Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Jul 11

Thanks! And for any teachers or librarians who aren't familiar with @authorsbooking.bsky.social, summer is a great time to check it out. There are lots of wonderful authors and illustrators there, all eager to engage with kids and share our books.

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Jul 8

Trump's 2026 budget plan to defund the North American Breeding Bird Survey and USGS Bird Banding Laboratory will be a continent-wide blow to bird conservation efforts. Undoubtedly, that's the point.
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/int...
#citizenscience #birdbanding #ornithology

Opinion | What we’ll lose if bird banding ends

Scientists have tagged birds for more than 100 years. That preservation program might be defunded.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Jun 27

My favourite part of writing "Owls: Who Gives a Hoot?" was talking to kids involved in owl conservation. Last week, I finally got copies to one of those inspiring young people and his teacher at their school in South Africa.
www.citizen.co.za/alex-news/ne...
#owls #kidlit @orcabook.bsky.social

Marlboro learner featured in international book about owls | Alex News

Marlboro Gardens Secondary School learner Adivhaho Mokakatleng beams with pride after being featured in an international book about owls. His passion for wildlife, nurtured through the Owlproject.org ...

www.citizen.co.za

Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · May 1

It was such a pleasure to be part of this @orcabook.bsky.social group launch of 8 fabulous new books for kids. Thanks to Munro Books for the beautiful venue and all the lovely people who came out to celebrate with us.
#kidlit #Canlit

Robin Stevenson @robinstevenson.bsky.social · May 1

Here's our crew of launching authors! Monique Gray Smith, Jess Willows andJohnny Aitken @franbwrites.bsky.social Mark Leiren-Young, Gabrielle Prendergast, @gregorcraigie.bsky.social and me! Fly high, little books! (Thanks for the photo, @orcabook.bsky.social)

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Reposted by Frances Backhouse

Judd Legum @juddlegum.bsky.social · Apr 28

"A Financial Times analysis of more than 350,000 posts on X related to the election, gathered since the snap poll was announced in March, revealed a network of co-ordinated accounts pushing content to boost Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre and tarnish his counterpart, the Liberal’s Mark Carney."

Canadians bombarded with rightwing content on Musk’s X ahead of election

FT analysis finds network of social media accounts attacking Liberal leader Mark Carney

www.ft.com

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 24

📚👍 Spring doesn't just bring flowers.🌷 There's also these new #kidlit books by:
@parentclub.bsky.social
@laurabontje.bsky.social
@franbwrites
@caseylyall.bsky.social
@susanhughes.bsky.social
@mahtabnarsimhan.bsky.social
@valeriesherrard.bsky.social
@kirsten-marion

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 22

On this #EarthDay, I'm thinking of these Yellowbells (Fritillaria pudica) that I photographed during an April visit to the CSKT Bison Range in Montana a couple years ago. Despite cold, harsh winters and hot, dry summers, they reach for the light every spring and bring beauty to the world.

Four small plants with yellow flowers growing above old dead grasses in a field.

Reposted by Frances Backhouse

Save the CBC 🇨🇦✌️ @savethecbc.bsky.social · Apr 19

When fascism rises, journalism and women’s rights are first to fall.
Poilievre is attacking both.
We won’t let him.

#SaveTheCBC #WomensRights #CdnPoli #MediaFreedom #NeverPoilievre

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 19

Thank you for getting out there.

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 17

Public lands were key to pulling bison back from the edge of extinction and remain essential to protecting this keystone species. I'm honoured to have "Bison: Community Builders & Grassland Caretakers" included in this @the-revelator.bsky.social roundup of books about public lands.

The Revelator @therevelator.org · Apr 16

In a perfect world, a book-review column focused on public lands would provide readers with exciting tips & insights about visiting national parks & monuments, wildlife refuges, & other breathtaking sites across the United States.

But it’s not a perfect world... therevelator.org/books-public...

This Land Is Our Land: New Books About Public Lands, the Threats They Face, and Their Ecological Importance • The Revelator

These new books cover challenges to our shared land, ranging from Indigenous appropriation to current corporate grabs.

therevelator.org

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Reposted by Frances Backhouse

West Coast Environmental Law @wcelaw.bsky.social · Apr 10

Do we really need to choose between the environment & economy in #Election2025? 🤔 On Apr. 15 @ 2pm PT, join our expert panel to discuss key election issues – incl. what deregulation could mean for workers, the environment & everyday Canadians.

Register: us02web.zoom.us/webinar/regi... #cdnpoli

Promo graphic with background photo of highway through a forest, with overlaid text "Election 2025 Virtual Townhall", event details and speaker headshots.

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Reposted by Frances Backhouse

Freedom of the Press Foundation @freedom.press · Apr 15

Join us for an urgent discussion on the @apnews.com ban, White House press pool, and other attacks on the press by the Trump administration, featuring @briankarem.bsky.social, @stephaniesugars.bsky.social, and @caitlinvogus.bsky.social.

🗓️ April 16, 2pm ET/11am PT

freedom.press/access-denied

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 15

It’s publication day for “Bison: Community Builders and Grassland Caretakers”! The Book Birthday edition of my Better With Bison newsletter has launch news, a peek inside the pages (highlighting the wonders of bison poop) and more. mailchi.mp/8906ca675612...
#bison #kidlit
@orcabook.bsky.social

A herd of bison in a mountain meadow with the cover of a kids' book about bison superimposed above.

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 14

I've read "Pride Puppy," unlike many of the people who want to ban it. It's a delightful book with a positive message and fun illustrations. Author @robinstevenson.bsky.social and illustrator @whatwouldjuliedraw.bsky.social do not deserve the hatred that is being flung at them.
#standwiththebanned

Robin Stevenson @robinstevenson.bsky.social · Apr 12

PRIDE PUPPY illustrator @whatwouldjuliedraw.bsky.social is taking on the folks inventing and spreading misinformation about our book! She's brilliant and hilarious- and if you want to know why there's so much fuss about a book about a puppy, just read this.

www.whatwouldjuliedraw.com/pridepuppy

pride puppy & SCOTUS — what would julie draw?

take a look at what's really in Pride Puppy!

www.whatwouldjuliedraw.com

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 12

Thanks so much for highlighting my book. I'm excited about getting my "Bison" into young readers' hands. The official pub day is next Tuesday.

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 10

I'm fed up with AI companies illegally using my books to train their generative AI. I just sent them a letter demanding they remove my works from their training data. You can use the Authors Guild's letter template to send your own: actionnetwork.org/letters/auth...

Tell AI Companies They Do Not Have the Right to Use Your Work

I just sent a letter telling AI companies they do not not have the right to use my work. Use the Authors Guild's letter template to send your own.

actionnetwork.org

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 10

Attention Canadians. Be careful you're not carrying any "illegal ideas" if you're trying to cross the border. Ideas like, perhaps, human rights or climate change?

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 8

Also highly recommended for beaver fans: Chapter 4 of "Water Always Wins" by @ericagies.bsky.social. As she explains so well, beavers are "the original water engineers" and can help us deal with both drought and flooding. (The book's other 9 chapters are great, too.)

Erica Gies / SlowWater.world @ericagies.bsky.social · Apr 7

@franbwrites.bsky.social book "Once They Were Hats" was the first beaver book I read, and it's a great one. It's a deep dive into beavs' role in creating the North America we know today, epic engineering achievements, and their many other wonderful capabilities. Highly recommend on Beaver Day!

Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 7

Happy International Beaver Day! I've been writing about these guys for more than 15 years and they still amaze me. We came so close to wiping them out. Thank goodness enough concerned and determined individuals took action and changed the course of history.
#InternationalBeaverDay #CanLit

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 7

Happy International Beaver Day! I've been writing about these guys for more than 15 years and they still amaze me. We came so close to wiping them out. Thank goodness enough concerned and determined individuals took action and changed the course of history.
#InternationalBeaverDay #CanLit

Book cover: A painting of two beavers cutting down a tree. The book title (Once They Were Hats: In Search of the Mighty Beaver by Frances Backhouse) appears in the outline of a top hat, superimposed over the painting.

Book cover: The title (Beavers: Radical Rodents and Ecosystem Engineers) appears above a photo of a beaver sitting upright and holding a twig in its front paws.

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 1

I'm in awe of, and grateful for, this man's dedication to defending democracy.
www.pbs.org/newshour/pol...

WATCH LIVE: Sen. Cory Booker protests Trump’s agenda in marathon Senate speech

It was a remarkable show of stamina — among the longest in Senate history — as Democrats try to show their frustrated supporters that they are doing everything possible to contest President Donald Tru...

www.pbs.org

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Apr 1

We can all celebrate and honour Indigenous languages by learning Indigenous names of a few local animals and plants. In my kids' books, I include examples, like these ones in "Bison: Community Builders and Grassland Caretakers."
@orcabook.bsky.social
#NationalIndigenousLanguagesDay #kidlit

A photo of bison grazing in a grassland with a bison calf in front. Over top of the photos are (1) a list of Indigenous uses for parts of a bison, (2) a list of Indigenous names for bison, and (3) the cover of a book titled Bison.

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Mar 29

Support local #journalism and the dedicated #journalists who are working hard under extremely tough conditions to bring it to you.

Jeff Sharlet @jeffsharlet.bsky.social · Mar 28

A tiny, easy thing you can do: wherever you’re traveling, buy the local paper and boost the news of how fascism is trickling down and how everyday people are pushing back. From today’s Caledonian-Record of St. Johnsbury, VT.

Headline: Hundreds turn out to protest planned closure of social security office

Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Mar 26

Poynter offers good insight into the ethics questions in the journalism story of the day. Useful to journalists and non-journalists alike.
www.poynter.org/ethics-trust...

You're a journalist added to a classified group chat. Here’s what you need to consider. - Poynter

5 ethical questions journalists should consider if, like The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg, they are added to a top-secret conversation about war plans.

www.poynter.org

Reposted by Frances Backhouse

Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) @cajournalists.bsky.social · Mar 25

Calling all Indigenous journalists, broadcasters and media creators! The Indigenous Media Association of Canada (IMAC) invites you to a virtual meeting to learn more about this newly formed organization, what they plan to do and how they hope to serve Indigenous media. Date: March 30, 5 p.m. ET.

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Frances Backhouse @franbwrites.bsky.social · Mar 24

Independent journalism is fundamental to democracy. And those who are attacking journalism and journalists from every side know it well.

Erica Gies / SlowWater.world @ericagies.bsky.social · Mar 24

www.mobilize.us/mediademocra...

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