Forrest Fleischman
@forrestf.bsky.social
Associate professor of environmental policy at the University of Minnesota. Forest governance, Restoration Social Science, South Asia, Central America, Environmental justice, urban ecosystems, NEPA, homegardens, etc.
Pinned
Forrest Fleischman
@forrestf.bsky.social
· Jun 23
Addressing critiques refines global estimates of reforestation potential for climate change mitigation - Nature Communications
Reforestation is a key climate change mitigation strategy, but global maps of its potential are widely criticized. This study shows that addressing those critiques substantially refines estimates of t...
www.nature.com
A couple years ago, I was approached by some scientists at The Nature Conservancy with a proposal: Would I help them create a better global restoration opportunity map? The resulting paper is now out, and I will explain my view of it in this thread. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
If Bad Bunny can cover the history of Puerto Rico, colonialism, transatlantic slavery, hemispheric consciousness, as well as contemporary life and politics in under 14 minutes, you can do your 15- or 20-minute conference presentation with time to spare.
February 9, 2026 at 11:56 PM
If Bad Bunny can cover the history of Puerto Rico, colonialism, transatlantic slavery, hemispheric consciousness, as well as contemporary life and politics in under 14 minutes, you can do your 15- or 20-minute conference presentation with time to spare.
Personally I think that naming an ugly, inefficient, and very outdated train station after the President might be kind of fitting.
February 7, 2026 at 4:26 PM
Personally I think that naming an ugly, inefficient, and very outdated train station after the President might be kind of fitting.
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
The mainstream aim to restore “native reference ecosystems”
Reminds me of people of my age who go to see touring bands from their youth
Trying to recreate something that never quite existed
And has limited relevance in a changing world
doi.org/10.1111/ecog...
Reminds me of people of my age who go to see touring bands from their youth
Trying to recreate something that never quite existed
And has limited relevance in a changing world
doi.org/10.1111/ecog...
Future restoration should enhance ecological complexity and emergent properties at multiple scales
Ecological restoration has a paradigm of re-establishing ‘indigenous reference' communities. One resulting concern is that focussing on target communities may not necessarily create systems which fun...
doi.org
February 5, 2026 at 7:58 AM
The mainstream aim to restore “native reference ecosystems”
Reminds me of people of my age who go to see touring bands from their youth
Trying to recreate something that never quite existed
And has limited relevance in a changing world
doi.org/10.1111/ecog...
Reminds me of people of my age who go to see touring bands from their youth
Trying to recreate something that never quite existed
And has limited relevance in a changing world
doi.org/10.1111/ecog...
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
I know it’s intentional but we should stop calling everything AI, lumping useful machine learning techniques for science with large language models that tech companies are trying to cram into everything.
AI to track icebergs adrift at sea.
British scientists say a world-first AI tool to catalogue and track icebergs as they break apart into smaller chunks could fill a "major blind spot" in predicting climate change
u.afp.com/S2sA
British scientists say a world-first AI tool to catalogue and track icebergs as they break apart into smaller chunks could fill a "major blind spot" in predicting climate change
u.afp.com/S2sA
February 5, 2026 at 9:00 AM
I know it’s intentional but we should stop calling everything AI, lumping useful machine learning techniques for science with large language models that tech companies are trying to cram into everything.
Big flocks of robins (100+?) show up in my yard in St. Paul every few days, I think they are eating hackberries (but I imagine they would eat through them pretty fast). I thought they went south for the winter? Its weird to hear them twittering like its spring in sub-zero temps.
January 31, 2026 at 3:36 PM
Big flocks of robins (100+?) show up in my yard in St. Paul every few days, I think they are eating hackberries (but I imagine they would eat through them pretty fast). I thought they went south for the winter? Its weird to hear them twittering like its spring in sub-zero temps.
This is a cool but kind of weird policy. We get a discount on *all* our electricity use in winter because we have a heat pump. Also, heat pumps are awesome.
Excellent trend: cold states offering discounts to people who heat their homes with heat pumps.
Why Some Cold States Are Making It Cheaper to Run a Heat Pump
www.nytimes.com
January 29, 2026 at 8:29 PM
This is a cool but kind of weird policy. We get a discount on *all* our electricity use in winter because we have a heat pump. Also, heat pumps are awesome.
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
I am nominating Saint Paul for the FIFA Peace Prize.
As longtime observers of struggles to establish peace and justice in the US and around the world, The Nation is honored to nominate the city of Minneapolis and its people for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize.
“The Nation” Nominates Minneapolis for the Nobel Peace Prize
With their resistance to violent authoritarianism, the people of Minneapolis have renewed the spirit of Dr. King’s call for “the positive affirmation of peace.”
www.thenation.com
January 29, 2026 at 5:23 PM
I am nominating Saint Paul for the FIFA Peace Prize.
In our latest article we argue that the problems with carbon offsets can't be fixed. The problem is causal complexity which observational methods can't sort out. open access link in the second post. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Why carbon offsets may fail in complex systems: A causal inference perspective
Social-ecological system dynamics present a fundamental challenge to the attribution of changes in carbon stocks to actions taken by carbon offset sel…
www.sciencedirect.com
January 29, 2026 at 2:43 PM
In our latest article we argue that the problems with carbon offsets can't be fixed. The problem is causal complexity which observational methods can't sort out. open access link in the second post. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
Metsitystä tärkeämpää #suojelu ja ekosysteemien laaja #ennallistaminen.
Our findings underline that near-term emission cuts remain critical for achieving the Paris Agreement and emphasise the need to shift from a dominant focus on large-scale tree planting to broader ecosystem restoration.
#metsät
Our findings underline that near-term emission cuts remain critical for achieving the Paris Agreement and emphasise the need to shift from a dominant focus on large-scale tree planting to broader ecosystem restoration.
#metsät
This pre-print suggests that forest conservation is good for biodiversity, but large-scale afforestation is *bad* for biodiversity, and also will have little impact on short-medium term climate, underscoring the need for rapid emissions reductions. assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-822...
assets-eu.researchsquare.com
January 28, 2026 at 11:08 AM
Metsitystä tärkeämpää #suojelu ja ekosysteemien laaja #ennallistaminen.
Our findings underline that near-term emission cuts remain critical for achieving the Paris Agreement and emphasise the need to shift from a dominant focus on large-scale tree planting to broader ecosystem restoration.
#metsät
Our findings underline that near-term emission cuts remain critical for achieving the Paris Agreement and emphasise the need to shift from a dominant focus on large-scale tree planting to broader ecosystem restoration.
#metsät
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
How many STEM Ph.D.s were lost from the U.S. federal government last year?
My colleagues @mghersher.bsky.social and @policyhound.bsky.social dug into a recent data release to find the answer. A @science.org exclusive.
www.science.org/content/arti...
My colleagues @mghersher.bsky.social and @policyhound.bsky.social dug into a recent data release to find the answer. A @science.org exclusive.
www.science.org/content/arti...
January 26, 2026 at 11:39 PM
How many STEM Ph.D.s were lost from the U.S. federal government last year?
My colleagues @mghersher.bsky.social and @policyhound.bsky.social dug into a recent data release to find the answer. A @science.org exclusive.
www.science.org/content/arti...
My colleagues @mghersher.bsky.social and @policyhound.bsky.social dug into a recent data release to find the answer. A @science.org exclusive.
www.science.org/content/arti...
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
the level of absolutely bonkers disinfo around food reaching millions of people is absolutely galling. netflix pushing straight up nonsense. otherwise progressive and smart people amplifying it.
January 27, 2026 at 2:22 PM
the level of absolutely bonkers disinfo around food reaching millions of people is absolutely galling. netflix pushing straight up nonsense. otherwise progressive and smart people amplifying it.
This pre-print suggests that forest conservation is good for biodiversity, but large-scale afforestation is *bad* for biodiversity, and also will have little impact on short-medium term climate, underscoring the need for rapid emissions reductions. assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-822...
assets-eu.researchsquare.com
January 27, 2026 at 2:32 PM
This pre-print suggests that forest conservation is good for biodiversity, but large-scale afforestation is *bad* for biodiversity, and also will have little impact on short-medium term climate, underscoring the need for rapid emissions reductions. assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-822...
Social movements and non violent direct action play a key role in protecting biodiversity globally, yet consistently face violent threats and receive limited support from conservation funders and big NGOs. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Social movements are transformative agents for biodiversity conservation | PNAS
Civil society has long been a catalyst for social change by reshaping structures,
influencing values, and challenging power dynamics; however, its ...
www.pnas.org
January 27, 2026 at 2:27 PM
Social movements and non violent direct action play a key role in protecting biodiversity globally, yet consistently face violent threats and receive limited support from conservation funders and big NGOs. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
New from MN department of human services today: “New federal data release by the US Centers for Medicare/medicaid services shows the overall rate of improper payment in Minnesota’s Medicaid program is far below national averages.” 2.1% here compared to 6.1% nationally.
Tacit acknowledgement they've lost control of the narrative plus saving face via lawfare
January 26, 2026 at 2:51 PM
New from MN department of human services today: “New federal data release by the US Centers for Medicare/medicaid services shows the overall rate of improper payment in Minnesota’s Medicaid program is far below national averages.” 2.1% here compared to 6.1% nationally.
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
ICE just shot another one of my neighbors. They had the person on the ground, being beaten by several agents, and then fired multiple shots. In front of the donut shop where we like to get donuts for our kids.
January 24, 2026 at 3:46 PM
ICE just shot another one of my neighbors. They had the person on the ground, being beaten by several agents, and then fired multiple shots. In front of the donut shop where we like to get donuts for our kids.
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
"In St. Paul, at least one-fourth of students from Spanish-speaking homes have missed every day of school since Dec. 12."
8 weeks under siege in Minnesota • Minnesota Reformer
Frank has a hard time explaining to his 8-year-old daughter why they rarely leave their home in the Twin Cities. Why she can’t go to school, and why he can’t work. “The only thing we tell her is that ...
minnesotareformer.com
January 23, 2026 at 9:42 PM
"In St. Paul, at least one-fourth of students from Spanish-speaking homes have missed every day of school since Dec. 12."
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
I just want people who are seeing the crowd pics to know, every single piece of Mpls infrastructure was strained to the limit today to get people there. I’m able bodied and prepared, was outside for 2 hours and still never made it bc our trains downtown were never meant to be packed like they were.
January 23, 2026 at 10:45 PM
I just want people who are seeing the crowd pics to know, every single piece of Mpls infrastructure was strained to the limit today to get people there. I’m able bodied and prepared, was outside for 2 hours and still never made it bc our trains downtown were never meant to be packed like they were.
The good news is that they found the white blond girl who they issued an amber alert for last night. The bad news is that a whole bunch of other kids were abducted in the last few days by ICE, 20-40% of kids are not going to school because they are afraid they will be abducted by ICE
January 22, 2026 at 2:35 PM
The good news is that they found the white blond girl who they issued an amber alert for last night. The bad news is that a whole bunch of other kids were abducted in the last few days by ICE, 20-40% of kids are not going to school because they are afraid they will be abducted by ICE
A publishing agreement that I just signed with Elsevier says that it will make the accepted manuscript available via "Chorus" in compliance with an open access policy, and provides a broken link to "Chorus", does anyone know anything about this?
January 22, 2026 at 2:31 PM
A publishing agreement that I just signed with Elsevier says that it will make the accepted manuscript available via "Chorus" in compliance with an open access policy, and provides a broken link to "Chorus", does anyone know anything about this?
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
UATX was obviously fraudulent from day 1. The only question to my mind is how so many people could allow themselves to be hoodwinked into taking it seriously www.politico.com/news/magazin...
They Wanted a University Without Cancel Culture. Then Dissenters Were Ousted.
Inside the civil war at the anti-woke university backed by Bari Weiss.
www.politico.com
January 20, 2026 at 8:17 AM
UATX was obviously fraudulent from day 1. The only question to my mind is how so many people could allow themselves to be hoodwinked into taking it seriously www.politico.com/news/magazin...
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
Saint Paul Public Schools, one of the biggest school districts in the state, is closed for the next two days because teachers need time to build hybrid learning because unaccountable masked, armed federal government goons have made it too difficult for nonwhite children to leave their homes.
January 20, 2026 at 1:14 PM
Saint Paul Public Schools, one of the biggest school districts in the state, is closed for the next two days because teachers need time to build hybrid learning because unaccountable masked, armed federal government goons have made it too difficult for nonwhite children to leave their homes.
I think the lesson of whats going on here in Minnesota is that direct, aggressive, nonviolent confrontation is *extremely* effective. I hope the Europeans are paying attention to this lesson.
January 20, 2026 at 2:39 PM
I think the lesson of whats going on here in Minnesota is that direct, aggressive, nonviolent confrontation is *extremely* effective. I hope the Europeans are paying attention to this lesson.
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
Any one of these daily atrocities should result in a full congressional investigation and a disbanding of the agency. The fact that it’s all just shrugged off by those with the power to stop it is a national disgrace.
ICE ended up returning the man, Saly, after realizing he’s a fucking US citizen with no criminal record, per his sister-in-law. These fucking animals.
January 19, 2026 at 11:58 AM
Any one of these daily atrocities should result in a full congressional investigation and a disbanding of the agency. The fact that it’s all just shrugged off by those with the power to stop it is a national disgrace.
Reposted by Forrest Fleischman
Big, big news! This is probably the coolest of the many jobs I have shared here!
🚨COME BE MY DEPUTY🚨
🚨JOIN THE BEST TEAM WORKING IN CLIMATE POLICY AND POLITICS!🚨
This. Will. Go. Fast.
🚨COME BE MY DEPUTY🚨
🚨JOIN THE BEST TEAM WORKING IN CLIMATE POLICY AND POLITICS!🚨
This. Will. Go. Fast.
Deputy Policy Director
Chicago, Illinois, United States
job-boards.greenhouse.io
January 16, 2026 at 2:58 PM
Big, big news! This is probably the coolest of the many jobs I have shared here!
🚨COME BE MY DEPUTY🚨
🚨JOIN THE BEST TEAM WORKING IN CLIMATE POLICY AND POLITICS!🚨
This. Will. Go. Fast.
🚨COME BE MY DEPUTY🚨
🚨JOIN THE BEST TEAM WORKING IN CLIMATE POLICY AND POLITICS!🚨
This. Will. Go. Fast.
My favorite part of the NYT article about Nisswa is the person who left "the City" to move to Nisswa and they actually lived in the small and rather boring suburb of Crystal, not in Minneapolis.
January 15, 2026 at 4:33 PM
My favorite part of the NYT article about Nisswa is the person who left "the City" to move to Nisswa and they actually lived in the small and rather boring suburb of Crystal, not in Minneapolis.