Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Leah Stokes

@leahstokes.bsky.social

62K followers 1.1K following 680 posts

Professor of climate + energy policy at UCSB. Alumni of MIT, Columbia and UToronto. Hosts "A Matter of Degrees" podcast. Cuts carbon pollution! Proudly 🇨🇦 Gardener 🌱 leahstokes.com

Videos

Leah Cardamore Stokes is a Canadian-American political scientist specializing in environmental policy. She is the Anton Vonk Associate Professor of Environmental Politics at the University of California, Santa Barbara. In addition, Stokes is a senior policy consultant at Evergreen Action and Rewiring America. She also hosts the climate change podcast A Matter of Degrees. Her research focuses on political behavior, public opinion, and the politics of energy and environmental policy in the United States. .. more

Political science 32%

Environmental science 16%

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Pinned

Leah Stokes @leahstokes.bsky.social · Jan 15

It's official: I'm writing a book. Should be out early fall 2026. Thrilled to be working with MIT Press.

Book announcement for "The Carbon Wave."

36 36 470

Reposted by Richard S.J. Tol, David M. Schultz, Mary Feeney , and 7 more Richard S.J. Tol, David M. Schultz, Mary Feeney, Rosemary A. Joyce, Dustin Mulvaney, Gernot Wagner, Silvia Secchi, Bessma Momani, Leah Stokes, David Darmofal

jael holzman @jael.bsky.social · 3h

SCOOP: The Bureau of Land Management says the largest solar project in Nevada — the Esmeralda 7 mega-farm — has been canceled

The news was quietly dropped via a sudden website update with no public word from any of the companies involved or a statement from the agency

@heatmap.news

Esmeralda 7 Solar Project Has Been Canceled, BLM Says

It would have delivered a gargantuan 6.2 gigawatts of power.

heatmap.news

56 500 860

Leah Stokes @leahstokes.bsky.social · 7h

Thanks!!!

Leah Stokes @leahstokes.bsky.social · 12h

On the latest episode of A Matter of Degrees, we talk to @drkatemarvel.bsky.social about her amazing new book, "Human Nature." It's a story of climate science told through nine emotions. A beautiful read. Listen to the conversation wherever you get your podcasts!
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

14 25

Leah Stokes @leahstokes.bsky.social · 12h

What a time to be alive!

1 11

Leah Stokes @leahstokes.bsky.social · 1d

Lol. So dark.

Leah Stokes @leahstokes.bsky.social · 1d

Blue wave coming...

Taniel @taniel.bsky.social · 1d

JUST IN: The Republican Mayor of Fairbanks, Alaska’s second biggest city, lost re-election last night to a Democrat.

Mayor David Pruhs is a conservative who fought protections for LGBTQ+ residents; he made comments this year drew condemnation this year from Alaska Natives. He lost to Mindy O'Neall.

4 14 82

Leah Stokes @leahstokes.bsky.social · 1d

Congrats Hahrie!! Thrilled for you. So well deserved.

Reposted by Archon Fung, Brendan Nyhan, Efrén O. Pérez , and 11 more Archon Fung, Brendan Nyhan, Efrén O. Pérez, Sabine Pahl, Matthew Salganik, Mirya R. Holman, Robert C. Richards, Ariadne Vromen, Andrew L. Whitehead, Henry Farrell, Leah Stokes, Raúl Pacheco-Vega, Southern Africa, David Darmofal

Hahrie Han @hahrie.bsky.social · 1d

Totally, completely flabbergasted. #MacFellow

hub.jhu.edu/2025/10/08/h...

Johns Hopkins political scientist Hahrie Han receives MacArthur genius grant

Han, who studies political organizing and collective action and who has led the university's SNF Agora Institute since 2019, among 22 individuals to receive coveted MacArthur Foundation recognition

hub.jhu.edu

92 150 1.8K

Reposted by Ben H. Ansell, Rosemary A. Joyce, Mirya R. Holman , and 3 more Ben H. Ansell, Rosemary A. Joyce, Mirya R. Holman, Claire L. Adida, Leah Stokes, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Taniel @taniel.bsky.social · 1d

120 1.9K 8.4K

Reposted by Dani Rodrik, Marc Lynch, Ben H. Ansell , and 11 more Dani Rodrik, Marc Lynch, Ben H. Ansell, Elizabeth Saunders, Hugo Mercier, Jacob T. Levy, Bessma Momani, Samantha Brennan, Dana R. Fisher, Kate Starbird, Brian Weatherson, Leah Stokes, Aviel Roshwald, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Henry Farrell @himself.bsky.social · 1d

"It wanted to signal strength. Instead, it’s revealing its weakness. The administration’s need to break the academy is forcing it to make a desperately risky gamble." www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/o...

Opinion | You Beat Trumpism by Banding Together. It’s as Hard and as Simple as That.

www.nytimes.com

12 180 610

Reposted by Michael D. McDonald, Leah Stokes

Aaron Fritschner @fritschner.bsky.social · 2d

“It’s true, all of it… it’s all true.”

Daily Beast: lol Republicans’ polls suck

11 180 810

Reposted by Steven Heydemann, Kimberly A. Prather, Leah Stokes , and 1 more Steven Heydemann, Kimberly A. Prather, Leah Stokes, Colin Woodard

Senator Patty Murray @murray.senate.gov · 2d

The scenes out of Chicago should outrage us all. These federal agents are out of control, committing senseless acts of violence & putting everyone at risk.

American citizens are being detained & brutalized.

This kind of immigration "enforcement" shouldn't be acceptable to anyone.

Immigration agents become increasingly aggressive in Chicago

Activists, residents and elected leaders say increasingly combative tactics used by federal immigration agents are sparking violence and fueling neighborhood tensions in the nation’s third-largest cit...

www.pbs.org

320 2.2K 5.5K

Leah Stokes @leahstokes.bsky.social · 2d

Today is a great day to buy Julian NoiseCat's forthcoming book "We Survived the Night." It comes out in 1 week. Can't wait to read it!
bookshop.org/p/books/we-s...

We Survived the Night

Check out We Survived the Night - <b>A stunning narrative from one of the most powerful young writers at work today, and the director of the Oscar®-nominated documentary, <i>Sugarcane</i>, <i>We ...

bookshop.org

1 14

Leah Stokes @leahstokes.bsky.social · 2d

You love to see it!

Reposted by Daniel W. Drezner, Michael D. McDonald, David Rosnick , and 4 more Daniel W. Drezner, Michael D. McDonald, David Rosnick, Ann Bartow, Leah Stokes, Nicole Guenther Discenza, David Darmofal

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 2d

NOTABLE -- Pam Bondi refuses to answer direct questions about if the FBI has incriminating photos of Trump with half-naked young women, but instead deflects from them by attacking Sen. Whitehouse

680 2.2K 6.5K

Reposted by Dustin Mulvaney, Leah Stokes

Matt Vespa @missionvespa.bsky.social · 3d

Still awaiting signature - commonsense legislation supported by over 90% of CA voters that will make sure utilities don't pass the costs of their lobbying and image polishing into energy bills.

@gavinnewsom.bsky.social: let’s save people money and sign #AB1167!

earthjustice.org/experts/matt...

1 14 45

Reposted by Leah Stokes

Bob Kopp @bobkopp.net · 3d

Excited to learn that we have a second great climate champion running for Congress in NJ: in addition to ecologist @meganorourke.com running to unseat Tom Kean Jr in NJ-7, former @rewiringamerica.bsky.social VP @cammiecroft.bsky.social is running to succeed @mikiesherrill.bsky.social in NJ-11.

1 9 33

Reposted by Stacy D. VanDeveer

Leah Stokes @leahstokes.bsky.social · 3d

Governor Newsom has a bill on his desk to hold utilities accountable, and get them to stop passing along their dark money campaigns to everyday Californians.

Is he going to side with utilities, or side with the public and help lower electricity rates?
energyandpolicy.org/california-l...

California passes bill curbing utilities use of ratepayer money for political spending

State lawmakers last week made California the seventh state to pass a bill limiting investor-owned utilities from using customer money to pay for political and lobbying costs.

energyandpolicy.org

7 89 270

Reposted by Rosemary A. Joyce, Alan Richardson, Jacob T. Levy , and 3 more Rosemary A. Joyce, Alan Richardson, Jacob T. Levy, Leah Stokes, Olúfẹ́mi Táíwò, Nathan P. Kalmoe

jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 3d

perhaps the biggest story TFPever ran was a catastrophically shoddy argument that George Floyd ackshully died of an overdose. When confronted with irrefutable evidence that the piece was simply wrong, Weiss didn’t take it down, she asked her critic, @radleybalko.bsky.social, to come on a podcast.

max tani @maxtani.bsky.social · 3d

David Ellison’s note to staff on Paramount’s acquisition of the Free Press