Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

LightNews

Iryna Dronova

@irynad.bsky.social

4.4K followers 360 following 130 posts

Environmental scientist, Associate Professor, UC Berkeley. Remote sensing, GIS, wetlands, biodiversity, urban ecosystems, natural climate solutions. Bridges among science, landscape practice, and policy. I stand with Ukraine. Opinions are my own. .. more

Environmental science 73%

Geography 19%

more

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Reposted by Iryna Dronova

Berkeley Rausser College of Natural Resources @natureatcal.bsky.social · 1d

A comprehensive review of urban biodiversity research co-authored by Associate Professor @irynad.bsky.social and ESPM alumni researchers showcases how nature can support the health and wellbeing of people in cities. Learn more: ourenvironment.berkeley.edu/news/impact-...

A photo of Heian Shrine Garden in Kyoto, Japan. Flowers and a small lake with lily pads are visible in the foreground, and people holding umbrellas are visible in the background.

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · 8d

Bird nests can provide very interesting history glimpses and mysteries. www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti...

Found: 650-year-old shoe, in vulture nest

Many unexpected human artifacts have been preserved, for centuries, in vulture nests.

www.nationalgeographic.com

Reposted by Alessandro Rigolon

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · 16d

Will biodiversity actions yield healthy places? Check out this new review of human health outcomes associated with biodiversity‐focused urban greening (with several @natureatcal.bsky.social alums among authors): besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

Will biodiversity actions yield healthy places? A systematic review of human health outcomes associated with biodiversity‐focused urban greening

Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · 17d

5 - In several instances, the tool could perfectly re-tell and interpret my instructions, but didn’t make any visible changes in the image, and had to be confronted on that to actually perform the change.

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · 17d

4 - When getting stuck on a certain request, the tool would suddenly change the style of the image. This happened with #3 and 4 above (#2 was the tool’s attempt to change its original vision for #1 actually following my instructions).

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · 17d

3 - The tool struggled with prompts like “Let’s go back to X number of steps ago”. When asked about it, it explained that it does not see the images in the same way a person does and that it can sometimes get stuck and can't accurately recall the previous version to correct it.

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · 17d

2 - The most difficult instructions seemed to be on specific thematic elements of the image and their topological relationships. Such as enlarging and elongating the central flower but keeping others intact, changing the number of leaves, changing the observer’s view angle, etc.

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · 17d

1 -The easiest instructions to follow seemed to be the ones on the general content and artistic style. To be clear, I did not explicitly name any artists or specific genres and instead commented on strokes, colors, and textures.

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · 17d

A small distraction. Do you ever see an image in your mind that would make a nice painting? I do but have no such skill. So I tried a small experiment in Gemini AI to recreate a specific idea of a painting. This took time and didn’t quite meet the goal, but here are some versions and observations:

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · 18d

Two more weaker ones today very close to the night one.

Reposted by Iryna Dronova

Convention on Wetlands @ramsar.org · 29d

The second session of the English speaking National Wetland Inventory training course concludes today. Participants have made important progress in addressing data gaps and refining their approaches to National Wetland Inventories. #WetlandsMatter

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · Sep 9

It's wonderful to be back for Module 2 of this exciting event. Advances in geospatial tools and remote sensing are especially critical for supporting national wetland inventories and overcoming historical barriers with new strategies.

Convention on Wetlands @ramsar.org · Sep 8

Module 2 of the English-speaking National Wetland Inventories training course has started in the Republic of Korea. The representatives that first met exactly one year ago are now back for a week on “Earth observation techniques & knowledge: best practices to support national wetland inventories”.

Reposted by Iryna Dronova

Convention on Wetlands @ramsar.org · Sep 8

Module 2 of the English-speaking National Wetland Inventories training course has started in the Republic of Korea. The representatives that first met exactly one year ago are now back for a week on “Earth observation techniques & knowledge: best practices to support national wetland inventories”.

Reposted by Ben Bond‐Lamberty

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · Aug 13

This new study led by our PhD alumna Sarah Hartman is a rigorous investigation of agricultural abandonment in Ukraine. It considers not only recent events but also trends since pre-2014 and shows how historical context is critical to understanding land changes. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Land abandonment as an indicator of Ukrainian agricultural resilience during Russia's war against Ukraine

Amidst the war, the resilience of Ukraine's export agriculture sector – among the top 10 worldwide and critical for food security – remains a global c…

www.sciencedirect.com

Reposted by Iryna Dronova

Kevin Anchukaitis @thirstygecko.bsky.social · Dec 18

Humid heat exceeds human tolerance limits and causes mass mortality www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Humid heat exceeds human tolerance limits and causes mass mortality - Nature Climate Change

The hottest boreal summer on record has driven widespread humid heat mortality across every continent of the Northern Hemisphere. With critical physiological limits to human heat tolerance drawing eve...

Reposted by Iryna Dronova

jmdevitt.bsky.social @jmdevitt.bsky.social · Feb 17

A reminder of the larger mission of higher ed--happy to see @ucberkeleyofficial.bsky.social embracing it: "Approaching the three-year anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine, the Campanile will play the Ukrainian national anthem Feb. 24." Thanks Daily Cal for the 2025 coverage. Video from 2024.

Ukrainian national anthem rings out at Cal campus — song of solidarity

YouTube video by KTVU FOX 2 San Francisco

www.youtube.com

Reposted by Iryna Dronova

Darya Zorka @daryazorka.bsky.social · Apr 4

A few hours ago, Russians hit a children’s playground in Ukraine with cluster munitions: a bomb that explodes with hundreds of little bombs that fly everywhere to maximize the killing. Russians sent this bomb to the playground full of kids. I don’t even know what to say anymore.

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · Jul 19

This very touching song by a Ukrainian artist is called "The Street" (Vulytsya). So much in this video reminds of our childhoods and very similar landscapes that live in our memories far from home. Some of these places are still waiting, others are not there anymore.
youtube.com/watch?v=Nc2x...

YouTube video by Jul'ka Kosivchuk

Reposted by Katharine Hayhoe, Scott C. Doney, Colette L. Heald , and 6 more Katharine Hayhoe, Scott C. Doney, Colette L. Heald, Caroline Krafft, David Schlosberg, Iryna Dronova, Sara Constantino, Kate Lowe, Clark Gray

Danielle Zoe Rivera @danielle-rivera.bsky.social · Jul 12

UC-Berkeley has an open-rank faculty position in our incredible Climate Equity and Environmental Justice (CEEJ) research cluster. It is an extraordinary interdisciplinary group working across multiple colleges and departments at the university! More information here: aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF04842

Assistant/Associate/Full Professor - Climate Equity and Environmental Justice - Rausser College of Natural Resources

University of California, Berkeley is hiring. Apply now!

aprecruit.berkeley.edu

Reposted by Anthony Ricciardi, Iryna Dronova

Jeff Dukes @dukesjeff.bsky.social · Jul 7

Great NYT article today about how not to make problems with invasive species even worse, featuring @evecologist.bsky.social and @jmheberling.bsky.social
🌐🧪🌱
Free link: www.nytimes.com/2025/07/02/r...

Fighting Invasive Plants: The Ones We’ve Got and Those We Think Are Coming

www.nytimes.com

Reposted by Jesse H. Kroll, Jingfeng Xiao, Iryna Dronova

biometlab @biometlab.bsky.social · Jun 26

Just posted an OpEd in our local paper, the Brentwood Press, on defending science, as encouraged by
@wclivestream.bsky.social and others

@natureatcal.bsky.social

www.thepress.net/opinion/we-s...

We should not dismantle science across America

The Trump administration is destroying our scientific institutions, its infrastructure, and intellectual capital at an unprecedented pace. Scientists are being fired without cause from many federal ag...

www.thepress.net

Reposted by Iryna Dronova, He Yin

European Space Agency @esa.int · Jun 23

🆕 The first stunning images from our groundbreaking #Biomass satellite mission have been released – they mark a major leap forward in our ability to understand how Earth’s forests are changing and exactly how they contribute to the global carbon cycle 🌳🌍

www.esa.int/Applications...

This image features part of Bolivia. This vibrant image was created using the radar instrument’s different polarisation channels, with each colour revealing distinct characteristics of the landscape. For instance, green hues mainly represent rainforest, red hues forested floodplains and wetlands, and blue–purple is indicative of grasslands, while black areas are rivers and lakes. The image spans approximately 90 km along the Biomass satellite's flight path (length) and 60 km across in width, with north oriented to the right.

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · Jun 5

Congratulations to Xihan Yao, our MLA-EP'23 alum, on publishing his thesis research which applies innovative high-resolution image analysis and lidar to characterize microclimate in contrasting urban neighborhoods! www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Community-scale microclimate simulation using Airborne Laser Scanning and object-based urban tree classification

Urban climate and urban heat island effects, resulting from urban development and expansion, significantly impact human health and well-being. Urban f…

www.sciencedirect.com

Reposted by Yuriy Gorodnichenko, Jonathan Parker

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · Jun 1

What makes this a happy news is the multitude of innocent lives saved by destroying these plans - which were apparently loaded and ready to kill again, like before. Many of us who check air raid maps on our phones and call close ones every day just to know if they are alive, feel very grateful.

Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum.bsky.social · Jun 1

More than 40 Russian warplanes are burning after a mass Ukrainian drone attack
kyivindependent.com/enemy-bomber...

'Russian bombers are burning en masse' — Ukraine's SBU drones hit 'more than 40' aircraft in mass attack, source claims

"Currently, more than 40 aircraft are known to have been hit, including the A-50, Tu-95 and Tu-22 M3," a source told the Kyiv Independent.

kyivindependent.com

Reposted by Yuriy Gorodnichenko, Jonathan Parker, Iryna Dronova

Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum.bsky.social · Jun 1

More than 40 Russian warplanes are burning after a mass Ukrainian drone attack
kyivindependent.com/enemy-bomber...

'Russian bombers are burning en masse' — Ukraine's SBU drones hit 'more than 40' aircraft in mass attack, source claims

"Currently, more than 40 aircraft are known to have been hit, including the A-50, Tu-95 and Tu-22 M3," a source told the Kyiv Independent.

kyivindependent.com

Reposted by Iryna Dronova

biometlab @biometlab.bsky.social · May 26

Starting Wednesday 200 weather and climate experts will conduct a 100 hour marathon on Weather and Climate

wclivestream.com

Youtube page will be

www.youtube.com/@wclivestream

I plan to talk on Breathing of the Biosphere, next Saturday at 3 pm Pacific time.

The Weather & Climate Livestream

Join us starting May 28th, as meteorologists and climate scientists from across the US share their research and answer your questions.

wclivestream.com

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · May 23

It was great they mentioned late USSR and the following decade, this is exactly how many people felt then. And the sense of overwhelming powerlessness which ultimately leads to a self-perpetuating inaction and isolation.

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · May 23

"What makes dysfunction so dangerous is that we might simply learn to live with it. But understanding hypernormalization gives us language – and permission – to recognize when systems are failing, and clarifies the risk of not taking action when we can."
www.theguardian.com/wellness/ng-...

Systems are crumbling - but daily life continues. The dissonance is real

If everything feels broken but strangely normal, the Soviet-era concept of hypernormalization can help

www.theguardian.com

Reposted by Iryna Dronova

IPBES @ipbes.net · May 20

Read more: www.ipbes.net/assessment-r...

Iryna Dronova @irynad.bsky.social · May 14

mine too!