iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Rachel Carson Center for Environment & Society @carsoncenter.bsky.social · 26/03/2026

New multimedia online exhibition! Using Amitav Ghosh’s novel 𝘎𝘶𝘯 𝘐𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥 as a vantage point, it draws on storylines and narrative elements to allow a multifocal engagement with the multiple social and ecological repercussions of climate change: www.environmentandsociety.org/exhibitions/...

Exhibition poster of the virtual exhibition titled "Amitav Ghosh in Munich: Inspirations, Insights, and Storytelling." The exhibition was curated by Hanna Straß-Senol, Franziska Bax, and Anna Antonova and includes contributions by Franziska Bax, Rachel Desiree Felix, Nakul Heroor, Tathagat Bhatia, Markus Vogt, Zana Fraillon, Vera Krause, Laura Otto, Michaela Vieser, Isaac Yuen, Julia Ludewif, Sonji Shah, Abi Andrews, Sabina Magagnoli, Wan Yin Kimberly Fung, and Hanna Straß-Senol.

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Helen Czerski @helenczerski.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

I learned about a brilliant project yesterday to support British Sign Language (BSL) users, creating new signs for scientific terms in chemistry, oceanography, data science & more. And they're fabulously descriptive. Do have a look and share! www.ssc.education.ed.ac.uk/BSL/index.ht...

Screenshot of someone signing "evaporation"

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Oli Franklin-Wallis @olifranklinwallis.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

Grammarly is using the identities of famous authors, editors, and academics - including Anna Wintour, Tina Brown, Stephen King, George Saunders, and more - for its AI "Expert Review" feature, without their permission. Worse? Its advice sucks. oliverfranklinwallis.substack.com/p/why-is-gra...

oliverfranklinwallis.substack.com

Why is Grammarly co-opting the identities of writers, editors, and academics to give terrible "expert" advice?

The AI company is using the identities of countless authors, journalists, and academics, without their permission, to give writing advice. The worst part? It isn't even good.

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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

The 2026 National Science Foundation budget is $8.75 Billion.

nytimes.com

First 6 Days of Iran War Cost U.S. $11.3 Billion, Pentagon Says

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Anonymous @youranoncentral.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

Civilians in Tehran are reporting toxic oily rain following US and Israeli airstrikes on oil storage facilities. An estimated 10 million people face exposure to hazardous chemicals, with risks including skin burns and lung damage.

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Plastic Pollution Coalition @plasticpollutes.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

Award-winning activist and fisherman Diane Wilson is taking a stand against Dow with a hunger strike in response to its unprecedented request to the State of Texas to legalize its discharge of microplastics! Take action and read our latest coverage. 👉 bit.ly/dianewilsonh... #PlasticPollutes

bit.ly

Diane Wilson Launches Hunger Strike After Dow Requests Legalization of Microplastics Discharge in Texas

Diane Wilson initiated a hunger strike demanding action in response to Dow’s recent request to the State of Texas to legalize its discharge of microplastics.

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Brandon Friedman @brandonfriedman.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

They're going to poison a city with 17 million people

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Beth Gardiner @bethgardiner.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

I'm thrilled to say Plastic Inc is out today, shifting the lens on plastic from where it ends up to where it comes from — the fossil fuel industry. "Deeply researched, sharply written & totally compelling," says @elizkolbert.bsky.social "Breath-taking & revelatory"— @christopherleonard.bsky.social

penguinrandomhouse.com

Plastic Inc. by Beth Gardiner: 9780593717103 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books

An extraordinary exposé of the industry flooding our world with plastic—and now ramping up to make more than ever “Deeply researched, sharply written, and totally compelling.”...

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Peter Gleick @petergleick.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

Multiple news outlets are reporting a US attack on an Iranian #desalination plant. If verified, this violates international law protecting #water systems during wars, and it sets a dangerous precedent, given intense dependence of Gulf countries on desalination. timesofoman.com/article/1691...

timesofoman.com

Iran's FM condemns US attack on Qeshm's freshwater desalination plant, warns of grave consequences

US President Donald Trump announced that Iran promised not to attack its neighbours anymore

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Peter Gleick @petergleick.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

Geneva Convention 1977 Protocols: “It is prohibited to attack, destroy, remove or render useless objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population, such as... drinking #water installations & supplies and irrigation works... for any other motive.”

tribuneindia.com

Blatant and desperate crime: Irans FM condemns US attack on Qeshms freshwater desalination plant, warns of grave consequences - The Tribune

In a post on X, Araghchi emphasised that the US has set a dangerous precedent by targeting Irans infrastructure.

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ecoRI News @ecorinews.bsky.social · 10/02/2026

Writer Rebecca Altman said she has focused on studying plastics because “some of the stuff coming off the plant where my dad had worked was implicated in suffering and childhood sickness in New Jersey. I just really wanted to understand this larger system of which it was a part.” buff.ly/kLy9nK4

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NiCHE Canada @nichecanada.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

"How does it feel to be a worker in an oil-and-gas industry and a Canadian petrostate amid the climate crisis and the early stages of a transition away from fossil fuels?" - Melanie Dennis Unrau niche-canada.org/2024/11/27/n... #envhist #envhum #fossilfuels #labour #poetry

niche-canada.org

New Book - The Rough Poets: Reading Oil-Worker Poetry

How does it feel to be a worker in an oil-and-gas industry and a Canadian petrostate amid the climate crisis and the early stages of a transition away from fossil fuels?

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Rachel Santarsiero @rsanta.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

Wrote for the @thebulletin.org about the EPA’s latest website removals on the human causes of climate change, the administration’s yearlong assault on climate information, and why the everyday person should care about disappearing data: thebulletin.org/2026/01/epas...

thebulletin.org

EPA's December website edits cap off yearlong assault on climate info

Like climate change, the Trump administration’s efforts to remove climate data from government websites feels vast, intangible, and overwhelming.

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Rebecca Altman, PhD @rebecca-altman.bsky.social · 18/12/2025

Dear @ievajusionyte.bsky.social is a Brown University anthropologist and an EMT/paramedic who has focused on gun violence for most of her career, particularly on the US-Mexico border. But what happened here at Brown this past weekend... Read her here:

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Rebecca Altman, PhD @rebecca-altman.bsky.social · 18/12/2025

The Song of Styrene: Intimate Histories of Plastics to be pub'd March 2027 @scribnerbooks.bsky.social Meanwhile, 3 new titles: Consumed | Saabira Chaudhuri The Problem with Plastics | Judith Enck @beyondplastics.bsky.social w/ @adamlmahoney.bsky.social Plastic, Inc.| @bethgardiner.bsky.social

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Bathsheba Demuth @brdemuth.bsky.social · 14/12/2025

I feel like this is the nightmare we all dread in the US — an active shooter in your community. Brown University is still in shelter in place 3 hours in, with 2 confirmed deaths, 8 in critical condition, and no shooter(s) in custody. One of my students had to run from the scene. Horrified.

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Venus Bivar @vbivar.bsky.social · 17/11/2025

Happy to have written about plastic for @thepolycrisis.bsky.social. Thanks to @70sbachchan.bsky.social for sourcing the excellent graphics. And thanks to @rebecca-altman.bsky.social and @anjakrieger.bsky.social for being my go-to's on all-things plastic. www.phenomenalworld.org/analysis/pla...

phenomenalworld.org

Plastic Planet | Venus Bivar

Stalled negotiations and accelerating accumulation in the global petrochemicals industry

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Carl Zimring @carlzimring.bsky.social · 01/11/2025

Hey #DiscardStudies folks. The European Commission has a public consultation period open until November 6 for its planned Circular Economy Act. If you have an article or post you want included, register and submit at ec.europa.eu/info/law/bet...

ec.europa.eu

European Commission - Have your say

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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 30/10/2025

Enshittification of reality

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Rebecca Altman, PhD @rebecca-altman.bsky.social · 25/10/2025

To the artists, scholars, advocates, journalists, writers, historians, lawyers, entrepreneurs, policy folks, thank you for your good work. To address plastics is to work for human rights, climate stability, human health, environmental justice, global unity, & the rights of future generations. 🙏🙏🙏

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Rebecca Altman, PhD @rebecca-altman.bsky.social · 25/10/2025

Plastics have woven their way into the fabric of every ecosystem, into everything & everyone, into strata & time, but it has also woven a web of us, & introduced me to people who also work for change, whose presence in the world makes the work all the more meaningful. W/ thx #plasticstreaty #envhist

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Rebecca Altman, PhD @rebecca-altman.bsky.social · 24/10/2025

“A new study of one of Canada's most urbanized rivers suggests it dumps the equivalent of about 18 cars worth of microplastics into Lake Ontario every year, a finding that shocked the lead author.” — from Chelsea Rochman’s lab #plasticpollution www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

cbc.ca

Toronto's Don River sends 500 billion microplastics into Lake Ontario each year: study | CBC News

A new study of one of Canada's most urbanized rivers suggests it dumps the equivalent of about 18 cars worth of microplastics into Lake Ontario every year, a finding that shocked the lead author and u...

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Thomas Reis @peakaustria.bsky.social · 07/03/2025

Environmental scientists highlight role of paint in microplastic pollution phys.org/news/2025-03... Paint: a ubiquitous yet disregarded piece of the microplastics puzzle - by Zoie Diana et al. academic.oup.com/etc/article/...

phys.org

Environmental scientists highlight role of paint in microplastic pollution

Plastic waste is recognized as a major cause of environmental harm, with products like water bottles, plastic bags and clothing fibers acknowledged as major contributors to plastic pollution—but resea...

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Rebecca Altman, PhD @rebecca-altman.bsky.social · 23/10/2025

“There was no job announcement, no search committee to identify top candidates, no interviews or reference checks.” Re: new head of the National Institutes of Environmental Health

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Brendan @chemscrapes.bsky.social · 23/10/2025

It's MOLE DAY. Happy mole day all. #Chemsky #chemistry #moleday #realtimechem

two-panel hand-drawn cartoon

Panel 1: A mole is emerging from a dirt hole, holding a sign featuring a portrait of the chemist Avogadro. The mole is looking up and exclaiming, "HAPPY MOLE DAY!"

Panel 2: The mole, still holding the sign, looks surprised or corrected when a mole on it's hand says "THANKS! BUT I PREFER TO THINK OF MYSELF AS A BEAUTY SPOT!" The joke references the fact that the word "mole" in chemistry (the unit) is named after Avogadro, but a small dark spot on skin is also called a mole (or beauty mark).

It's a triple whammy folks. A triple whammy!!

A bunch of moles arranged in a hexagon. It's a mole-ecule.

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Rebecca Altman, PhD @rebecca-altman.bsky.social · 23/10/2025

Built overtop former Union Carbide HQ — dismantled girder by girder before built anew — 60 stories for 10K employees and apparently, per reporting here, no cockroaches.

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Rebecca Altman, PhD @rebecca-altman.bsky.social · 23/10/2025

I am very much appreciating @cassienewland.bsky.social’s opening chapter on #plastics history — begins with the whole rubber-human rights mess, ace primary sources, and puts the whole celluloid spared the elephant trope in its full context. 👏👏👏👏

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Anne Trubek @atrubek.bsky.social · 23/10/2025

This is how you blurb

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Rebecca Altman, PhD @rebecca-altman.bsky.social · 23/10/2025

This book. My word, this book! Plastics folks— the archaeologists on plastics are 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯 I’m in do not disturb mode over here until I finish it.

Picture of the front cover of a hardback book entitled the Routledge handbook of archaeology and plastics

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Alt National Park Service @altnps.bsky.social · 23/10/2025

Our national parks are increasingly stressed because of the government shutdown. With a large portion of National Park Service staff furloughed, there are fewer personnel available to enforce rules or care for the land. Across parks, reports are emerging of trash accumulating,

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Reposted by Rebecca Altman, PhD

Bloomberg News @bloomberg.com · 11/10/2025

"They built their businesses on disposability": Author Saabira Chaudhuri says brands made single-use plastic inescapable.

bloom.bg

How Plastic Goods Took Over the World, Creating a Throwaway Culture

Author Saabira Chaudhuri writes about brands’ drive for disposability in her new book, Consumed.

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Environmental Integrity Project @envirointegrity.bsky.social · 22/10/2025

BREAKING NEWS: Community, Health, and Environmental Groups Sue to Stop President Trump’s Unlawful Toxic Air Pollution Exemptions Learn more: environmentalintegrity.org/news/groups-...

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Environmental Integrity Project @envirointegrity.bsky.social · 21/08/2025

NEW REPORT documents dangerous levels of toxic benzene and chromium at fencelines of plants in PA, IN, AL, IL, OH, MI Read the report: environmentalintegrity.org/news/trump-r...

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Joyce White Vance @joycewhitevance.bsky.social · 22/10/2025

👇🏼👇🏼👇🏼

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Break Free From Plastic @breakfreefromplastic.org · 23/10/2025

October is "Great Global Nurdle Hunt" Season! Join #nurdle hunters around the world and help gather evidence to address microplastic pollution! 🔎Do you want to become a nurdle hunter? Head to the Fidra website to find out how to take part. 👉 www.nurdlehunt.org.uk/take-part/th...

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Anja Krieger @anjakrieger.bsky.social · 12/10/2025

Finally looked up how to get rid of Google‘s automatic AI answers (and the attached waste of resources) and it‘s so easy! What relief. 😅 www.reddit.com/r/techsuppor...

reddit.com

zensnapple's comment on "Is there a real way to shut off the Google AI overview for searches, or am i switching browsers and search engines?"

Explore this conversation and more from the techsupport community

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Venus Bivar @vbivar.bsky.social · 12/10/2025

Yes!!!! A permanent solution to my search engine woes.

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Rebecca Altman, PhD @rebecca-altman.bsky.social · 21/10/2025

Sometimes adjunct, but full-time mom of dyslexic kids asking profs to bear specific cases in mind — the digital is assistive tech, closing the gap between academic demands & learning differences/disability — speech to text, text to speech/ear reading makes all the difference for some learners. 🙏

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Rebecca Altman, PhD @rebecca-altman.bsky.social · 21/10/2025

“I hope this lawsuit is recycled in other states,” Judith Enck of @beyondplastics.bsky.social told the New York Times of the California suit pursuing plastic bag makers’ false recycling claims 🔥🔥🔥 #plastic www.nytimes.com/2025/10/17/u...

nytimes.com

Plastic Bag Makers to Pay California $1.7 Million for False Recycling Claims

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Neil Tangri @tangri0.bsky.social · 21/10/2025

Data-rich thread from @laurimyllyvirta.bsky.social on China. Coal, gas consumption along with steel and cement production are all down. What's up? Petrochemicals driving oil consumption. Reining in #plastics production needs to be a primary #climate target.

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Bathsheba Demuth @brdemuth.bsky.social · 19/10/2025

“We don’t know where we’re going, or where we’re going to live. Or if we’ll ever go back home,” Darrell John from Kipnuk, in a great piece in the Northern Journal on western Alaska’s typhoon aftermath— www.northernjournal.com/were-in-gods...

northernjournal.com

'We’re in God’s hands now': A dispatch from Western Alaska

Hundreds have left their homes. Many may never go back.

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Bathsheba Demuth @brdemuth.bsky.social · 19/10/2025

Last week, western Alaska was hit by the powerful remnants of a typhoon. Recovery is just beginning for communities an airplane away building materials & other support. PBS has a good overview of this social-climate disaster. Ways to support linked below. m.youtube.com/watch?v=t5kz...

m.youtube.com

Rescue crews airlift hundreds out of rural Alaskan villages after powerful storm

YouTube video by PBS NewsHour

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Beyond Plastics @beyondplastics.bsky.social · 18/10/2025

We wrote a BOOK! 📘 “The Problem with Plastic: How We Can Save Ourselves and Our Planet Before It's Too Late” is due out from @thenewpress.bsky.social on Dec. 2 🗓️ Pre-order your copy right now: www.beyondplastics.org/problem-with...

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News Eye @newseye.bsky.social · 13/10/2025

NEW: There’s a disaster unfolding in Alaska right now. And no major network is covering it. The remnants of Typhoon Halong battered western Alaska overnight. Homes, with people in them, have literally been swept into the Bering Strait. At least 20 are missing. No comment from any federal agency.

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