Heather Randell
@heatherrandell.bsky.social
Assistant professor in the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota. Sociologist/demographer studying the health impacts of climate change and dams, with a focus on Brazil and East Africa.
https://sites.google.com/umn.edu/heatherrandell
https://sites.google.com/umn.edu/heatherrandell
Reposted by Heather Randell
A fun question. In 5 years time, what looks better? The US’s enormous bet & capex on AI? Or China’s equally enormous bet and capex on renewables?
China has made cheap, clean energy available in huge quantities. The world should take the win econ.st/4oqFszB
Photo: Eyevine
Photo: Eyevine
November 7, 2025 at 7:10 AM
A fun question. In 5 years time, what looks better? The US’s enormous bet & capex on AI? Or China’s equally enormous bet and capex on renewables?
Speaking of women in the workplace, one time on a plane, the flight attendant announced that we were on an "unmanned flight" because the pilot, co-pilot, and all flight attendants were women. I'll take more of this, please and thank you. 👩✈️🛩️✊
I should have known better than to click on this 🤦🏻♀️
“The pathology in our institutions known as wokeness is distinctively feminine and feminized. And that, in a very literal sense, our institutions have gone woke because there are more women in them than there used to be.”
“The pathology in our institutions known as wokeness is distinctively feminine and feminized. And that, in a very literal sense, our institutions have gone woke because there are more women in them than there used to be.”
November 6, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Speaking of women in the workplace, one time on a plane, the flight attendant announced that we were on an "unmanned flight" because the pilot, co-pilot, and all flight attendants were women. I'll take more of this, please and thank you. 👩✈️🛩️✊
We have universal free school breakfast and lunch in Minnesota. Parents may imagine the school lunches from when we were kids—sloppy joes, rectangular pizza—but we’ve come a long way. Below are some examples of Minneapolis Public School meals. ALL kids should have access to food like this.
November 6, 2025 at 12:44 PM
We have universal free school breakfast and lunch in Minnesota. Parents may imagine the school lunches from when we were kids—sloppy joes, rectangular pizza—but we’ve come a long way. Below are some examples of Minneapolis Public School meals. ALL kids should have access to food like this.
I should have known better than to click on this 🤦🏻♀️
“The pathology in our institutions known as wokeness is distinctively feminine and feminized. And that, in a very literal sense, our institutions have gone woke because there are more women in them than there used to be.”
“The pathology in our institutions known as wokeness is distinctively feminine and feminized. And that, in a very literal sense, our institutions have gone woke because there are more women in them than there used to be.”
November 6, 2025 at 12:33 PM
I should have known better than to click on this 🤦🏻♀️
“The pathology in our institutions known as wokeness is distinctively feminine and feminized. And that, in a very literal sense, our institutions have gone woke because there are more women in them than there used to be.”
“The pathology in our institutions known as wokeness is distinctively feminine and feminized. And that, in a very literal sense, our institutions have gone woke because there are more women in them than there used to be.”
We voted!
Local elections for the win 💙🩵💙
Local elections for the win 💙🩵💙
November 4, 2025 at 3:28 PM
We voted!
Local elections for the win 💙🩵💙
Local elections for the win 💙🩵💙
Scenes from Clarksdale—where Sinners takes place—and elsewhere along the Mississippi Blues Trail. The Delta is a place that more people ought to see and hear for themselves.
November 3, 2025 at 9:00 PM
Scenes from Clarksdale—where Sinners takes place—and elsewhere along the Mississippi Blues Trail. The Delta is a place that more people ought to see and hear for themselves.
I just finished watching Sinners, and whew, that was the best movie I've seen in a LONG time.
November 3, 2025 at 3:22 AM
I just finished watching Sinners, and whew, that was the best movie I've seen in a LONG time.
Bonsai trees showing off their colors at the Conservatory. I learned there that the art of bonsai was introduced to Japan from China!
November 2, 2025 at 11:07 PM
Bonsai trees showing off their colors at the Conservatory. I learned there that the art of bonsai was introduced to Japan from China!
The very best house on our block
🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃
🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃
November 1, 2025 at 2:02 AM
The very best house on our block
🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃
🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃
The extent of Indigenous land dispossession by the US government is just staggering. The left map shows the shrinking boundaries of the Fort Berthold Reservation from 1852-1910 and the right map shows the 150,000+ acres of remaining reservation land flooded by the Garrison Dam in 1953.
October 31, 2025 at 1:16 PM
The extent of Indigenous land dispossession by the US government is just staggering. The left map shows the shrinking boundaries of the Fort Berthold Reservation from 1852-1910 and the right map shows the 150,000+ acres of remaining reservation land flooded by the Garrison Dam in 1953.
Reposted by Heather Randell
Trend that seems like it would have a simple explanation, but I'm not sure does - pedestrian deaths among US children:
1970 - ~2,400 deaths (4.2/100K)
1990 - ~950 deaths (1.8.100K)
2005 - ~380 deaths (0.6/100K)
2023 - ~260 deaths (0.4/100K)
1970 - ~2,400 deaths (4.2/100K)
1990 - ~950 deaths (1.8.100K)
2005 - ~380 deaths (0.6/100K)
2023 - ~260 deaths (0.4/100K)
October 30, 2025 at 7:59 PM
Trend that seems like it would have a simple explanation, but I'm not sure does - pedestrian deaths among US children:
1970 - ~2,400 deaths (4.2/100K)
1990 - ~950 deaths (1.8.100K)
2005 - ~380 deaths (0.6/100K)
2023 - ~260 deaths (0.4/100K)
1970 - ~2,400 deaths (4.2/100K)
1990 - ~950 deaths (1.8.100K)
2005 - ~380 deaths (0.6/100K)
2023 - ~260 deaths (0.4/100K)
Reposted by Heather Randell
Amazon is helping fund a $300 million build of a ballroom for the White House.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
October 30, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Amazon is helping fund a $300 million build of a ballroom for the White House.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
Independent bookstores are donating to food banks and organizations that help with food insecurity.
They are not the same.
Reposted by Heather Randell
This will be a long thread on yesterday police massacre in Rio.
In nothern Rio de Janeiro city, there is a couple of hills called Complexo da Penha. It's Comando Vermelho("Red Command", a drug gang), or CV, territory.
CV is the greatest gang in Rio, second in the whole Brazil.
+
In nothern Rio de Janeiro city, there is a couple of hills called Complexo da Penha. It's Comando Vermelho("Red Command", a drug gang), or CV, territory.
CV is the greatest gang in Rio, second in the whole Brazil.
+
🧵 Awful awful massacre in Brazil
Gente, é o maior massacre no Brasil desde o Araguaia. Entendo quem quer puxar pra Canudos ou Contestado ou etc, mas não podemos livrar a ditadura de 64 só porque ela escondia melhor seus corpos.
Morreram 41 guerrilheiros comunistas e mais de 1200 camponeses no Araguaia.
Morreram 41 guerrilheiros comunistas e mais de 1200 camponeses no Araguaia.
October 29, 2025 at 11:52 PM
This will be a long thread on yesterday police massacre in Rio.
In nothern Rio de Janeiro city, there is a couple of hills called Complexo da Penha. It's Comando Vermelho("Red Command", a drug gang), or CV, territory.
CV is the greatest gang in Rio, second in the whole Brazil.
+
In nothern Rio de Janeiro city, there is a couple of hills called Complexo da Penha. It's Comando Vermelho("Red Command", a drug gang), or CV, territory.
CV is the greatest gang in Rio, second in the whole Brazil.
+
Twin Cities folks, go check out the new Dyani White Hawk exhibit at the Walker. It is excellent!
October 29, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Twin Cities folks, go check out the new Dyani White Hawk exhibit at the Walker. It is excellent!
Reposted by Heather Randell
Universities across the world seeing this:
"its only wrong 45% of the time!!
Lets buy free licenses for our students, staff and faculty!!
Lets lock into contracts with rapacious predatory AI companies with shitty technofascist politics, sucking up water and jacking up electricity prices!!"
"its only wrong 45% of the time!!
Lets buy free licenses for our students, staff and faculty!!
Lets lock into contracts with rapacious predatory AI companies with shitty technofascist politics, sucking up water and jacking up electricity prices!!"
October 23, 2025 at 1:19 PM
Universities across the world seeing this:
"its only wrong 45% of the time!!
Lets buy free licenses for our students, staff and faculty!!
Lets lock into contracts with rapacious predatory AI companies with shitty technofascist politics, sucking up water and jacking up electricity prices!!"
"its only wrong 45% of the time!!
Lets buy free licenses for our students, staff and faculty!!
Lets lock into contracts with rapacious predatory AI companies with shitty technofascist politics, sucking up water and jacking up electricity prices!!"
Reposted by Heather Randell
Bay area news
www.sfgate.com/news/article...
www.sfgate.com/news/article...
Wild bear breaks into California zoo, is found communing with the captive bears
A wild, very "polite" and possibly lonely black bear recently paid a visit to its neighbors at a Northern California zoo.
www.sfgate.com
October 21, 2025 at 8:10 PM
Bay area news
www.sfgate.com/news/article...
www.sfgate.com/news/article...
Reposted by Heather Randell
Go us!
We should definitely build more pipelines.
We should definitely build more pipelines.
Iceland, one of the last places on Earth to be mosquito-free, recorded its first sighting this month.
Scientists say warming is making the country more hospitable to the insects.
Scientists say warming is making the country more hospitable to the insects.
Mosquitoes Found in Iceland for the First Time
e360.yale.edu
October 21, 2025 at 3:43 PM
Go us!
We should definitely build more pipelines.
We should definitely build more pipelines.
“In Ireland, data centers consume more than 20 percent of the country’s electricity. In Chile, precious aquifers are in danger of depletion. In South Africa, where blackouts have long been routine, data centers are further taxing the national grid.”
Gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/20/t...
Gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/20/t...
From Mexico to Ireland, Fury Mounts Over a Global A.I. Frenzy
www.nytimes.com
October 20, 2025 at 10:51 AM
“In Ireland, data centers consume more than 20 percent of the country’s electricity. In Chile, precious aquifers are in danger of depletion. In South Africa, where blackouts have long been routine, data centers are further taxing the national grid.”
Gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/20/t...
Gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/20/t...
Highlight of my PhD research in the Brazilian Amazon a decade ago:
We were riding our motorcycle on the Transamazon Highway in Brazil and came across a sloth stranded by the road. It climbed onto a stick and then onto our motorcycle. We drove—very slowly—and let it go by a forested area. 🦥
We were riding our motorcycle on the Transamazon Highway in Brazil and came across a sloth stranded by the road. It climbed onto a stick and then onto our motorcycle. We drove—very slowly—and let it go by a forested area. 🦥
October 18, 2025 at 1:22 PM
Highlight of my PhD research in the Brazilian Amazon a decade ago:
We were riding our motorcycle on the Transamazon Highway in Brazil and came across a sloth stranded by the road. It climbed onto a stick and then onto our motorcycle. We drove—very slowly—and let it go by a forested area. 🦥
We were riding our motorcycle on the Transamazon Highway in Brazil and came across a sloth stranded by the road. It climbed onto a stick and then onto our motorcycle. We drove—very slowly—and let it go by a forested area. 🦥
Reposted by Heather Randell
For those of you keeping score, 18-22 year-old students calling for an end to slaughter in Gaza are so racist they need to be expelled or deported, but 24-35 year-olds celebrating Hitler, rape, and, um, racism are just kids being kids so chill.
Also, racism is over so no need for Voting Right Act.
Also, racism is over so no need for Voting Right Act.
JD Vance brushes off racist texts by adults in Republican group chat as ‘what kids do’
Vice-president downplays messages such as ‘I love Hitler’ in chat by 24 to 35-year-olds to ‘stupid jokes’
www.theguardian.com
October 16, 2025 at 3:50 PM
For those of you keeping score, 18-22 year-old students calling for an end to slaughter in Gaza are so racist they need to be expelled or deported, but 24-35 year-olds celebrating Hitler, rape, and, um, racism are just kids being kids so chill.
Also, racism is over so no need for Voting Right Act.
Also, racism is over so no need for Voting Right Act.
Did you know that jaguars used to live in the United States? Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas were the northernmost parts of their range, but ranchers and trappers killed them all.
e360.yale.edu/features/jag...
e360.yale.edu/features/jag...
As Jaguars Recover, Will the Border Wall Block Their U.S. Return?
Decades of conservation efforts in Central and South America are starting to pay off, with increased protections for jaguars and the corridors that connect them. But the construction of the border wal...
e360.yale.edu
October 16, 2025 at 3:25 PM
Did you know that jaguars used to live in the United States? Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas were the northernmost parts of their range, but ranchers and trappers killed them all.
e360.yale.edu/features/jag...
e360.yale.edu/features/jag...
It might be too late to get solar installed in time for the federal tax credit, but regardless, solar is a great way to offset rapidly rising electricity prices. The company that recently installed our panels, TruNorth Solar, is quoted in this piece. Check them out!
www.mprnews.org/story/2025/1...
www.mprnews.org/story/2025/1...
Clean energy tax credits are ending, but higher electricity costs still driving interest in solar
President Donald Trump's tax and spending bill did away with several clean energy incentives, including tax credits that helped lower the cost of installing solar, batteries, heat pumps and making hom...
www.mprnews.org
October 16, 2025 at 2:35 PM
It might be too late to get solar installed in time for the federal tax credit, but regardless, solar is a great way to offset rapidly rising electricity prices. The company that recently installed our panels, TruNorth Solar, is quoted in this piece. Check them out!
www.mprnews.org/story/2025/1...
www.mprnews.org/story/2025/1...
Reposted by Heather Randell
Economists! We’re hiring an assistant professor who focuses on domestic labor or public economics. The Humphrey School is wonderful and Minneapolis is the best city ever in my humble opinion.
More details here:
hr.myu.umn.edu/psc/hrprd/EM...
More details here:
hr.myu.umn.edu/psc/hrprd/EM...
October 14, 2025 at 1:06 AM
Economists! We’re hiring an assistant professor who focuses on domestic labor or public economics. The Humphrey School is wonderful and Minneapolis is the best city ever in my humble opinion.
More details here:
hr.myu.umn.edu/psc/hrprd/EM...
More details here:
hr.myu.umn.edu/psc/hrprd/EM...
Since 2006, Brazil’s soy moratorium has helped curb deforestation in the Amazon. Now Trump’s tariffs on China are increasing Chinese demand for Brazilian soy & putting new pressure on Brazil to end the moratorium. This could be devastating for the rainforest.
🎁 link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/15/c...
🎁 link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/15/c...
Trump’s Tariff Fight With China Means Trouble for a Vast Wilderness in Brazil
www.nytimes.com
October 15, 2025 at 11:58 AM
Since 2006, Brazil’s soy moratorium has helped curb deforestation in the Amazon. Now Trump’s tariffs on China are increasing Chinese demand for Brazilian soy & putting new pressure on Brazil to end the moratorium. This could be devastating for the rainforest.
🎁 link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/15/c...
🎁 link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/15/c...
Economists! We’re hiring an assistant professor who focuses on domestic labor or public economics. The Humphrey School is wonderful and Minneapolis is the best city ever in my humble opinion.
More details here:
hr.myu.umn.edu/psc/hrprd/EM...
More details here:
hr.myu.umn.edu/psc/hrprd/EM...
October 14, 2025 at 1:06 AM
Economists! We’re hiring an assistant professor who focuses on domestic labor or public economics. The Humphrey School is wonderful and Minneapolis is the best city ever in my humble opinion.
More details here:
hr.myu.umn.edu/psc/hrprd/EM...
More details here:
hr.myu.umn.edu/psc/hrprd/EM...