Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · 12h

Do native plants matter? Well yes! They are a climate solution.

Excited to share that Season 2 of my web series, Teaching Climate Together, is now live ✨

Local Ecology: Why Native Plants Matter for California’s Future (ft. Theodore Payne Foundation)

YouTube video by Isaias Hernandez

youtu.be

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · 4d

Everytime I’ve gone to climate conferences they only serve meat and dairy. If I’m lucky the salad won’t come with cheese or dairy dressing 😣.

It’s time we restructure the global food system for sure!

David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 4d

Meat is a blind spot for people who care about climate. When I used to have dinner with my colleague Wally Broecker, the climate scientist who coined the term “global warming”, he would always order a steak.

The climate movement’s biggest weakness

What the climate movement is getting dead wrong.

www.vox.com

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Reposted by Isaias Hernandez

Yale Climate Connections @climateconnections.bsky.social · 6d

We are thrilled to announce our advisory board! It's an honor to get to learn from these incredible people.

@isaiashernandez.bsky.social @rachelreports.bsky.social @caseymm.bsky.social @frankwords.bsky.social

The text reads: Introducing... Yale Climate Connections' Advisory board. The image features photos of seven people who will be introduced in a thread following this post.

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Reposted by Isaias Hernandez

Yale Climate Connections @climateconnections.bsky.social · 6d

@isaiashernandez.bsky.social is an environmentalist, educator, and communicator devoted to improving environmental literacy through content creation, storytelling, and public engagements.

Isaias Hernandez is an environmentalist, educator, and communicator devoted to improving environmental literacy through content creation, storytelling, and public engagements. Isaias is more commonly known by his moniker, Queer Brown Vegan: the independent media platform he started to bring intersectional environmental education to all. Hernandez’ journey to deconstruct complex issues while centering diversity and authenticity has resonated with a worldwide audience. He is working on his debut book, “Dear Environmentalist,” set to be published in April 2027 with Hachette Book Group under Timber Press imprint.

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · 20d

Is anyone coming to Climate Week NYC? I’m hosting a rad event below ⬇️!

SYMBIOFUTURES

Join us for Symbio Futures at New York Climate Week

www.eventbrite.com

Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · 28d

Because of how our media systems are set up, you’re primarily going to hear about bad news. Sadness and anger both drive more clicks than joy and even huge media companies want to get their engagement up.

5 Environmental Problems We Fixed. My latest Substack post is now live!

Five Environmental Problems We Fixed In The U.S.

Because looking back at the historical wins can guide to how we influence environmental policies.

substack.com

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Sep 7

The United States has the largest amount of data centers. According to Statistia, since March 2025, the United States has 5,426 data centers. While other countries have less than a thousand. All of these data centers increasing should be a concern for everyone.

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Aug 28

Animism is a way of thinking that sees all things as animate - lakes, oceans, rocks, man-made objects, hillsides, mountains, plants, and animals, you name it. They are all experiencing, just as we are.

New post for Substack below!

#climate #sustainability

Animism: The Animate World Around Us

Animism is a way of thinking that sees all things as animate - lakes, oceans, rocks, man-made objects, hillsides, mountains, plants, and animals, you name it.

dearenvironmentalist.substack.com

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Aug 27

Is anyone coming to Climate Week NYC? I'm hosting an event on Tuesday, September 23. We are bringing back the Symbiocene for its 3rd and possibly last time in NYC. Consider coming before tickets are sold out!

www.eventbrite.com/e/symbiofutu...

Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Aug 22

Five environmental beliefs I phased out 📕 ✏️

Five Environmental Beliefs I Phased Out

Let’s be clear: you will never solve a systemic issue alone; you have to carry that weight with other people. Normalize imperfection, or we won’t get to the world we want to build.

open.substack.com

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Aug 11

Please buy my friends book 📕 ♥️!!!

Anna Gifty @itsafronomics.bsky.social · Aug 11

Yesterday, #TheDoubleTax was ranked below the 1,000,000th book. Today, it's in the TOP 20 of the Income Inequality section.

I've been focusing so much on what I can't control and what could go wrong, but this shift is really challenging me to think: What if everything went right? 🥹 #booksky

Anna Gifty @itsafronomics.bsky.social · Aug 9

lol I am going to be super vulnerable and share that I've been feeling really down about the book coming out.

Writing a book is a very scary thing because you just don't know whether people will care about it. Today was a nice reminder that maybe people will care so thanks for that. 🥹

Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Aug 4

Donald Trump and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin’s Climate Chaos Plan will eliminate the Endangerment Finding, which requires the EPA to protect people from the pollution produced by burning fossil fuels that causes climate change.

Help me take action and read my full article below.

The EPA Is In Danger: Why You Should Care About the EPA’s Proposal To Rescind the Endangerment Finding And How To Help

EPA Administrator Lee Zedlin is moving forward with plans to dismantle the Endangerment Finding. Trump and Zeldin’s efforts in pushing the Climate Chaos Plan should be ringing alarm bells.

open.substack.com

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Aug 4

I’ve been writing for months for my first book. And I’m looking to ask authors who have written books: what has helped you navigate writers block on certain parts of your book?

Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Jul 31

Can consumers actually change the food system by what they purchase? Well, yes, and no and here’s how…

My latest Substack with @nongmoproject.bsky.social . Consider reading the article below!

“Consumer Choice Is An Illusion”, But What If It Wasn’t And Here’s How You Can Shift Power In The Food System By What You Buy

Can consumers actually change the food system by what they purchase? Well, yes, and no and here’s how…

open.substack.com

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Jul 25

The phrase' third time's the charm' has been my mantra for everything I do in life. I had to fail twice before getting it right on my third chance.

My latest Substack is for Dear Environmentalist, where I share my reflection of failure, struggle, and self-doubt.

Third Times The Charm: How I Got My Book Deal, A Blessed Yet Cursed Journey

It finally happened. I got my book deal for my first-ever debut, Dear Environmentalist. But before the celebration, there were a lot of no's. It took me three tries to get it right...

dearenvironmentalist.substack.com

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Jul 21

It’s official I’m writing my first-ever debut book, Dear Environmentalist.

Thank you to my team at @timberpress.bsky.social @clairemharris.bsky.social and @psliterary.bsky.social for believing in this book.

I can’t wait to share more details soon.

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Jul 18

I had to make the difficult decision not to attend graduate school after receiving only a 50% scholarship for my master's program at UC Berkeley.

Watch my latest video on Youtube.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=J13e...

Environmental Grad Programs: Why I Decided Not To Get My Masters

YouTube video by Isaias Hernandez

www.youtube.com

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Reposted by Isaias Hernandez

Last Chance Alliance @lastchancealliance.bsky.social · Jul 15

A new essay by @isaiashernandez.bsky.social powerfully connects ICE raids, border militarization, and the climate crisis.

The same governments most responsible for climate change are building a “Global Climate Wall” instead of investing in solutions.

Climate justice is migrant justice.

Dear Environmentalist:
Why ICE Raids Are a Climate Issue

“The climate crisis and the impact of environmental degradation fall disproportionately on people of color and on communities in the Global South. This is patently unfair, considering that the wealthiest 1% of the world’s population causes twice as much carbon dioxide as the poorest 50% of people, and they are the ones who live overwhelmingly in countries most vulnerable to climate change, meaning they are bearing the brunt of a crisis they did not cause.”

“Now, a vast industry and its investors are preventing those same people from moving to find safety. Without climate justice, there can be no migrant justice.

The climate justice movement and the migrant justice movement have a common oppressor. And common oppressors are evil, but dismantling this oppression is also a beautiful way to build resistance.”
— Isaias Hernandez, Dear Environmentalist

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Reposted by Isaias Hernandez

Prof Kate Loder @kghist.bsky.social · Jul 15

Our yew tree has decided to change sex. I didn’t know some plant species could! Though applying ‘male’ and ‘female’ to plants always seemed ideological to me - labelling & perceiving the natural world through a fixed patriarchal lens.
Delighted to find there’s a whole rich field of queer ecology. 😀

Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Jun 25

As Pride Month comes to a close, I wrote a personal essay on Queer Ecology and how it has saved me. As a queer environmentalist in this field, my work is not only to educate but also to represent LGBTQ+ communities, which are often underrepresented in science.

Consider subscribing for free!

What Queer Ecology Taught Me About Survival, Belonging, and Love.

Queer ecology offers us a critical lens to understand these relationships through, beyond the narrative of the binary. What does it mean to create an expansionary world than a fixed?

dearenvironmentalist.substack.com

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Jul 16

I was admitted to my Master's in Climate Solutions at UC Berkeley. It was my dream to attend graduate school, but I sadly closed the doors after further reflection. And here's why...

My latest for my Substack on Dear Environmentalist.

Why I Declined to Attend the Master's Program in Climate Solutions at UC Berkeley

I was admitted to my Masters of Climate Solutions at UC Berkeley. It was my dream to go to grad school, but I sadly closed the doors after further reflection. And here's why...

dearenvironmentalist.substack.com

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Jul 5

As a kid who grew up in poverty relying on MedicAid, WIC, and Food Stamps. I am disgusted by the way we see poor people in America. Everyone is trying to keep their heads up in a system that was not designed for them to flourish.

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Jul 2

Alligator Alcatraz: Why Prisons Are A Climate & Humans Rights Issue

Alligator Alcatraz, the new detention facility center located in the Florida Everglades, surrounded by swamplands and treacherous pathways, is being portrayed as a symbol of power, authority, and danger.

My latest Substack post.

Alligator Alcatraz: Why Prisons Are A Climate & Humans Rights Issue

The United States has the highest incarceration rate of any other country, with around 2.3 million people imprisoned in jails, prisons, and detention centers.

dearenvironmentalist.substack.com

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Jul 2

This world and crumbling democracy has tried to break me. But even despite the torture and terrror inflicted on my body, somehow, my heart continues to remain unwavered to fight for liberation of all oppressed people because I know that there is no other world I can imagine.

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Jun 25

As Pride Month comes to a close, I wrote a personal essay on Queer Ecology and how it has saved me. As a queer environmentalist in this field, my work is not only to educate but also to represent LGBTQ+ communities, which are often underrepresented in science.

Consider subscribing for free!

What Queer Ecology Taught Me About Survival, Belonging, and Love.

Queer ecology offers us a critical lens to understand these relationships through, beyond the narrative of the binary. What does it mean to create an expansionary world than a fixed?

dearenvironmentalist.substack.com

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Isaias Hernandez @isaiashernandez.bsky.social · Jun 24

My latest interview with Marianne Williamson is now live. Consider watching below ⬇️

Marianne Williamson Interview: What's Wrong With America?

YouTube video by Isaias Hernandez

youtu.be