Paul Behrens
profpaulbehrens.bsky.social
Paul Behrens
@profpaulbehrens.bsky.social
Prof at Oxford Martin School working on food, energy, and climate change. Book: The Best of Times The Worst of Times: Futures from the Frontiers of Climate Science http://shorturl.at/lzCTZ

#ClimateChange #ClimateAction
Please support the call for a televised National Emergency Briefing (www.nebriefing.org/parliamentar...) and consider donating to the crowdfunder if you can (www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/the-people...).
www.nebriefing.org
January 30, 2026 at 4:22 PM
Much like the @nebriefing.bsky.social last year, there is a relief that the truth is being communicated. In this case by the national security apparatus.

But we need a lot more truth-telling, to a lot more people.
January 30, 2026 at 4:22 PM
Last week's intelligence briefing correctly reframes these crises as direct and present threats to UK national security, economic stability, and national food systems.
January 30, 2026 at 4:22 PM
For a very long time, climate and biodiversity crises have been framed by decision makers as issues that are important to fix, but ultimately non-urgent and changes to which we can adapt.
January 30, 2026 at 4:22 PM
4) adoption of the National Preparedness Commission's recommendations in the 'just-in-case' report.
January 30, 2026 at 4:22 PM
I suggest four changes that are urgently needed: 1) dietary shifts, 2) support for horticultural development, for legumes, for farmers in nature restoration, and for technologies for precision fermentation, 3) targeted overseas investment in critical regions,
January 30, 2026 at 4:22 PM
Ah, odd, it works for me. You tried the blue link?
January 21, 2026 at 11:08 AM
There’s no get-out-of-environmental-jail free card with beef. The climate case for grass-fed simply doesn’t hold up. The question isn’t which beef is best but how much we actually need to eat. [end]
January 12, 2026 at 5:56 PM
@taragarnett.bsky.social made the crucial point: the real gains won't come from converting people to veganism, but from many people cutting back on overconsuming meat.

The good news that cutting back would save lives from poor health.
January 12, 2026 at 5:56 PM
A critical issue that many people overlook is that land is not free. I pointed out that land used for grass-fed beef overwhelmingly has far better alternative uses, from crops grown to directly feed humans, to restoring ecosystems.
January 12, 2026 at 5:56 PM
This is shown elegantly from work by @gidoneshel.bsky.social, @ronmilo.bsky.social, Ali Flamholz, and Alon Shepon work that finds grass-fed beef operations create at least 10% more emissions than U.S. industrial beef per kg of protein. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
PNAS
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), a peer reviewed journal of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) - an authoritative source of high-impact, original research that broadly spans...
www.pnas.org
January 12, 2026 at 5:56 PM
Pete Smith pointed out that while there may be other reasons you might prefer grass-fed beef, climate change is not one of them “it actually comes out no better – in fact, it's a little worse”
January 12, 2026 at 5:56 PM
The question isn’t whether solutions exist. They do. The question is whether we’ll address vested interests blocking food system improvement.
December 18, 2025 at 5:07 PM
🇺🇸 New York Hospitals serving plant-rich meals by default report higher satisfaction and cost savings.
🇩🇰 Denmark’s plant-based action plan drives system-wide shifts toward organic, whole-food, plant-rich diets.
December 18, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Some regions are leading the way:
🇧🇷 Brazil’s school program (40 million kids, 90% unprocessed foods) generated employment, stimulated GDP, and improved health.
December 18, 2025 at 5:07 PM
We can improve both health and planetary health by shifting to plant-rich, minimally processed foods. This simultaneously reduces disease, emissions, and environmental damage while boosting economic productivity.
December 18, 2025 at 5:07 PM