Simon Lewis
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simonlewis.bsky.social
Simon Lewis
@simonlewis.bsky.social

They say I’m outspoken. Professor of Global Change Science at UCL and University of Leeds. Author, The Human Planet. Trying to understand the world and change it too.

Simon Lewis may refer to:Simon Lewis (writer), British novelist and screenwriter Simon Lewis , a character in The Mortal Instruments series of novels Simon Lewis, director of communications for PM Gordon Brown Simon Lewis Simon Lewis (lifeguard), Australian volunteer lifesaver .. more

Environmental science 69%
Geography 18%
"She made him do it" strikes again. He's not concerned the murder will anger us; he's insisting that saying it was murder and the officer a murderer will anger them and then our fault if they lash out. "She made him do it" is the burdening of Democrats and the left for right-wing/Republican acts.
Homan: "We gotta stop the hateful rhetoric. Saying this officer is a murderer is dangerous. It's just ridiculous. It's gonna infuriate people more which means there's gonna be more incidents like this."
Homan: "We gotta stop the hateful rhetoric. Saying this officer is a murderer is dangerous. It's just ridiculous. It's gonna infuriate people more which means there's gonna be more incidents like this."
"You haven't seen video of the entire morning ... there's more information" -- Kristi Noem suggests there are secret videos showing that actually Renee Good had it coming

This ‘anything goes’ line of argument makes me think, is Andrew Mountbatten Windsor (ex Prince Andrew) still a Fellow of the Royal. Unclear from a quick internet search. A journalist should ask.
"I'm afraid there's many bad people around, but they have made scientific advances." - President of the Royal Society.

The Royal Society continues to be happy to be associated with, indeed honour Elon Musk with fellowship, despite the Grok scandal.

I will never understand this.
"I'm afraid there's many bad people around, but they have made scientific advances." - President of the Royal Society.

The Royal Society continues to be happy to be associated with, indeed honour Elon Musk with fellowship, despite the Grok scandal.

I will never understand this.

On my way to the first Congo Basin Science Initiative conference, in Brazzaville Congo. 300 scientists discussing all aspects of the worlds second largest extent of tropical forest, from people’s use of the forests to climate impacts to how the region can develop while keeping its forests standing.
🎉We’re thrilled to announce the First CBSI annual conference is happening between 7 - 9 January 2026 in Congo Brazzaville!

🔗Find out more and register here congobasinscience.net/news/cbsi-an...

#Conference #CongoBasinScience #Congo #CapacityBuilding #SustainableDevelopment #Rainforest #Brazzaville

Well not clearly past peak demand, it’s a long plateau, but it’s certainly not racing up. (IEA think plateau will end begin a shallow decline 2030-2032).
One of the most lopsided results you'll ever see in a poll, from our weekend Washington Post poll www.washingtonpost.com/politics/int...

Peak Trump?
WH sources say Venezuela's opposition leader committed the "ultimate sin": She accepted the Nobel Peace prize.

“If she had turned it down and said, ‘I can’t accept it because it’s Donald Trump’s,’ she’d be the president of Venezuela today,” one said.

www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
WH sources say Venezuela's opposition leader committed the "ultimate sin": She accepted the Nobel Peace prize.

“If she had turned it down and said, ‘I can’t accept it because it’s Donald Trump’s,’ she’d be the president of Venezuela today,” one said.

www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

This seems plausible, but does Trump not realise that Venezuelan oil is not cheap oil, unlike Saudi oil, and we’re past global peak demand. Much of it is a stranded asset.
A very long and important THREAD -

The real reason the US is invading Venezuela goes back to a deal Henry Kissinger made with Saudi Arabia in 1974.

And I'm going to explain why this is actually about the SURVIVAL of the US dollar itself.

Not drugs. Not terrorism. Not "democracy." 1/

Reposted by Simon L. Lewis

Look everyone is going to have to be patient with reporters and pundits who were born after the cultural memory of the second gulf war faded. Don’t know what else to tell you
A very long and important THREAD -

The real reason the US is invading Venezuela goes back to a deal Henry Kissinger made with Saudi Arabia in 1974.

And I'm going to explain why this is actually about the SURVIVAL of the US dollar itself.

Not drugs. Not terrorism. Not "democracy." 1/

Contrast with the treatment of the Palestine Action prisoners who are on hunger strike.

Great thread to bring in 2026.
This year has been brutal for the #climate movement.

Rollbacks, repression, & outright denial, especially in the US, have made progress feel fragile & uneven.

Which is exactly why it matters to pause & look back at what did move forward in 2025.

Here are 12 real wins 🏆, one for each month 🧵⬇️
Three of the top five British grid electricity records smashed in 2025!

This is a huge success story, despite what Russian bots and U.S fossil fuel shills scream on X.

Every unit of clean domestic energy we produce means a safer future for our children…🥳

Reposted by Simon L. Lewis

In 2025 and 2024 Israel’s air force and army chiefs were given special immunity by Keir Starmer’s government to visit Britain, to protect them from possible prosecution for war crimes.

www.declassifieduk.org/israeli-air-...
Israeli air force chief given special immunity to visit Britain
Exclusive: Israeli air force commander Tomer Bar received a “special mission” certificate for his secret trip to the UK, protecting him from arrest for war crimes.
www.declassifieduk.org
This year has been brutal for the #climate movement.

Rollbacks, repression, & outright denial, especially in the US, have made progress feel fragile & uneven.

Which is exactly why it matters to pause & look back at what did move forward in 2025.

Here are 12 real wins 🏆, one for each month 🧵⬇️

Reposted by Simon L. Lewis

Never ending record heat in Central Africa
Abnormally hot nights continue relentless with Mins >27C in Ivory Coast,Benin,Ghana and Togo

New December record of Highest Minimum at Dapaong,TOGO: min 26.5C
Second highest ever at Sassandra,Ivory Coast: min 26.8C

Maxes of 40C coming!

Reposted by Simon L. Lewis

It's so hard to contrast all the nice warm, Christmas feelings with the stress and trauma of what families of the hunger strikers in prison are going through right now. I've made a donation to them as part of my last minute Christmas shopping. chuffed.org/project/filt...
Filton 24 Support Fund
In August 2024, six actionists drove a modified prison van into Elbit’s research, development, and manufacturing hub in Filton, Bristol. Once inside, the six dismantled Israeli weapons, including the ...
chuffed.org

Reposted by Simon L. Lewis

There are political prisoners in the UK on hunger strike, some who are now very ill. This has got very little media coverage. Good to see some coverage, now there needs to be some action.
"Some of them have been on hunger strike for 48 days"

Well done to @adilray.bsky.social for covering the Palestine hunger strikers and reading out their names on #GMB.

Reposted by Simon L. Lewis

"Some of them have been on hunger strike for 48 days"

Well done to @adilray.bsky.social for covering the Palestine hunger strikers and reading out their names on #GMB.
When I was a medical student 45 years ago, I clerked in a 13 year old girl with deep jaundice and an abdominal mass. She was Hepatitis B positive. That had led to a primary liver tumour. In a 13-year-old. She was dead within the month. Avoidable with vaccination.
The CDC has endorsed ACIP’s decision of revoking universal access in USA to hepatitis B vaccines at birth. The policy had been in place for 34y and was changed despite no new evidence emerging of any risk of vaccination. #HealthPolicy 🧵
CDC accepts ACIP’s hepatitis B vaccine recommendations for babies
The CDC also said if a baby is not receiving a birth dose of vaccine, the initial dose should be administered no earlier than 2 months of age.
www.cidrap.umn.edu
Exclusive: The Trump administration is moving to dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado, according to a senior White House official, taking aim at one of the world's leading climate research labs.
Trump moves to dismantle major US climate research center in Colorado
The Trump administration is breaking up the National Center for Atmospheric Research, taking aim at one of the world's leading climate research labs.
bit.ly

If you want a bit of beauty in your timeline, follow Charlie, who made the first moth, butterfly and dragonfly collections from the central Congo peatlands, to understand their diversity and community structure.
As we come to the end of 2025 I've had some time to photograph some moth specimens from my work in the Republic of the Congo, which I will share here in the coming weeks. First up:

Mazuca strigicincta (Walker, 1866)
Noctuidae: Xyleninae
C. Hackforth det. 2024
Republic of the Congo

Reposted by Simon L. Lewis

As we come to the end of 2025 I've had some time to photograph some moth specimens from my work in the Republic of the Congo, which I will share here in the coming weeks. First up:

Mazuca strigicincta (Walker, 1866)
Noctuidae: Xyleninae
C. Hackforth det. 2024
Republic of the Congo

Reposted by Simon L. Lewis

I have read, blurbed, reviewed quite a lot of science books this year. Here are some I have particularly enjoyed, in no particular order.
@matthewcobb.bsky.social's long awaited biography of Francis Crick did not disappoint. Authoritative and highly readable. 🧵
www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Sex, drugs and the conscious brain: Francis Crick beyond the double helix
A thoroughly researched account of the history and relationships that shaped the scientist who co-discovered the structure of DNA.
www.nature.com
How to write a constructive peer review - see our new editorial, led by @biolumijeffence.bsky.social

With some of the team from @conphysjournal.bsky.social
Tips and tricks for writing constructive peer reviews
Peer review has been the cornerstone of scientific inquiry for centuries and is considered the backbone of scientific quality and rigour (Spier, 2002). Des
academic.oup.com