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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen
@maryhgagen.bsky.social
160 followers 110 following 27 posts
50% scientist, 50% Lorax. Climate scientist & Geog Prof @SwanseaUni. STEM Outreach via swansci4. Former WWF Uk. Expressed views are my own.
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scottlgreer.bsky.social
Scott L Greer @scottlgreer.bsky.social · 2d
Thoughtful essay

“we are in danger of forgetting the greatest untapped resource on any college campus — the professors. We are surrounded by human experts, yet we are being encouraged to take our questions to robots”
AI ate my homework: My experience with the University’s AI toolkit
I don’t understand AI enough to properly dislike it. And I’m curious as to why the University is pushing this tool so much if it inherently devalues learning. So I immersed myself in artificial intell...
www.michigandaily.com
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · 4d
Lovely to host some @swanseauni.bsky.social Geography alumni , here in our little corner of Wales , this morning. What a nice part of the job! Enjoyed a few choice quotes -“Geography is essential for everything!” I mean we think so too… 😁💚🌳🌍 Have a great weekend, all, it was a pleasure to meet you!
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Reposted by maryhgagen
jacquelyngill.bsky.social
Jacquelyn Gill @jacquelyngill.bsky.social · 7d
Do any of you have a fun map-reading and orienteering activity you’d be willing to share? I’d like to see some examples as I’m putting a skill session together for my natural history class. It could be something done in-class, or it could involve an outdoor scavenger hunt-type exercise (1 hour).
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · 20d
Snap 😁🎶🎶🌳🎶🎶
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · 20d
Really enjoyed chatting about plants & sound with @bengarrod.bsky.social for Radio 3s The Essay. We talked about Milburn’s work on xylem cavitation where he recorded the sound it makes through the trunk . But is it tree music ? …🌳🎶 😊 www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...
The Essay - Symphony of the Wild - 3. Plant Rhythms - BBC Sounds
Evolutionary biologist Ben Garrod uncovers melodies and rhythms across the natural world.
www.bbc.co.uk
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Reposted by maryhgagen
dendrorodbale.bsky.social
Roderick Bale @dendrorodbale.bsky.social · 28d
Ship’s floor (oak) reused as lintel. Removed during construction work from Cambrian Place Swansea. Dendro dated to spring summer 1778 and sourced from a locally grown Welsh 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 tree! #dendrochronology #wales #archaeology
Sampling timber for tree-ring dating Dendrochronology sample Ship’s floor reused as lintel
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · 21d
How brilliant !
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Reposted by maryhgagen
profaliceroberts.bsky.social
Alice Roberts @profaliceroberts.bsky.social · 24d
Two very important graphs.
Net migration reached record levels in 2023 - and has since halved.
The vast majority of arrivals comprises students and workers.
Arrivals in small boats and asylum seekers - less than 5%.
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · 28d
One of my favourite Welsh treescapes, around the @nationaltrust.org.uk Wales Stackpole lily ponds 💚🌳 Looking very handsome in its end of summer coat 🍁 🍃
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · 29d
With respect, that’s a little simplistic . Development & clearance have had a huge impact. Simply remove the sheep & you will not have a “rainforest” land (but will have a devastated farming sector). Our forestscape is the result of many drivers , across time & space, sheep are just 1 element.
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davidho.bsky.social
David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · Aug 27
Deforestation kills more than trees.
Deforestation has killed half a million people in past 20 years, study finds
Localised rises in temperature caused by land clearance cause 28,330 heat-related deaths a year, researchers find
www.theguardian.com
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · Jul 30
Thanks so much to the team at School Science Review for the chance to write about climate communication, directionally motivated reasoning and why deficit approach climate outreach just doesn’t work . If you’re looking to change hearts and minds on climate , have a read .
associationscied.bsky.social
Association for Science Education @associationscied.bsky.social · Jul 28
Take a moment to explore this open access gem from the latest SSR 📘

Mary Gagen explores how students’ beliefs & life experiences shape their interpretation of climate info—and why empathy matters when teaching climate science.

🌍 Read now: ow.ly/5CFq50WvWzx

#ASEjournals
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · Jul 15
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

A tree I , sadly, never had a chance to meet .

If it’s loss angered you, please also get angry about 7% of our woods being in ecological health, street trees being routinely ripped out, & industrial monoculture plantations in our national parks .
The Sycamore Gap case has shed light on a deeper issue with trees
The felling has prompted calls for stricter legal protections for other trees and drawn attention to wider issues
www.bbc.co.uk
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · Jul 15
www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/state-of-uk-...
State of the UK's Woods and Trees 2025
The State of the UK’s Woods and Trees 2025 report checks on the health of woodlands and sees what's changed since our first report.
www.woodlandtrust.org.uk
maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · Jul 15
theconversation.com/britains-wil...

Since I wrote this this piece in 2023 the Woodland Trusts 2025 report has found :

- two new woodland pests have emerged .
- the decline in woodland wildlife has got worse
- woodland creation targets are being missed
Britain’s wild woods are under threat and we’re running out of time to save them
Just 2.5% of the country has been continuously wooded for centuries.
theconversation.com
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · Jul 10
Our park and street trees are absolutely vital in hot weather , they provide shade , moisture to the atmosphere, and with it , free air conditioning. #streettrees #urbanwoodland
maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · Jun 19
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Timely . Its exam board season here in higher education UK , the time of year when I am reminded again and again of the desperate need for class to become included as a protected characteristic.
If you went to state school, do you ever feel British life is rigged against you? Welcome to the 93% Club | Alastair Campbell
The civil service, judiciary and media are still dominated by the privately educated 7%. Lasting change is not a pipe dream – but it’s up to us, says writer and podcaster Alastair Campbell
www.theguardian.com
maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · May 27
Lovely to catch up with @wwf.org.uk champ Mark Wright , talking , drawing, and chatting all this awesome and naturey, and see @owendaveydraws.bsky.social fab new book @hayfestival.bsky.social , 💐🙊🍀🐾🦋🌍
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · Mar 20
2030 Global Forest Vision priority actions launch .

Excited to be part of this effort !

We have some work to do to stand a chance of meeting the twin 2030 forest goals to halt and reverse global deforestation. Here’s a to do list for right now …🌳💚 #2030forestvision
globalcanopy.org
Global Canopy @globalcanopy.org · Mar 20
🌳The 2030 Global Forest Vision has launched outlining 8 actions for countries to prioritise ahead of #COP30 in Belem this year.
⚠️We will not meet the global pledge to halt and reverse #deforestation by 2030 because current progress is insufficient.
Full report: forestdeclaration.org/vision
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · Mar 10
“The result is a lesson in how not to manage anything” I am so glad to read someone actually raising the question of whether the performance of the very well paid public servants who run British universities, may possibly be a factor in the current impressive HE bin fire

www.ft.com/content/0ec7...
The UK’s academic recession is in full swing
This university crisis is a grim scrabble for numbers
www.ft.com
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · Mar 10
nation.cymru/opinion/how-...
How to trash a University's reputation And demotivate the people you need to help you succeed
Leighton Andrews Hey, please come to the ‘reshaped and reduced Cardiff Business School’! It’s not the most obvious marketing slogan, is it? Nor is it a motivating mantra for our academic staff, whatev...
nation.cymru
maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · Feb 19
Reflecting , after a busy teaching week, on seeing the magnificent Kyoto play from RSC and @goodchancetheatre.bsky.social last week. If you get a chance go see it , it is the most honest piece of climate communication I have ever witnessed 💚🌳🌎 www.rsc.org.uk/kyoto/
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jonlambert.bsky.social
Jonathan Lambert @jonlambert.bsky.social · Feb 17
Dear NSF scientists and staff:

If you're looking to talk to a journalist about what's going on at the agency, please reach out (from a non-governmental phone/computer) via signal @jonlambert.12
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adamvaughan.bsky.social
Adam Vaughan @adamvaughan.bsky.social · Feb 10
UK govt has awarded Drax more subsidies for burning trees for power.

Critics say biomass power is bad for the environment. Drax says the subsidy extension is good news for energy security.

The strike price is £113/MWh, around twice as expensive as some offshore wind projects.
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maryhgagen.bsky.social
maryhgagen @maryhgagen.bsky.social · Jan 29
😬 optics 😬 … not the greatest day in higher education in Wales …