a special moral status that exempts them from genuine emissions reduction. We argue that vis...
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Manuel Suter @manuelsuter.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
People with cultural influence have a special responsibility to act on climate change. This is the central argument of a new Comment we published, together with Pascal Stegmann and @katharinehayhoe.com. www.nature.com/articles/s44...
nature.com
The climate responsibility of cultural influencers - npj Climate Action
In socially influential fields such as elite sport, music, and film, cultural relevance is often invoked as a special moral status that exempts them from genuine emissions reduction. We argue that vis...
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
some staggering quotes in this piece, including the claim by one IPCC scientist that sinply declaring funding from Saudi Aramco resolves any conflict of interest
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London Review of Books @lrb.co.uk · 18/09/2026
‘Palantir was willing to spend more on securing political access than almost all of its British and Continental competitors. It made donations to London think tanks and hosted parties at Davos.’ @petergeoghegan.bsky.social and @lucasamin.bsky.social, from July: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
lrb.co.uk
Peter Geoghegan and Lucas Amin · ‘This looks absolutely rubbish’: Palantir and the NHS
A decade ago Palantir was largely unknown in the UK. It now holds public contracts worth hundreds of millions of pounds...
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Karen Gregory @karengregory.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Protect African Studies @ Edinburgh docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...
docs.google.com
Protect African Studies @ Edinburgh
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
spoke to @criticaltakes.bsky.social about plastic waste, corporate power and the upcoming round of UN treaty talks to address the enormous global challenge of plastic pollution podcast available via the link below criticaltakes.org/society-and-...
criticaltakes.org
Nearly half a billion tonnes of plastic
Rob Ralston talks to Critical Takes about the role of corporate power in the plastic waste and pollution crisis and the prospects for a global treaty.
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Andrew Simms @andrewsimms.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
It’s not normal in a health & climate crisis to actively promote highly polluting products that make things worse. Congrats to Bristol - the latest city to end ads for things like fossil fuels, flights and SUVs. @badvertising.bsky.social @adfreecities.bsky.social www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Bristol becomes first city to ban fast fashion adverts
New rules prohibits the promotion of flights, cars and travel agents on council-owned billboards.
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
one of the clearest cases of corporate capture you’ll find
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
all this depoliticization strategy is going to do, is tacitly legitimize the far-right and erode political engagement from citizens
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Naomi Klein @naomiaklein.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
In our new essay for the @financialtimes.com (you read that right), @astra.bsky.social and I link the extreme weather events we have all been living through to the rise of a new iteration of futureless fascism, wherein the rich and powerful plan for their bunkered survival behind fortressed borders.
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Its some kind of alchemy that Pablo Torre Finds Out is both incredibly entertaining and serious public interest journalism
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Des Fitzgerald @desfitzgerald.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Nearly 5000 researchers applied for an ERC starting grand in the last round. Just over 400 (less than 9%) were successful. Many people applying are spending up to 12 months working seriously on their application. This is absolutely crazy. erc.europa.eu/news-events/...
erc.europa.eu
ERC Starting Grants: €705 million to back Europe's next generation of researchers
The European Research Council (ERC) has today announced the winners of its latest Starting Grant competition. The funding, worth €705 million in total, will go to 421 early-career researchers across E...
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Philipp Golka @pgolka.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
How does assetization and assetmanagement inform social conflict? Join us for an online launch event for our NPE special issue "Asset Struggles" on Sept 17th 2PM (German time), featuring: @melindacooper.bsky.social, @jenmcarthur.bsky.social, @benbraun.eurosky.social ⬇️ Signup in post below ⬇️
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Arvind Ravikumar @arvindpawan1.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
A geologist and a systems engineer walk in to a bar... ...and start arguing about whether we can actually pump enough CO2 underground to hit net zero. That's more or less how this paper got started with @hdaigle.bsky.social. Read on to find more: iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1...
iopscience.iop.org
Can we sequester carbon fast enough? growing disconnect between models and reality
Can we sequester carbon fast enough? growing disconnect between models and reality, Daigle, Hugh, Ravikumar, Arvind P
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
been doing some archival research on recycling as a 'fix' to plastic waste and the parallels with climate delay are striking corporate actors knew that recycling was not a viable or environmentally sustainable solution in the 1970s, but spent millions persuading publics and govts otherwise
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
this is a very insightful thread that I think identifies the core issue with AI use in teaching: students have to be taught traditional research skills before they can assess how to use AI (if at all) in a way that is valuable
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Library of Congress @librarycongress.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
The Library is devastated to learn of the passing of Dolly Parton, a music legend and titan of children's literacy. Her Imagination Library program has earned multiple Library Literacy Awards and, in 2018, she visited us to donate its 100 millionth book to our collection and host a story time. 🦋❤️
Dolly Parton reads to children in the Library’s Great Hall in 2018. Photo by Shawn Miller.
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
interesting to note the gradual ramping up petrochemical / oil industry campaigns in the run up to another round of UN plastic treaty negotiations
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honeybakedsam.bsky.social @honeybakedsam.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
Time once again for one of the canonical soccer Twitter post
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Effin' Birds @effinbirds.com · 21/08/2026
Never let a writer help you move
A cardboard moving box with EPHEMERA written on it in Sharpie
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George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
This is what the billionaire press and many politicians were campaigning so hard to destroy. Their freedom to drive took precedence over our children's freedom to thrive. www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Ulez led to better lung size and function among London children, study finds
Researchers find capacity stunted by pollution restored after introduction of ultra-low emission zone
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
good piece on the status of the UN plastic treaty, with insights from colleagues from the @scientistscoa.bsky.social an agreement based on the current negotiating text will be little more than a waste management treaty
theguardian.com
UN plastic treaty is going backwards, experts say
NGOs say agreement held back by tenuous human health commitments and lobbying from plastic industry
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Naomi Klein @naomiaklein.bsky.social · 02/07/2026
Everybody in the "climate space" (which means everyone on earth...) needs to understand these mind-blowing figures. Google's "total electricity consumption jumped from 31 terawatt hours (TWh) in 2024 to 43 TWh in 2025." In ONE year. The AI corporate arms race is eating the world.
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
got some new PBT keycaps for my mechanical keyboard 😍
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 10/08/2026
I worked in bars for several years before (unexpectedly) doing a PhD, and I definitely think doing a different job gives you a sense of perspective being able to research / teach as a profession is a privilege, but there are lots of things I miss about working behind a bar with my mates
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
the more I read on prediction markets, the more I think this form of platform capitalism simply cannot be allowed to operate
theguardian.com
US senators urge crackdown on wildfire betting amid warnings of arson risk
Experts say growing trend on sites such as Polymarket and Kalshi could motivate people to start fires to win money
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Id love to read an academic / advocacy paper on why Edinburgh has systematically failed to address this problem there are some many push factors that should lead to meaningful change (historic, walkable city; tourist destination; good public transport) and yet…
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Prof. Stefan Rahmstorf @rahmstorf.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
“It’s time to make oil giants pay up to repair the climate breakdown they’re driving. Think how many fire and flood defences we could build, or how many solar panels we could install, if big oil paid their fair share in taxes.” www.theguardian.com/business/ng-...
theguardian.com
Revealed: major oil firms make $93bn profits amid war and climate crisis
Iran conflict windfall over three months reignites calls for companies ‘cashing in on human misery’ to pay for environmental damage
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
LSE are advertising a tenure track position on IPE with a specialism in global environmental politics - rare to see these positions come up, particularly those in GEP link to application form below
jobs.lse.ac.uk
Assistant Professor in International Relations / International Political Economy
Assistant Professor in International Relations / International Political Economy, , <p style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="color: black;">&nbsp;</span></em></p> <p style="text-align: center;"...
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Oil Change International @oilchange.org · 29/07/2026
1/6 🚨 NEW REPORT by @amnesty.org & partners, Nigeria: Lifting the Lid, exposes how Shell knew its pipelines were unsafe & allowed environmental damage to continue. Then it sold up to avoid $10.9bn in costs to decommission and clean up assets.
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
this story has revealed a lot about the mindset of figures like Infantino the idea that FIFA can - and should - operate as if it is a transnational corporation with shareholders, is clearly so normalized that it must have seemed inconceivable to senior mgmt that this proposal would be opposed
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
one of the fun things about secondhand books is seeing what parts the previous reader found noteworthy
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Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO) @corporateeurope.org · 29/07/2026
EU countries are arguing about how best to weaken its carbon market in line with polluting industry wishes. History lesson: The #ETS' permeability to industry influence filled it with loopholes & meant it rewarded polluters with vast windfall profits for years: corporateeurope.org/en/climate-a... 👇
An industrial chimney spewing smoke.
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Damian Carrington @dpcarrington.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
The @theguardian.com view on Europe’s #wildfires: politics must catch up with the new reality - At a time when the quickening pace of global heating has never been clearer, climate policies are being deprioritised #climatecrisis www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
The Guardian view on Europe’s wildfires: politics must catch up with the new reality | Editorial
Editorial: At a time when the quickening pace of global heating has never been clearer, climate policies are being deprioritised
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
picked up this record as a bit of a joke, but listened to it this morning and it’s an absolute belter
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
new paper by Jason Hickel and Dylan Sullivan on the myth that poorer countries are 'catching-up' with richer countries through capitalist development
tandfonline.com
The myth of catch-up development: trends in core–periphery inequality from 1960 to 2023
The conventional narrative in international development holds that poorer countries are “catching up” with richer countries through the process of capitalist growth. This paper assesses this claim ...
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Palok Biswas @pbiswas.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
🎉 Our paper is out in Nature Portfolio npj Climate Action! 👉 📃 www.nature.com/articles/s44... 𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠: The choice of justice framing in climate models fundamentally determines both the global ambition for decarbonization and who bears its burden.
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
will be interested to read Jäger's book based on this piece - his argument that we are living in a period of 'hyperpolitics' is persuasive, but I wonder whether this periodization glosses over contemporary climate / environmental movements that are not as fleeting as he might claim
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
great reporting on the litigation brought by Big Food companies against public health policies in battleground jurisdictions while the majority of these legal challenges fail, they should be understood as part of a political economy of delay www.lighthousereports.com/investigatio...
lighthousereports.com
Big Food vs. The People
We expose Big Food’s 239 lawsuits against life-saving policies
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Center for Climate Integrity @climateintegrity.org · 20/07/2026
A new poll from @dataforprogress.org and CCI finds that while natural gas greenwashing efforts have been noticeably effective, voters strongly support accountability for natural gas suppliers once they learn about the industry’s history of deception.
dataforprogress.org
Natural Gas Accountability Receives Strong National Support
Voters across party lines support accountability for natural gas companies that intentionally mislead the public about the harms of natural gas.
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Rebecca Leber @rebleber.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
A major new investigation out today with new revelations about the oil and gas industry's long-running deception over natural gas. We lay out in new details and documents how big oil and gas manufactured the myth of "clean" natural gas.
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Stephanie Kollmann @slkollmann.bsky.social · 31/05/2026
Yes. Using a computer now feels like this at all times.
Man yelling into bored woman's ear in nightclub meme captioned 

I can summarize that for you
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
this image is even funnier with Infantino's hand just in frame what a farce haha
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Chris Bertram @crookedfootball.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
Ian Wright saying we shouldn’t forget the way the Iranian team and the Somali referee were treated. Correct.
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Rob Ralston @policyrelevant.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
ofc fifa made an incredibly tacky inflatable trophy for trump
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@AAllenSport @aallensport.arseblog.com · 19/07/2026
Looking forward to England arranging a couple of friendlies between now and the end of the month so Declan Rice can get a few more minutes in his legs.
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