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Sarah T. Fischell

@sfischell.bsky.social
1.6K followers 1.6K following 1.3K posts

Climate action advocate. Born at ~310 ppm. @estee_nj on Twitter etc. Climate solutions & #energytwitter fan. Unitarian Universalist, @cclusa.org, Cornell. She/her/hers. Band person.

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Sarah T. Fischell
Michael Liebreich @mliebreich.bsky.social · 4h
My favourite chart from the @IEA special report on electrification. Electricity is only 23% of Final Energy (No big deal), but it's 37% of Useful Energy (What?) and delivers 46% of GDP (Wow!) And it's going clean, fast. Still think there's no transition? iea.blob.core.windows.net/assets/1c696...
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Zeke Hausfather @zekehausfather.com · 1h
The biggest barrier to emissions reductions is increasingly our inability to quickly build clean energy: solar, geothermal, wind, nuclear, transmission, battery storage, etc. Projects are held back by a thicket of regulations and reviews.
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Senator Sheldon Whitehouse @whitehouse.senate.gov · 29/09/2026
Another fossil fuel con job. Any savings on the front end get eaten up and spat out by excess costs of fuel, which go to — oh, right — Trump’s big corrupt fossil fuel donors. Fuel economy standards have saved drivers hundreds of billions of dollars. www.washingtonpost.com/transportati...
washingtonpost.com
Trump says new fuel economy rules will cut car prices. Analysts are doubtful.
In rolling back fuel efficiency standards, the administration said the average new vehicle price in 2031 should be reduced by $1,300.
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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
This new tool, the Carbon Impacts Tracer, which translates carbon emissions into real-world climate impacts like heat exposure and coral bleaching, looks super useful. ➡️ carbonimpactstracer.com
theguardian.com
New tool directly links carbon emissions to amount of environmental and economic damage caused
Carbon Impacts Tracer can be used to estimate climate impact from emissions across eight different factors, including lost food production
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John Smillie @johnsmillie42.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Frankly, just what happened to Solar For All and the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund should be enough for impeachment. If you repeatedly trounce on Article 1, Congress should fire you.
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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
My former colleagues, Mark Cane and Stephen Zebiak, were the first to successfully predict El Niño more than a year in advance in the late 1980s. Now we’re really good at it, and know the consequences. It’d be irresponsible for governments not to take action. Read this from my buddy Jeff Shaman.
nytimes.com
Opinion | The Super El Niño Comes Bearing One Gift: Time to Prepare (Gift Article)
There’s still time to prepare.
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Kevin J. Kircher @kevinjkircher.com · 26/09/2026
We could reduce US fossil-fuel pollution (climate & local air/water) ~25% by cleaning up the grid, ~25% by electrifying ground transport, and ~25% by electrifying heat (for space/water/food/many industrial processes). The last ~25% - everything else - is important but no reason not to do the 75%.
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Commercial Solar Guy @commercialsolarguy.com · 26/09/2026
‘BESS commercial operation startup last month globally: 6,516MW/20,855MWh of capacity…total YTD commissioned BESS capacity 177GWh, an increase of 35%…61% China, 19% Saudi Arabia, 11% Europe, 5% in South and Central America, 2% North America…Europe up 300% capacity in same eight-month period in 2025’
energy-storage.news
21GWh BESS deployed globally in August: One-fifth in Saudi Arabia, European activity soars
Nearly 21GWh of grid-scale BESS came online globally last month, of which around a fifth was in Saudi Arabia while the majority was in China.
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Commercial Solar Guy @commercialsolarguy.com · 27/09/2026
Substation batteries could **DOUBLE** Germany’s solar: ‘technical potential identified across 1,313 rural substations…could enable ~150GW additional photovoltaic capacity…130 GW current capacity…batteries absorb peaks when transformers reach capacity…~1% curtailment of additional solar generation’
renews.biz
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Ha! #NewWord “BUG” = Back Up Generator.
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Dr. Jonathan Foley @globalecoguy.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Want to see what climate “non-solutions” look like? Here’s a list of weak ideas and greenwashing tricks, with the science behind why they’re not such a good idea. “Not Recommended” by Project Drawdown…. drawdown.org/explorer?cla...
drawdown.org
Drawdown Explorer™
We know what we need to do: stop climate change as quickly as possible. Now, with the Drawdown Explorer, we know how to do it.
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Here’s one of my favorite Red Bank NJ landmarks this morning. This storm brought “major coastal flooding”. Historic storms w more water = Irene (2011), Dec ‘92 (1992), Donna (1960), & Sandy (2012). Plus maybe 4 other pre-1965 storms that were before my time. Photo via Monmouth Boat Club on FB.
Photo of the Monmouth Boat Club main building, flooded in 9/26/26 nor’easter.
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David Roberts @volts.wtf · 25/09/2026
Governors need to get serious about disciplining utilities. Or claiming some of their planning powers for the state. Or making them publicly owned. Enough of this shit.
canarymedia.com
US utilities get failing grade on clean energy transition
Too many utilities are keeping coal plants open, planning new gas plants, and building less renewable energy, the Sierra Club’s latest "Dirty Truth…
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
NJ light tonight has been amazing. I couldn’t quite capture it.
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Chris Bataille @chrisbataille.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Just wait until the Persian Gulf war has had full cycle investment effects on crude oil & LNG use. We ain’t seen nothing yet; the diesel/middle distillate shock is going revise everybody’s priors on electric trucking, etc.
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David Roberts @volts.wtf · 23/09/2026
Today on Volts: Home batteries are useful, but not everyone can afford a Powerwall, or wants to deal with an electrician. A company called Pila is selling small (1.6kWh) batteries that can plug into a normal wall outlet and back up appliances or pair with rooftop solar. I talk with the CEO.
volts.wtf
Do small residential batteries make sense?
A conversation with Cole Ashman of Pila Energy.
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
It’s worth remembering that a lot of people in the northeast (esp. Maine, NH, VT) use oil to heat their homes. Heating oil is approx diesel fuel, is at a historic high price, and is more than double the price of a year ago. 😞 (This data is from 2020 census.)
Map of US showing census data on primary source of home heat. Most of New England uses fuel oil.
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Jay Rosen @jayrosen.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
"No one on Bluesky thinks they're interacting with a cross section of the population. But a lot of people on X do think that." —Josh Harshall talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/we-di...
talkingpointsmemo.com
We Didn’t Know Until This Day … Twitter Was the Echo Chamber All Along
Daniel Drezner says we are now in the Wile E. Coyote phase...
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Seems bad. Very bad.
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Glen Peters @glenpeters.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Many countries now report GHG emissions to the UNFCCC. There is a wealth of data, and many stories to tell. Check out the processed data here, via @wflamb.bsky.social lambwf.github.io/Tidy-GHG-Inv...
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Heather Cox Richardson (TDPR) @hcrichardson.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
I'm in love.
youtube.com
2026: Time for the Midterms
YouTube video by Hamilton
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Brendan Pierpont @brendan.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
A a new model that makes complex decisions just as well as frontier LLMs for an order of magnitude lower cost just goes to show how little we know about the trajectory of AI energy use.
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Charles Gaba ✡️ @charlesgaba.com · 16/09/2026
Sarah Pounds is the Dem nominee for state House in my district (she's awesome). One of the attacks the MI GOP is using to try & attack her (besides tying her to Abdul El-Sayed) is that she'd supposedly "ban sales of new gas-powered cars." At $5/gallon, I don't think that's gonna be very effective.
Attack flyer from GOP state House candidate falsely claiming that Sarah Pounds would "ban sales of new gas-powered cars."
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John Smillie @johnsmillie42.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
A win for Michigan and the planet www.canarymedia.com/articles/fos...
canarymedia.com
Court rules that Trump can’t force a Michigan coal plant to keep…
A long-awaited court decision finds fault with the DOE’s use of "emergency" powers to force aging, costly, polluting power plants to run past their…
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
A major problem w the NESE pipeline is that its installation will disturb centuries of highly polluted muck on the bottom of Raritan Bay, creating lots of pollution for the bay and the NY Bight in general…just as the water is getting cleaner. Cleaner water = more whales in Raritan Bay each year. 🐋
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Neil Lewis, Jr. @neillewisjr.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
This is a fantastic read from start to finished. It's long, but worth setting aside the time to read.
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
This is excellent climate communications imho.
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Chris Nelder @chrisnelder.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Lots of good stuff here that you probably haven't seen elsewhere!
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Jenny Chase @solarchase.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
What Pakistan did was let power prices rise unstopped, and the utilities and discoms be untransparent and sometimes corrupt until everyone absolutely hates them. Plus, tiktok how-to videos. And local / family credit networks. Hard sell, honestly.
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isaac @sevier.io · 02/09/2026
I had the fortune to meet other public power comrades in London last year, including a student from Nepal. He has shared this fundraiser asking for help to provide meals and prevent human trafficking of orphaned children in the aftermath of the climate disaster there. Please share. 1/
every.org
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Commercial Solar Guy @commercialsolarguy.com · 01/09/2026
Writing government grant article for pv magazine on SPACE SOLAR!!!! Any folks researching this? Seeking perspectives from those in the know. @solarchase.bsky.social - I've heard some of your thoughts in passing, but does BNEF have any developed opinions on the business impacts of SPACE SOLLAR!!!!
energy.gov
DOE’s Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation Announces First Major Investment in Space-based Energy Generation
The $12 million program will shape the future of space energy, secure new markets, create high-tech jobs, and ensure America remains the undisputed leader in this vital domain.
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Christian Roselund @roselund.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
The cause? "Glacier instability under ​the long-term effects of global warming." We in the rich countries at least contributed to this, if not outright caused this disaster, with our carbon emissions. There is no justice w/o rapid decarbonization. #climatecrisis www.reuters.com/business/env...
reuters.com
Nepal flood death toll crosses 1,000, rescuers reach remote areas
Rescuers used heavy machinery, helicopters and excavators to reach the thousands still missing, nearly a week after the catastrophic ‌Himalayan disaster left a trail of destruction across towns and va...
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The Atlantic @theatlantic.com · 01/09/2026
"Firing or forcing out everyone else in the Pentagon will not make Pete Hegseth into the secretary of defense America and its men and women in uniform need," @radiofreetom.bsky.social argues:
bit.ly
Hegseth’s Pentagon Lurches Off the Rails
The resignation of Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is the latest sign of severe dysfunction in the Defense Department.
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
See…we should have let the Y2K problem grind all the computer systems (incl finance & factories & health care & food & telecom …) to a halt. Instead, by invisibly fixing it, we convinced regular humans that there’s always a tech fix right over the horizon. (And we learned nothing from COVID obvs.) 😩
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Kevin M. Kruse @kevinmkruse.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
Shut it down. Now.
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
Can we please get serious now about cutting GHG emissions? It’s past time to stop burning stuff for energy. This week, please talk about it. This terrifying flood is unleashed into the world by burning fossil fuels. It will keep getting worse until we stop.
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Gernot Wagner @gwagner.com · 27/08/2026
I'm old enough to remember when one @ipcc.bsky.social statement about Himalayan glaciers "disappearing" by 2035 was some major scandal. Meanwhile, this today, via @apnews.com. Yes, that's climate change; i.e. us dumping CO₂ into the atmospheric sewer. Hundreds dead.
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
OK stmt in today’s NYTimes article abt the deadly Nepal floods: “Warming temperatures caused by climate change may have accelerated the glacier’s collapse, scientists said” Better would be direct mention of burning fossil fuels ofc. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/26/w...
nytimes.com
Deadly Nepal Flood May Have Been Caused by ‘Ice Avalanche,’ Scientists Say (Gift Article)
An initial assessment of satellite imagery suggests an “ice avalanche” from a high-altitude glacier sent a giant cascade into the valley below.
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The Bulwark @thebulwark.com · 25/08/2026
"Yesterday on the Bulwark Daily pod, @timmiller.bsky.social casually referred to Mark Carney as the 'leader of the free world' for standing up to the American president. The brutal truth of this statement knocked me on my ass."
lnk.thebulwark.com
Trump vs. The Leaders of the Free World
We’re the baddies.
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Greg Sargent @gregsargent.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
People are missing something big about Trump's insane new trade war with Canada: Its impact will hit right in the heart of the Midwest, where many midterm races will be decided. I talked to Dems in the region. They're already using this against Rs. 1/ (new piece) newrepublic.com/article/2146...
newrepublic.com
How Trump’s Crazed Fury at Canada Is Already Backfiring Badly for Him
The escalating trade war with Canada will hit hard in the Midwest—right where some of the most important contests in the midterms will be decided.
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
I’m trying to decide what Bryan Andrews song to add to my 2026 playlist. #IAmOld but still. 🇺🇸
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Kevin J. Kircher @kevinjkircher.com · 24/08/2026
Underappreciated: US farmland *already substantially produces energy, not food*, and does so very inefficiently. Corn ethanol (~40% of all US corn) requires about 100 times more land per vehicle-mile driven than solar photovoltaics -> electric vehicles. Shifting corn to solar *would free up land*.
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Commercial Solar Guy @commercialsolarguy.com · 23/08/2026
'first project in the world to feature a utility-scale battery integrated directly into an offshore wind farm’s transmission infrastructure...world’s largest offshore wind farm, the 2.9-GW Hornsea 3 project...300 MW/600 MWh BESS...same land as the onshore converter station...sharing grid connection'
Cleared land being constructed on. Can't really tell whats going on, just that its not green.Missile looking thing behind some people in a big parking lot. It's actually the monopile of a offshore wind turbine
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Just Kevin @kevinleecaster.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
Green steel news in U.S. Isometric has signed its 200th project developer, SDI Biocarbon Solutions, a subsidiary of major US steel producer Steel Dynamics, Inc., and one of a growing number of industrial companies bringing large-scale infrastructure to carbon removal. isometric.com/writing-arti...
isometric.com
SDI Biocarbon Solutions becomes Isometric's 200th project developer
In under a year, developers certifying with Isometric have more than doubled
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peregrine kate (she/her) @peregrinekate.bsky.social · 23/08/2026
@thirdactorg.bsky.social
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Justin Gerdes @justingerdes.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
"The potential for smaller distributed energy resources is enormous, and some regions of the world are figuring out how to unlock it," writes @chrisnelder.bsky.social: www.transitiontimes.net/tt-14-boomin... via @transitiontimes.bsky.social 🔌💡
transitiontimes.net
TT#14 – Booming Batteries
The bulk of renewable energy and storage capacity added to the grid thus far has been from large, utility-scale systems. But the potential for smaller distributed energy resources (DERs) is enormous, ...
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John Smillie @johnsmillie42.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
So just this week, 1. Pretti murder 2. Fulton County, GA ballot raid 3. Trump sues IRS for 10B 4. Venezuela oil scandal deepens www.washingtonpost.com/business/202... 5. Story of small boy in ICE detention who is ill and misses his hat and backpack Can we end this, already?
washingtonpost.com
Trump officials awarded Venezuela oil-sale contracts to firms tied to bribery
The Trump administration awarded $500 million in contracts for Venezuelan oil sales to two firms with a history of bribery and corruption.
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
You can’t tell from my Bsky feed, but my top priority is: building political will for climate action at the US federal level. My personal outreach this past year: - 32 calls & emails to my Members of Congress (MoCs) on climate-related policy - 5 lobby meetings w MoC staff H/t @cclusa.org 🔌⚡️
Photo of >800 volunteer citizen lobbyists gathered in Washington DC in July 2026
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 21/08/2026
#NewWord "Balkonkraftwerk" = the new-ish German word for balcony solar. 😆 🔌⚡
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Sarah T. Fischell @sfischell.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
It looks like a July thunderstorm took out my rooftop solar inverter. 😞 Prob 2 weeks to get a new one. The only silver lining is that the current inverter is still under warranty, and the new inverter will probably have many fancy new features. Nonetheless, I am a bit sad. #rooftopsolar
Photo of our 10 yr old inverter.
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