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James P. Collins

James P. Collins

@jpcollins.me

1.2K followers 850 following 100 posts

PhD, UNC Planning
I study (non-)migration and well-being in changing environments.
jpcollins.me

Environmental science 43%

Biology 17%

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James P. Collins @jpcollins.me · Nov 16

hi new folks!

I’m a PhD student at UNC Chapel Hill planning studying climate adaptation, (non)migration, and well-being. ⚠️🧪🏡

My current project describes built and behavioral adaptations in rural communities facing chronic coastal flooding. sunny-day-flooding-project.github.io/carteret-flo...

Chronic coastal flooding tolerance in rural North Carolina

We asked rural communities how they are dealing with chronic flooding from changes in tides, wind, and rainfall.

sunny-day-flooding-project.github.io

James P. Collins @jpcollins.me · 8h

Improving housing conditions and protecting worker health is a huge challenge. But as far as this proposed wage reduction -- it only takes <1 minute to speak up in support of farmworker's livelihoods this Thanksgiving by adding your name here: act.seiu.org/a/h2awagecom...

Take action to stop Trump Admin’s H2A proposal which could slash wages for farm workers

Comment period ends December 1: Sign on to stop Trump Admin’s H2A wage changes. Sign on today and say “NO” to slashing wages for farm workers. #WeFeedYou

James P. Collins @jpcollins.me · 8h

... to the excellent series @propublica.org ran last year, America's Dairyland: www.propublica.org/article/the-...

Immigrant Dairy Workers Often Endure Substandard Housing Conditions. The Law Doesn’t Protect Them.

Minnesota’s attorney general exposed conditions at one dairy farm where workers lacked heat and plumbing and dealt with mold in their homes. Housing like this is common on dairy farms, since dairy wor...

www.propublica.org

James P. Collins @jpcollins.me · 8h

And re: the quality of this "non-monetary compensation," 60+ years of reports and reporting has documented how "deplorable" H-2A housing can be, from a 1959 Consultants Report on Mexican Farm Labor Program to the Dept of Labor... lib.ncfh.org/pdfs/2k12/82...

James P. Collins @jpcollins.me · 8h

Instead of addressing rural housing shortages (which public reports from 70+ years ago describe as one reason domestic workers avoid farm work), this passes production costs on to H-2A farmworkers who underpin US agriculture. catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/00712...

James P. Collins @jpcollins.me · 8h

The government largely justifies this "downward adjustment" on wages by casting the housing employers provide (as required by law) as "non-monetary compensation" that unfairly hurts domestic workers.

James P. Collins @jpcollins.me · 8h

As Thanksgiving nears, US Dept of Labor is attempting to reduce migrant farmworker wages up to $7/hr. Workers will lose $2.46 B annually in wages. Public comment period open a few more days. @ufw.bsky.social has made it super easy to support workers at link (plus short background 🧵)

Take action to stop Trump Admin’s H2A proposal which could slash wages for farm workers

Comment period ends December 1: Sign on to stop Trump Admin’s H2A wage changes. Sign on today and say “NO” to slashing wages for farm workers. #WeFeedYou

James P. Collins @jpcollins.me · 8h

And re: the quality of this "non-monetary compensation," 60+ years of reports and reporting has documented how "deplorable" H-2A housing can be, from a 1959 Consultants Report on Mexican Farm Labor Program to the Dept of Labor... lib.ncfh.org/pdfs/2k12/82...

James P. Collins @jpcollins.me · 8h

Instead of addressing rural housing shortages (which public reports from 70+ years ago describe as one reason domestic workers avoid farm work), this charges rising production costs to the pockets of H-2A farmworkers who underpin US agriculture. catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/00712...

catalog.hathitrust.org

James P. Collins @jpcollins.me · 8h

This government largely justifies this "downward adjustment" on wages by casting the housing employers provide (as required by law) as "non-monetary compensation" that unfairly hurts domestic workers.

Reposted by James P. Collins

Climate Risk Economics @climateeconomics.bsky.social · 7d

"If this economy continues on like it is for another year, yeah, for sure, we're going to have a lot of foreclosures"...

Really good piece by @npr.org:
www.npr.org/2025/11/17/n...

Disaster and insurance costs are rising. The middle class is struggling to hang on

Middle-class families are struggling to afford insurance in southwest Florida. Realtors say a wave of foreclosures could be coming.

Reposted by James P. Collins

Environmental Information: Use and Influence (Dalhousie Univ.) @eiui.bsky.social · 8d

#Scientists are increasingly urged to engage with #policymakers & the public about climate change. What works best? Based on 28 interviews Murunga et al. outline 7 strategies & 6 attributes that support engagement, eg, discussion summaries & respect for alternative viewpoints doi.org/10.1016/j.ma...

Title, authors’ names, abstract, and keywords from a paper about personal attributes and strategies that scientists can use in their engagement with policymakers and the public about climate change

Reposted by James P. Collins, John Palfrey

Rachel Glickhouse @rachelg.bsky.social · 14d

Funding alert: @grist.org is offering grants of up to $5,000 for reporting on rural climate issues and environmental justice in the United States. Newsrooms and freelancers are welcome to apply. Please share! grist.org/updates/gris...

Grist opens applications for new rural reporting grants on climate and environmental justice

Applicants can request up to $5,000 per project.

Reposted by Loretta Lees, James P. Collins, Clark Gray

Jesse M. Keenan @keenanclimate.com · 27d

Are you researching climate change, human mobility, and housing? If so, join us in Nola (January) for "Multiplied Displacements: The Climate-Housing Nexus" (free registration & some travel funding available) w/ @uoftcities.bsky.social & @buoncities.bsky.social architecture.tulane.edu/events/multi...

Reposted by Sonia I. Seneviratne, Peter Thorne, James P. Collins , and 1 more Sonia I. Seneviratne, Peter Thorne, James P. Collins, Andrew Watkins

Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick @sarahinscience.bsky.social · Oct 13

For so long, fossil fuel projects have said their contribution to climate change is "negligible".
Turns out that's wrong.
Our research in NPJ Climate Action proves it.
Every tonne of CO2 matters.
@21stcenturyweather.bsky.social
@minderoo.bsky.social
#climatechange
www.nature.com/articles/s44...

Quantifying the regional to global climate impacts of individual fossil fuel projects to inform decision-making - npj Climate Action

npj Climate Action - Quantifying the regional to global climate impacts of individual fossil fuel projects to inform decision-making

Reposted by James P. Collins

Charter School Abolitionist 🇮🇷 @maniccage.bsky.social · Sep 15

This baby gets 65 miles per cheesecake slice

Reposted by Valerie M. Delmotte, Sonia I. Seneviratne, James P. Collins , and 4 more Valerie M. Delmotte, Sonia I. Seneviratne, James P. Collins, Ben Bond‐Lamberty, Wim Thiery, Gavin A. Schmidt, Matthias Schmelzer

Yann Quilcaille @yannquilcaille.bsky.social · Sep 10

🚨 Important paper in Nature: "Systematic attribution of heatwaves to the emissions of carbon majors".

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Systematic attribution of heatwaves to the emissions of carbon majors - Nature

Climate change made 213 historical heatwaves reported over 2000–2023 more likely and more intense, to which each of the 180 carbon majors (fossil fuel and cement producers) substantially contributed.

Reposted by James P. Collins

Brooke Jarvis @brookejarvis.bsky.social · Sep 10

“For us, it was quite clear that climate change does impact our basic human rights."

For the NYT Magazine's climate issue, I wrote about a group of law students from the South Pacific whose clarity and tenacity helped reshape international law

gift link: www.nytimes.com/2025/09/10/m...

How a Group of Students in the Pacific Islands Reshaped Global Climate Law

www.nytimes.com

Reposted by James P. Collins, James A. Tyner, Keith Lilley , and 1 more James P. Collins, James A. Tyner, Keith Lilley, Kate Lowe

Lindsay Naylor @lbnaylor.bsky.social · Sep 10

Come work with us!!
The Department of Geography & Spatial Sciences (GEOG) is seeking applications and nominations for the position of Department Chair at the rank of full professor with tenure--human geography specialization.
#geosky #geogchat

group photo of department under 100 years of geography banner.

Reposted by James P. Collins, Scott A. Imberman

Colin Carlson @colincarlson.bsky.social · Sep 6

Our lab at Yale literally studies government suppression of outbreak reporting. Please: don't promote unverifiable reports from anonymous accounts. They're very likely to be false, and it boosts unreliable actors. (If this is happening, I suspect CDC sources know how to text a journalist just fine.)

"Just spoke with my CDC sources.

They said RFK Jr. has ordered officials to hide tuberculosis cases, even as three active TB cases were just reported in Maine. He's also suppressing bird flu reports.

Pandemics don't start with viruses they start with secrecy.

RFK Jr. must resign now!"

Reposted by James P. Collins, John Hogan

Chris Hayes @chrislhayes.bsky.social · Aug 28

There is a VERY strong reason to think that moving from private to public insurance will lead to political pressure that keeps premiums artificially low and incentivizes building in the riskiest areas. (See federal flood insurance)

Reposted by James P. Collins, Evan Roberts

Steve Koller @stevekoller.bsky.social · Aug 19

Seminal paper published by Althoff et al. in Nature last week.

"...moving from a less walkable (25th percentile) city to a more walkable city (75th percentile) increased walking by 1,100 daily steps, on average."

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Countrywide natural experiment links built environment to physical activity - Nature

By analysing the smartphone data of 2,112,288 participants, in particular observing and comparing the activity of the same individual in two different environments, we find that increases in the walka...

Reposted by James P. Collins, Du Toit

James P. Collins @jpcollins.me · Jul 29

concise and informative. many deferred investments. no immediate substitute.

Michael Lowry @michaelrlowry.bsky.social · Jul 28

If you think I've forgotten about the hurricane satellites, think again. The Navy is permanently unplugging them this week, on the brink of the busiest stretch of the season. There's so much more to this story, and I have the latest scoop. ⬇️

Navy Set to Unplug Critical Hurricane Satellites this Week

Abrupt termination of satellite data by U.S. Department of Defense sends forecasters scrambling for a fix on the brink of the busiest stretch of the hurricane season

michaelrlowry.substack.com

Reposted by Jennifer Bussell, Kimberly A. Prather, Joe R. Feagin , and 9 more Jennifer Bussell, Kimberly A. Prather, Joe R. Feagin, Brendan Nyhan, James P. Collins, Shawn Cole, Paul Davies, Dawn J. Wright, Daniel W. Drezner, Iceland, Michael Jones‐Correa, Andrew Watkins

Michael Lowry @michaelrlowry.bsky.social · Jul 28

If you think I've forgotten about the hurricane satellites, think again. The Navy is permanently unplugging them this week, on the brink of the busiest stretch of the season. There's so much more to this story, and I have the latest scoop. ⬇️

Navy Set to Unplug Critical Hurricane Satellites this Week

Abrupt termination of satellite data by U.S. Department of Defense sends forecasters scrambling for a fix on the brink of the busiest stretch of the hurricane season

michaelrlowry.substack.com

Reposted by James P. Collins

UNC Dept of Earth, Marine & Environmental Sciences @unc-emes.bsky.social · Dec 9

Good morning DC and happy first day of #AGU24!

We're starting the week off with three oral presentations and one eLightning session!

@whyana.bsky.social

Department of Earth, Marine and Environmental Sciences
Oral and eLightning Presentations
Monday, December 9
9:30 146B
Role of Natural Levees in Promoting Depositional Disequilibria in Salt Marshes (EP11B-07)
Joshua Himmelstein
Graduate Student
11:40 146B
Constraints on Photomineralization of Dissolved Organic Matter Across the Lake-to-Channel Connectivity Spectrum in an Inland Boreal Delta (EP12B-09)
Dr. Wayana Dolan
PhD ‘23
16:00 - 17:30 eLightning Theater 6
Multihazard Flood Modeling: From Inland to Coast I eLightning (NH14C)
Co-convened by Lauren Grimley
Graduate Student
17:20 204A-C
Modeling Acoustic Waves from Simulated Fire Sources Using 3-D Finite Difference Method (S14A-09)
Isaac Bauer
Undergraduate Student

Reposted by James P. Collins

UNC Dept of Earth, Marine & Environmental Sciences @unc-emes.bsky.social · Dec 12

To start off #AGU24 Day 4, graduate students Jack Baer and Hunter Quintal will be in oral sessions this morning as presenter and co-convener!
@hquintal.bsky.social

Department of Earth, Marine and Environmental Sciences
Oral Presentations
Thursday, December 12
9:20 144A-C
Moving Beyond the Design Storm: Probabilistic Flood Hazard Mapping Using Modified Stochastic Storm Transposition (H41F-06)
Jack Baer
Graduate Student
8:30 - 10:00 Salon A
Analysis of Urban Hazard Inequities Across Scales: Connecting Regional to Local Urban Dynamics and Policy I Oral (GC41A)
Co-convened by Hunter Quintal
Graduate Student

Reposted by James P. Collins, Katherine Siegel

Joost de Gouw @gouwlab.bsky.social · Jan 21

Many, many people are reaching out with questions about the impact of the LA fires on their homes and environment. There are some things we can say based on the research that was done after the Marshall Fire in Colorado. Here is a short thread to summarize what was learned. @ciresnews.bsky.social

Reposted by James P. Collins

Korie Dean @koriedean.bsky.social · Jan 24

New: UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts said today the university will “comply with any requests from law enforcement” regarding undocumented students www.newsobserver.com/news/local/e...

UNC-Chapel Hill will ‘comply’ if ICE seeks students on campus, chancellor says

Schools and colleges are no longer considered “sensitive” spaces protected from immigration officials, under a new directive from the Department of Homeland Security.

www.newsobserver.com

Reposted by James P. Collins

MaggieBeth @maggiebeth.space · Jan 27

Seeing that NSF panels are being cancelled. How will this affect the GRFP? I’m sure there will be some impact, similar to NIH panel cancellations leading to some grad programs reducing the number of spots for this year. 🔭🧪

Reposted by James P. Collins

5 Calls @5calls.org · Jan 28

Trump's federal funding freeze is blatantly unconstitutional, only Congress has the power to spend federal dollars. Tell your reps to support a resolution opposing the freeze now:

Block Trump's Unconstitutional Federal Funding Freeze ⭑ 5 Calls

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is a crucial federal agency tasked with oversight and administration of the federal budget. In a blatantly …