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Neil Ward

@profneilward.bsky.social
1.1K followers 317 following 274 posts

Professor, UEA; rural economy; net-zero, food & farming; (+ New Order, The Fall, The Only Ones; Pembrokeshire, Northumberland, Forest of Dean)

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Reposted by Neil Ward
Guy Shrubsole @guyshrubsole.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
82% of Britons say protecting nature is important to them, new polling by @moreincommonuk.bsky.social shows “You don’t often get that degree of consensus” on any issue, says @luketryl.bsky.social - speaking at an event at Labour Party Conference with the heads of the big nature NGOs
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
@cwunews.bsky.social CWU win the prize for the coolest merch at the Labour Party Conference !
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
theconversation.com/britains-mos...
theconversation.com
Britain’s most artificial landscape may not survive climate change
The Fens are a food-growing powerhouse, but the landscape only exists thanks to humans holding back the sea.
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
reflecting on the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks this week. 2,977 died in the US that day - extremely shocking. Also shocking is that we are experiencing an extra 1,300 to 3,000 heat-related deaths in England due to extreme weather. Getting close to a 9/11 here each and every year now
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
I did a recent piece in The Conversation UK, reflecting on the summer heatwaves and implications for food system resilience. It’s here: theconversation.com/as-severe-dr...
theconversation.com
As severe drought hits, the UK’s food system faces crisis – here’s how to change that
Our entire food system needs a redesign to cope with increasing threats to resilience over the long haul.
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
At Root and Reason ( - the Food Resilience Collective), we have been working on the need for transformational change in the food system to strengthen resilience. You can read our Roadmap to Resilience report here rootandreason.org.uk/the-roadmap/
rootandreason.org.uk
The Roadmap -
In 2022, UK Research and Innovation gave the Agri-food for Net Zero Network+ three years' funding to shape the next decade of research supporting the UK
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
The National Audit Office has produced a detailed study of the resilience of the food system in the UK, focussing mainly on Defra and England. It concludes that Defra has not done enough to address risk to resilience in the food supply chain. www.nao.org.uk/reports/resi...
nao.org.uk
Resilience of the food supply chain to disruptions - NAO report
The government must engage more with households, communities and industry to strengthen the food supply chain's resilience to shocks.
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Some food for thought
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
This piece by former Conservative Environment Secretary John Gummer is worth a read www.ft.com/content/5b8f...
ft.com
Tory attempts to repeal the UK Climate Act are tin-eared
Summer’s droughts and wildfires demonstrate the need to stick to cross-party consensus on policy and to UK strategy on net zero
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Reposted by Neil Ward
Guy Shrubsole @guyshrubsole.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
The government's Land Use Framework for England was published in March 2026. It contains 79 actions. Five months down the line, what's happened? - - Just 6 actions are 'complete'; - 57 actions are 'in progress'; - 16 actions are 'not started'. Get a move on, DEFRA! 1/ www.gov.uk/government/p...
gov.uk
Land Use Framework: list of actions
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Does anyone know what the fashion for wearing hair curlers is all about ? Service stations on M42, M1 and A1 today had lots of people in hair curlers. Baffling, but looked great
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Whenever I hear Jolene, I am always transported back to February 1974, sitting at the kitchen table reading my Action comic
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
youtube.com/watch?v=L0ee...
youtube.com
Dolly Parton - Jolene 19880110
YouTube video by SidsCardShop
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Reposted by Neil Ward
David Harvey @davidharvey.org · 23/08/2026
Join me for a free public livestream of my new course, The Story of Capital. The course meets on Tuesdays from 4:15 - 6:15 pm [ET] from September 8th to December 1st.
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Reposted by Neil Ward
Michael Shepherd @mshepruralpolitics.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
💥 My book Rural Pain, Republican Gain is officially released today!! 💥 The book is an outgrowth of my dissertation work that I started in 2016. Indescribable feeling to be able to hold it in book form just under a decade later. press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...
press.uchicago.edu
Rural Pain, Republican Gain
An eye-opening look at how Republican policies have affected health outcomes in rural communities and why poor, rural white voters are turning to the Republican Party—not despite this harm, but becaus...
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Reposted by Neil Ward
Aarne Granlund @aarnegranlund.eurosky.social · 20/08/2026
“If everyone had emitted like the bottom 50% of the global population, the world would have seen minimal additional warming since 1990,” says coauthor Carl-Friedrich Schleussner, who leads the Integrated Climate Impacts Research Group at IIASA. @cityatlas.bsky.social iiasa.ac.at/news/may-202...
iiasa.ac.at
The world’s wealthiest 10% caused two thirds of global warming since 1990
Wealthy individuals have a higher carbon footprint. A new study published in Nature Climate Change quantifies the climate outcomes of these inequalities. It finds that the world’s wealthiest 10% are r...
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Re-Count !
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Reposted by Neil Ward
Stephen Collins @stephencollins.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
It's that day again #alevels
[Title panel]:
A-LEVEL RESULTS COLUMNS DAY

[Scene is a TV news type report about A Level results day]

REPORTER [talking to camera outside a school where students are crowding outside the hall to get in]:

Well, it's that day again

When A-Level students across the country finally get to find out

What Britain's newspaper columnists think about their results.

[show the interior of the school hall, with long tables, but instead of results papers on them, loads of middle-aged newspaper columnists are all laid out]

[Close up on the COLUMNISTS lying on the table, talking up to a gaggle of excited students desperate to find out what they say]

PETER HITCHENS:
I remember when A-Levels meant something

CLARKSON: 
I got a C and two U's

[Cut to outside the hall, the REPORTER is talking to a student]

REPORTER:
And did you get the middle-aged opinions you wanted?

STUDENT:
Yes! 

I got one ‘There's Too Much Humanities’,
and two Oxford graduates telling me they went to Oxford.

REPORTER [now doing a voiceover, as we see the students in the school hall next to the columnists on tables, and the students are preparing to jump in the air for a photographer]:

And then the annual photo shoot…

[PHOTOGRAPHER]
One, two, three...

[One of the columnists on the table pipes up with]: 

What's The Point Of University in 2026?

[The students all jump for joy]

STUDENTS:
HOORAY!

[ends]
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Ask not what your bin can do for you ...
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Reposted by Neil Ward
Stuart @stuartmanderson.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
"Ich bin ein Binliner..."
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
Mmmm - a good headline stat, but not everyone in Defra thinking about adaptation will necessarily be in the Adaptation Team.
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
The solar #eclipse wont be the same without Bonnie Tyler
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 12/08/2026
My piece from The Conversation yesterday. Trying to encourage some thought about resilience and the medium/longer term. theconversation.com/as-severe-dr...
theconversation.com
As severe drought hits, the UK’s food system faces crisis – here’s how to change that
Our entire food system needs a redesign to cope with increasing threats to resilience over the long haul.
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
UKIP did well on the eastern coast way back, around 2012-2014-ish. The feeling of marginalisation is partly a function of lack of political competition in some previously safe Tory seats. There was never much pressure for MPs to deliver locally. (I’m from near King’s Lynn)
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
I took it as an allegory about the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
I’d seen them lots 84-87. Usually recorded it, but this one I just went down the front and swayed around in the melee. Slept on a bench at the station. 1st train back to London for lectures the next day. (Remember a nice pint of Wards beforehand too). Do The Ostrich was a hoot.
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
Taking a lead from our Prime Minister and his pub snacks, next I will be ranking the UK's national parks ...
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
5. SAINT ETIENNE (+ Pulp) – Leicester Square Empire 4.3.93; 4. PRIMAL SCREAM – Leicester Square Empire 29.7.91; 3. MAGAZINE – Kentish Town Forum 13.02.09;2. NEW ORDER – Sheffield Roxy 8.6.87; 1. THE SMITHS – Brixton Academy 24.10.86
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
10. JESUS & MARY CHAIN – University of London Union 29.4.88; 9. NICK CAVE & THE BADSEEDS – Leeds First Direct Arena 2.11.24;8. BLACK GRAPE – Newcastle University 7.10.95; 7. HAPPY MONDAYS (+ Archaos + Gary Clail) – Glastonbury 22.6.90; 6. THE ONLY ONES – Newcastle Academy 30.8.07
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
15. THE PIXIES – Town & Country Club 11.5.89; 14. HALF MAN HALF BISCUIT – Kentish Town Bull & Gate 5.2.86;13. LORDS OF THE NEW CHURCH (+ The Bolshoi) – Camden Electric Ballroom 26.3.85; 12. THE SMITHS – Brixton Academy 12.12.86; 11. BAUHAUS – Bradford Caesar’s 29.6.83
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
20. THE BOLSHOI – Camden Dingwalls 1.10.85; 19. THE FALL – Kilburn National Ballroom 21.3.90; 18. THE STRANGLERS – Uni of East Anglia 15.3.87;17. THE POGUES – Brixton Academy 19.12.88; 16. NICK CAVE & BADSEEDS – Town & Country Club 12.10.86
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
25. BLUR (+ The Specials + New Order) – Hyde Park 12.8.12; 24. MORRISSEY – Bridlington Spa Royal Hall 6.9.04;23. THE STONE ROSES – Spike Island, Widnes 27.5.90; 22. NEW ORDER – Turin OGR 5.5.18; 21. BLUR – New York Academy 26.9.95
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 02/08/2026
Approaching my 400th gig. Here's my top 30: 30. THE STONE ROSES – Alexandra Palace 18.11.89; 29. EDWYN COLLINS – Kilburn National Ballroom 3.12.87; 28. A CERTAIN RATIO – Manchester Gorilla 24.11.18; 27. ROXY MUSIC – O2 Arena 14.10.22; 26 PETER PERRETT – Hackney Moth Club 19.10.24
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Reposted by Neil Ward
Paul Behrens @profpaulbehrens.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
I spoke with @owenjones.bsky.social recently about the withheld Joint Intelligence Committee report on food system pressures, and more. I mentioned that one report makes the point that "a wholesale change in consumer diets would be required" Full conversation here: youtu.be/nTYISpFTIq8?...
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Torc about beautiful !
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Must have taken quite a while to establish the pronunciation of “Sian” - baffling
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Returning Officer really ought to be able to pronounce Sian
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Is that for whole combined authority or just the Manchester local authority area ?
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
And here is our contribution to the resilience of the UK food system theconversation.com/three-ways-t...
theconversation.com
Three ways to make the UK’s food system more resilient – according to new report by 150 experts
Modelling shows that we will need to change not just how we farm, but what farming produces and what we eat.
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
theconversation.com/uk-drought-c... Worth a read
theconversation.com
UK drought: crop harvests at severe risk of collapse
Complex systems require multiple indicators. A UK food resilience index could identify developing weaknesses in the food system before they become failures.
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Reposted by Neil Ward
Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research @tyndallcentre.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
New partnership between BeZero Carbon and the University of East Anglia comes at a critical moment for global fire risk 🔥 ⬇️ Here's what it will add to the State of Wildfires Project www.uea.ac.uk/about/news/a...
uea.ac.uk
BeZero partners with the State of Wildfires Project to analyse global wildfire risk
Carbon ratings agency BeZero Carbon has partnered with the University of East Anglia (UEA) to fund the State of Wildfires Project, a major international scientific initiative tracking the causes and…
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Reposted by Neil Ward
Ben Goldsborough MP @bengoldsborough.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
🚨 Norfolk is now officially in drought. Please use water wisely, be extra careful with fire risks, and remember this is the reality of man made climate change. London has already had 24 days above 30°C this year, more than the whole of the 1980s. waterwise.org.uk/how-to-save-...
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Denise Johnson - what a star
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Reposted by Neil Ward
Sunder Katwala (sundersays) @sundersays.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
No 10 has completed the reshuffle, by announcing a full list of PPS appointments today: there are about 60 PPS roles here. Michael Payne, Adam Thompson and Chris Vince at the Home Office. Olivia Blake, Luke Charters & Kirith Entwistle at MHCLG.
10 Downing Street:
Sir Nic Dakin
David Baines
Jo Platt

Cabinet Office:
Alan Gemmell
Dr Beccy Cooper
Natasha Irons

HM Treasury:
John Grady
Alistair Strathern
Yuan Yang

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office:
Anna Gelderd
Laura Kyrke-Smith
Chris Murray

Home Office:
Michael Payne
Adam Thompson
Chris Vince

Ministry of Justice:
Linsey Farnsworth
Joe Powell
Connor Rand

Ministry of Defence:
Gordon McKee
Steve Race
Rosie Wrighting

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero:
Tom Hayes
Dr Jeevun Sandher
Steve Witherden

Department for Education:
Elsie Blundell
Adam Jogee
Sarah Smith10 Downing Street:
Sir Nic Dakin
David Baines
Jo Platt

Cabinet Office:
Alan Gemmell
Dr Beccy Cooper
Natasha Irons

HM Treasury:
John Grady
Alistair Strathern
Yuan Yang

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office:
Anna Gelderd
Laura Kyrke-Smith
Chris Murray

Home Office:
Michael Payne
Adam Thompson
Chris Vince

Ministry of Justice:
Linsey Farnsworth
Joe Powell
Connor Rand

Ministry of Defence:
Gordon McKee
Steve Race
Rosie Wrighting

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero:
Tom Hayes
Dr Jeevun Sandher
Steve Witherden

Department for Education:
Elsie Blundell
Adam Jogee
Sarah Smith

Department for Work and Pensions:
David Pinto-Duschinsky
Elaine Stewart
Tim Roca

Department for Health and Social Care:
Catherine Atkinson
David Burton-Sampson
Sonia Kumar

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
Olivia Blake
Luke Charters
Kirith Entwistle

Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade:
Deirdre Costigan
Baggy Shanker
Dr Marie Tidball

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
Jayne Kirkham
Lee Pitcher

Department for Transport:
Amanda Martin
Luke Murphy
Connor Naismith

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport:
Jack Abbott
Lola McEvoy
Matthew Patrick

Scotland Office:
Frank McNally
Alison Taylor

Wales Office:
Becky Gittins

Northern Ireland Office:
Pam Cox
Pamela Nash
Scotland Office:
Frank McNally
Alison Taylor

Wales Office:
Becky Gittins

Northern Ireland Office:
Pam Cox
Pamela Nash

Leader of the House of Commons:
Amanda Hack

Leader of the House of Lords:
Matt Rodda

Office for Equality and Opportunity:
Callum Anderson
Alice Macdonald

Attorney General’s Office:
Kevin Bonavia
Alex McIntyre

Matthew Pennycook, Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government):
Mary Kelly Foy

Hamish Falconer, Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office):
Oliver Ryan

Kanishka Narayan, Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Technology):
Lauren Sullivan
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 26/07/2026
There is a study to be done on the philosophy and ideology underpinning the PPE course at Oxford and its implications for UK governance and policy over the past. There’s the PMs and chancellors, then all the influential advisors …
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Reposted by Neil Ward
Dave Vetter @davidrvetter.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
I join you from the Blaenavon wildfire in Southeast Wales, brought to you by BP, Shell and Equinor. Though it does not look dramatic, the fire has been out of control for days - for a very particular reason. 🧵
A photograph of multiple fire service vehicles parked on moorland. In the background, white smoke from multiple fires is rising.
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Dr Tess Machling @tessmachling.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
With today's theft of Vix torc, here's what has been taken... The torc was found as part of a burial & placed around neck of the interred. Despite its size, it weighs only 480g (less that half the weight of the Snettisham Great torc). It is STUNNING. #Archaeology #Gold #Torcs 🏺 1/2
The Vix torc - a sheet gold torc with expanded neck rock and hollow globular terminalsThe winged horse on one of the terminals.
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Reposted by Neil Ward
Financial Times @financialtimes.com · 24/07/2026
Met Office chief Penny Endersby: ‘There is not going to be a usual summer’ ft.trib.al/deFVitX
ft.trib.al
Met Office chief Penny Endersby: ‘There is not going to be a usual summer’
The head of the UK’s national weather service on this year’s multiple heatwaves, the net zero backlash and why geoengineering is not a panacea
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Paul Behrens @profpaulbehrens.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
1/ We've a new paper: The highest-impact diets belong to the people with the most choices. In @nature.com Food, led by Oliver Taherzadeh and Hongyi Cai: across 165 countries, the highest dietary emissions per person are among highly educated urban men aged 15-34. doi.org/10.1038/s43016-026-01389-y
doi.org
Dietary environmental impacts and quality differ by socio-demographic characteristics - Nature Food
Dietary intake and supply chain data from 165 countries reveal demographic disparities in diet-related environmental impacts. Impacts are greatest among young, highly educated urban men, and healthier...
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Neil Ward @profneilward.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
Maybe “Sooner Than You Think” would have been a better New Order song for #AndyBurnham
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