Lyla Mehta
LightNews LightNews
banner
lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta
@lylamehta.bsky.social
720 followers 430 following 170 posts

Professor of environment & development; Water, sanitation, climate, covid; human rights; displacement; feminist; anti-fascist; Editor @Natureandspace; UK, India, Austria, Norway. Twitter migrant; also on @[email protected] & LinkedIn. Views my own; .. more

Videos
Political science 40%
Sociology 14%
Posts Replies Media Videos
Pinned
lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · Jan 11
I resisted signing on another billionaire-led app so it's taken me a while to get here. I had blocked #Musk & carried on Twitter despite unease. But now seeing how he is systematically promoting more far-right leaders is just too much. Looking forward to connecting with old & new friends here.

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

natureandspace.bsky.social
natureandspace.bsky.social @natureandspace.bsky.social · 1d
OnlineFirst - "Historicising sanitation work: Value, infrastructural labour and representation in colonial Bengal" by @sallycawood.bsky.social and @pratik752001.bsky.social:

#humanwaste #caste #colonialarchive #value #infrastructurallabour #nightsoil #Bengal

journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

therevelator.org
The Revelator @therevelator.org · 1d
"Ecocide" -- Russia's invasion of Ukraine has caused dangerous environmental destruction: https://therevelator.org/locusts-landmines-ukraine/
Locusts and Landmines Threaten Ukraine’s Farmland • The Revelator
Ecosystems have also come under threat from toxic plants whose spread has been difficult to control during the Russian invasion.
therevelator.org

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

natureandspace.bsky.social
natureandspace.bsky.social @natureandspace.bsky.social · 3d
OnlineFirst - "A ‘City in Nature’ and its porcine interlopers: Confronting the edges of urban ecological order" by Sayd Randle:

#wildboars #infrastructuralnature #multispecies #Singapore #cityinnature

www.saydrandle.com

journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

normalisland.co.uk
Normal Island News @normalisland.co.uk · 6d
this should definitely save the NHS x www.normalisland.co.uk/p/labour-par...
Labour Party bans asylum seekers from taking taxis to hospitals
If an aslylum seeker visits a hospital, the biggest concern is that their journey is as uncomfortable as possible.
www.normalisland.co.uk

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

josiegz.bsky.social
Josie Glausiusz @josiegz.bsky.social · 6d
Jean-Pierre Filiu. a historian who spent more than a month in Gaza at the turn of the year says he saw “utterly convincing” evidence that Israel supported looters who attacked aid convoys during the conflict.

www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
Convincing evidence Israel backed aid convoy looters in Gaza, historian says
Account of visit to Gaza by French professor describes Israeli military attacks on security personnel protecting convoys
www.theguardian.com

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

ids.ac.uk
Institute of Development Studies (IDS) @ids.ac.uk · 7d
In response to news of 25% staff cuts at FCDO
@petertaylor-uk.bsky.social, IDS Director says:

“We strongly urge the Government to pause these cuts, set out a coherent vision for UK development leadership, and ensure that decisions are driven by evidence rather than urgency."

shorturl.at/5XUVZ
Government must pause FCDO staffing cuts or risk exodus, Committee Chair says - Committees - UK Parliament
Plans to cut 2,000 UK staff at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) may breach the department’s obligations to its workforce and cause an exodus of staff, the Chair of the Int...
committees.parliament.uk

lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · 8d
Imagine being proud to meet 'friend' #Netanyahu who's wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes & genocide & starvation in #Gaza. #PritiPatel should be upholding international law but, of course, she's always lacked moral compass or decency
www.thenational.scot/news/2565426...
Priti Patel slated after meeting with 'friend' Benjamin Netanyahu
Priti Patel has been slated for meeting with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu – who she described as a 'friend'
www.thenational.scot

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

natureandspace.bsky.social
natureandspace.bsky.social @natureandspace.bsky.social · 10d
OnlineFirst - "An uncooperative transition: Material contradictions in Chile's renewable energy boom" by Caroline White-Knockleby, Elena Louder, and Manuel Prieto:

#energytransition #commodification #socioecologicalfix #Chile #neoliberalnatures

journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

eadi.bsky.social
EADI @eadi.bsky.social · 10d
"The roots of sustainable development are (...) deeply shaped by the legacies of colonisation and coloniality", writes @ids.ac.uk's @lylamehta.bsky.social on our blog, suggesting pathways towards decolonising the discipline and calling out remaining challenges.
www.developmentresearch.eu?p=2402
The Challenges of Decolonising Sustainability and the Environment in Development Studies
By Lyla Mehta The colonial roots of sustainability  Since the Brundtland Commission advanced the concept of sustainable development in 1987, a lively strand in Development Studies (DS) has eng…
www.developmentresearch.eu

Reposted by Lyla Mehta, John Hogan

natureandspace.bsky.social
natureandspace.bsky.social @natureandspace.bsky.social · 10d
OnlineFirst - "Living space and the struggle against geothermal energy projects in Flores, Indonesia" by @mleyeh.bsky.social, @cypripajudale.bsky.social, @afiomagr.bsky.social, and Shae Frydenlund:

@cseas.kyoto-u.ac.jp @cugeography.bsky.social

journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

natureandspace.bsky.social
natureandspace.bsky.social @natureandspace.bsky.social · 14d
OnlineFirst - "Strange birds of a feather: Israeli common myna, between invasiveness and belonging" by Eran Nisan Schwarzfuchs:

#Invasionbiology #multispecies #environment #alienspecies #Israel

journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....

lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · 14d
Yes I agree. But not sure they will be held accountable for any of this. Also later in the pandemic they claimed they were always against herd immunity

lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · 14d
I think they have all been elevated to national treasures now. To be fair I think they rolled back quickly on their early positions and even denied that they had endorsed Herd Immunity etc

lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · 14d
This is today at 13 GMT/ 14 CET . Please join us
lylamehta.bsky.social Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · 21d
Please join @justwaterfutures.bsky.social for a discussion on: Do we need the Global Commission on the Economics of Water to Value Water? November 21, 2025, 14:00-15:00 CEST. Register here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/do-we-need...
#Water #Justice
Poster for Just Water FUture Event on Nov 21

lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · 15d
In March 2020 other European countries were in lockdown. #Johnson said the #UK should take it on the chin. Advisers like Whitty, Edmunds & Vallance initially advocated herd immunity & nudge theory. 20,00 lives could have been saved without this chaos. #COVID19
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
‘Too little, too late’: damning report condemns UK’s Covid response
Report on handling of pandemic contains stinging criticism of ‘toxic and chaotic’ culture inside Boris Johnson’s No 10
www.theguardian.com

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

ids.ac.uk
Institute of Development Studies (IDS) @ids.ac.uk · 16d
Giving a shit about genocide on #WorldToiletDay

IDS research fellow @lylamehta.bsky.social & Alan Nicol (IWMI) write today for @newhumanitarian.bsky.social on how genocidal wars in Gaza and Darfur leave people without even basic forms of sanitation 👇

https://thenewhumanitarian.pulse.ly/jajfkcbtd8
Giving a shit about genocide on World Toilet Day
Genocidal wars not only force people to move away from homes, schools, and places of work, but away from even the most basic forms of sanitation.
thenewhumanitarian.pulse.ly

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

shoaibmkhan.bsky.social
Shoaib M Khan @shoaibmkhan.bsky.social · 16d
UN expert expresses serious concern with Security Council’s Resolution 2803, saying it runs counter to Palestinian right to self-determination, consolidates Israel’s unlawful presence, including unlawful policies and practices, and risks legitimating ongoing violence.
www.ohchr.org/en/press-rel...
UN Security Council resolution a violation of Palestinian right of self-determination and UN Charter, UN expert warns
GENEVA – A UN expert today expressed serious concern with the Security Council’s adoption of Resolution 2803, warning that it runs counter to the Palestinian right to self-determination, consolidates ...
www.ohchr.org

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

natureandspace.bsky.social
natureandspace.bsky.social @natureandspace.bsky.social · 17d
OnlineFirst - "Experimenting through Sen: The lived networks of Thailand's cannabis boom" by Al Lim:

www.al-lim.com

journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...

lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · 21d
@blue-community.net @mzwarteveen.bsky.social @jeremyjschmidt.bsky.social @justwaterfutures.bsky.social @shibbose.bsky.social @nathanoxley.bsky.social

Reposted by Jeremy J. Schmidt

lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · 21d
Please join @justwaterfutures.bsky.social for a discussion on: Do we need the Global Commission on the Economics of Water to Value Water? November 21, 2025, 14:00-15:00 CEST. Register here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/do-we-need...
#Water #Justice
Poster for Just Water FUture Event on Nov 21

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

natureandspace.bsky.social
natureandspace.bsky.social @natureandspace.bsky.social · 22d
"Social-ecological conflicts: An emancipatory conceptual approach by bringing other-than-humans into environmental conflict analysis" by Markus Rauchecker, David Kuhn, Diana Hummel, Thomas Fickel, Thomas Friedrich, Katja Brinkmann, Stefanie Burkhart, Fanny Frick-Trzebitzky, and Luca Nitschke:

lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · 23d
Why? So much evidence exists that a basic income can reduce poverty & improve societal wellbeing #UBI #Poverty #Inequality theconversation.com/voters-in-ha...
Voters in Hamburg have rejected universal basic income. Many economists would agree with them
Voters in the German city of Hamburg recently rejected the idea of a free payment for all residents.
theconversation.com

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

natureandspace.bsky.social
natureandspace.bsky.social @natureandspace.bsky.social · 24d
OnlineFirst - "Tracing (un)common senses in irrigation communities: Hegemonies and counter-hegemonies across Spain's Tagus-Segura interbasin transfer complex" by @nickbourguignon.bsky.social:

journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

natureandspace.bsky.social
natureandspace.bsky.social @natureandspace.bsky.social · 25d
OnlineFirst - "Understanding lived experiences of climate change adaptation processes: Diversification subjectivities among Maasai pastoralists in southern Kenya" by @edwimarty.bsky.social and Winfred Lipina Koinet:

journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1...

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

publiccitizen.bsky.social
Public Citizen @publiccitizen.bsky.social · Nov 5
NEW REPORT: More than half of the companies that donated to Trump's ballroom are facing federal enforcement actions.

Donating millions to kiss up to Trump is nothing compared to the billions these companies have at stake in federal contracts and enforcement decisions.

lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · Nov 5
'We have toppled a political dynasty.' Despite the $22 Million spent by billionaires + vilification from #Trump et al, socialist democrat #Mamdani, committed to social justice, won. Great that hope & love won over fear & hate. Well done NYC! #ZohranMamdani #NewYork #USA
youtu.be/9MfBp8xUR3Q?...
Zohran Mamdani delivers victory speech
YouTube video by ABC News
youtu.be

lylamehta.bsky.social
Lyla Mehta @lylamehta.bsky.social · Nov 2
Despite the massive benefits of public research & development investments in the UK (£1 generates £8, see thread), the current Labour govt has done precious little to support HE & research. There've been no major research calls. In the past all govts continued support for R & D. So much self-harm.
hetanshah.bsky.social Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · Oct 30
Government has published one of those quiet but important documents that might get overlooked as it is not 'newsy'. The headline finding is that £1 of public R&D investment generates £8 in net economic benefits for the UK over the long term
www.gov.uk/government/p...
The value of public R&D
www.gov.uk

Reposted by Lyla Mehta, Rosaleen Duffy

tekgw.bsky.social
Teklehaymanot G. Weldemichel @tekgw.bsky.social · Nov 2
In a new publication via @theconversation.com, Birhan &I argue,

“When famine goes unrecorded, the suffering of entire populations is erased from the world’s moral and political map. It also weakens the mechanisms designed to prevent such atrocities elsewhere.”

theconversation.com/starvation-a...
Starvation as a weapon of war: how Ethiopia created a famine in Tigray
Famine was weaponised as part of a broader campaign of destruction in Ethiopia’s Tigray region.
theconversation.com

Reposted by Lyla Mehta

climatenews.bsky.social
Climate News @climatenews.bsky.social · Nov 2
Rob Jetten, likely new Prime Minister of the Netherlands and his Argentinian fiancé.