Paul van Brakel
@paulvanbrakel.bsky.social
Retired enviro eng
1st cab off the rank will probably be AMOC
Net Zero = BAU Marketing Strategy
Embrace Biodiversity
No profile = no follow
Smile while you work
Aotearoa New Zealand
1st cab off the rank will probably be AMOC
Net Zero = BAU Marketing Strategy
Embrace Biodiversity
No profile = no follow
Smile while you work
Aotearoa New Zealand
Pinned
One species of New Zealand's endemic bees in Maramaratotara Bay.
One hovering and the other on a flax flower.
One hovering and the other on a flax flower.
Does this remind you of anyone in office here in Aotearoa New Zealand ?
#nzpol
#nzpol
"at least seven Republican lawmakers had rooftop panels. Three of them acknowledged using the federal tax credit to help pay for the arrays....Another had leased a solar system that was indirectly subsidized via a separate tax credit for installers...."
www.eenews.net/articles/mee...
www.eenews.net/articles/mee...
Meet the Republicans who killed solar subsidies — after using them
POLITICO’s E&E News examined satellite imagery of more than 100 homes owned by Republican lawmakers to see if they have solar panels. Seven had rooftop
www.eenews.net
November 12, 2025 at 6:31 PM
Does this remind you of anyone in office here in Aotearoa New Zealand ?
#nzpol
#nzpol
Reposted by Paul van Brakel
"The lake's waters reached 41ºC, or 105.8ºF — hotter than most spa baths."
"You couldn't put your finger in the water."
Just terrible. There's no other way to describe this.
News: www.cbsnews.com/news/dolphin...
Peer reviewed: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
🌎 🧪
"You couldn't put your finger in the water."
Just terrible. There's no other way to describe this.
News: www.cbsnews.com/news/dolphin...
Peer reviewed: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
🌎 🧪
Hundreds of dolphins found dead in Amazon lake were in water hotter than a jacuzzi, study finds
"You couldn't put your finger in the water," said the lead author of the study, which spotlights the impacts of planetary warming on aquatic ecosystems.
www.cbsnews.com
November 7, 2025 at 6:25 PM
"The lake's waters reached 41ºC, or 105.8ºF — hotter than most spa baths."
"You couldn't put your finger in the water."
Just terrible. There's no other way to describe this.
News: www.cbsnews.com/news/dolphin...
Peer reviewed: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
🌎 🧪
"You couldn't put your finger in the water."
Just terrible. There's no other way to describe this.
News: www.cbsnews.com/news/dolphin...
Peer reviewed: www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
🌎 🧪
...between 2001 and 2024, the state lost more than 540 square miles of its tree cover, about the size of the city of Los Angeles...
#biodiversity
#biodiversity
Recommended read 👀
LOGGING OFF: A Veza News longread looked at logging activities threatening “Nigeria’s last rainforest”.
LOGGING OFF: A Veza News longread looked at logging activities threatening “Nigeria’s last rainforest”.
“Forest Is Life” — But Nigeria’s Last Rainforest Is Falling Fast — VEZA
Southern Nigerian communities depend on the rainforest. So do endangered gorillas. But illegal logging, mining and disinformation leave them vulnerable.
veza.news
November 5, 2025 at 5:40 PM
...between 2001 and 2024, the state lost more than 540 square miles of its tree cover, about the size of the city of Los Angeles...
#biodiversity
#biodiversity
Reposted by Paul van Brakel
Extended hurricane category scale, following Wehner&Kossin, Proceedings of the National Academy 2024: www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...
If that scale didn't stop at Category 5 for historic reasons, we would have had several Category 6 tropical cyclones since year 2000.
If that scale didn't stop at Category 5 for historic reasons, we would have had several Category 6 tropical cyclones since year 2000.
November 2, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Extended hurricane category scale, following Wehner&Kossin, Proceedings of the National Academy 2024: www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...
If that scale didn't stop at Category 5 for historic reasons, we would have had several Category 6 tropical cyclones since year 2000.
If that scale didn't stop at Category 5 for historic reasons, we would have had several Category 6 tropical cyclones since year 2000.
Reposted by Paul van Brakel
These two Indian-Americans surpassed Mark Zuckerberg as the world's youngest self-made billionaire: They are college dropouts
->Times of India | More from Lil Dr Glen EcoChat at BigEarthData.ai
->Times of India | More from Lil Dr Glen EcoChat at BigEarthData.ai
These two Indian-Americans surpassed Mark Zuckerberg as the world's youngest self-made billionaire: They are college dropouts
Who are the two Indian-American college dropouts behind Mercor’s $10B AI success. (Photo: LinkedIn @suryamidha From debate team captains to business founders Academic achievements and early career choices The Thiel Fellowship and Mercor’s rapid evolution Funding, growth and global reach...
timesofindia.indiatimes.com
November 2, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Reposted by Paul van Brakel
A 1 month GIF of NOAA SSTs
Admire how the Atlantic is 💤💤💤💤💤
Pacific slightly cooling
SO BORING
#ClimateCrisis
Admire how the Atlantic is 💤💤💤💤💤
Pacific slightly cooling
SO BORING
#ClimateCrisis
November 2, 2025 at 5:17 PM
A 1 month GIF of NOAA SSTs
Admire how the Atlantic is 💤💤💤💤💤
Pacific slightly cooling
SO BORING
#ClimateCrisis
Admire how the Atlantic is 💤💤💤💤💤
Pacific slightly cooling
SO BORING
#ClimateCrisis
Reposted by Paul van Brakel
Reposted by Paul van Brakel
Vivian Maier
NYC, 1953
NYC, 1953
October 31, 2025 at 1:13 PM
Vivian Maier
NYC, 1953
NYC, 1953
A Mast is coming Aotearoa New Zealand and it's bad news for bird life. We need to redouble our efforts in pest control.
#biodiversity
Native birds facing extinction from pests after beech seed drop www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
#biodiversity
Native birds facing extinction from pests after beech seed drop www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
Native birds facing extinction from pests after beech seed drop
Rats and stoats will explode in numbers, eat all the seeds and look to supplement their diet with birds.
www.rnz.co.nz
October 26, 2025 at 6:49 PM
A Mast is coming Aotearoa New Zealand and it's bad news for bird life. We need to redouble our efforts in pest control.
#biodiversity
Native birds facing extinction from pests after beech seed drop www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
#biodiversity
Native birds facing extinction from pests after beech seed drop www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
Reposted by Paul van Brakel
"It's really amazing to see how their behaviour is starting to change."
www.bbc.com/future/artic...
www.bbc.com/future/artic...
'Their resilience is a lesson to us all': The maritime lions hunting seals on the beach
In Namibia, a group of desert lions have left their traditional hunting grounds for the Atlantic coast and are now thriving as the world's only maritime lions.
www.bbc.com
October 12, 2025 at 3:23 PM
"It's really amazing to see how their behaviour is starting to change."
www.bbc.com/future/artic...
www.bbc.com/future/artic...
Remember while the govt kicks poor parents in the teeth their own benefit entitlements are out of their hands, yeah right!
#nzpol
www.stuff.co.nz/politics/360...
#nzpol
www.stuff.co.nz/politics/360...
Government cuts KiwiSaver contribution as MPs get generous superannuation subsidy
The coalition is being accused of topping up their already large salaries at a time of belt-tightening, but the associate finance minister says the decision isn’t up to politicians.
www.stuff.co.nz
October 9, 2025 at 5:30 AM
Remember while the govt kicks poor parents in the teeth their own benefit entitlements are out of their hands, yeah right!
#nzpol
www.stuff.co.nz/politics/360...
#nzpol
www.stuff.co.nz/politics/360...
We have the likes of Mark Cameron railing about free speech in parliament the other day yet the right want to control the narrative more and more to increase their grip with the ignorant cannon fodder wannabes at the polling booth who aren't even invited to their path to plutocracy #nzpol
#NZPol Fucking comedy that incredible paragon of journalistic excellence @stuff.co.nz aren’t allowing comments on this one.
www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/3608...
www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/3608...
TVNZ’s editorial standards put under the microscope in defamation case
TVNZ’s head of news said he was comfortable the stories about Talley’s were accurate, legitimate, balanced and fair.
www.stuff.co.nz
October 8, 2025 at 5:55 PM
We have the likes of Mark Cameron railing about free speech in parliament the other day yet the right want to control the narrative more and more to increase their grip with the ignorant cannon fodder wannabes at the polling booth who aren't even invited to their path to plutocracy #nzpol
The Rewilding photographic awards are worth a look. Toggle the language in the top right hand corner if wanting to view English commentary
#biodiversity
www.gdtfoto.de/seiten/rewil...
#biodiversity
www.gdtfoto.de/seiten/rewil...
GDT Gesellschaft für Naturfotografie e.V.
Gesellschaft für Naturfotografie e.V. - eine der größten Organisationen für Naturfotografie weltweit.
www.gdtfoto.de
October 6, 2025 at 5:57 PM
The Rewilding photographic awards are worth a look. Toggle the language in the top right hand corner if wanting to view English commentary
#biodiversity
www.gdtfoto.de/seiten/rewil...
#biodiversity
www.gdtfoto.de/seiten/rewil...
Flying our way into oblivion
#climate
#climate
Green aviation is essentially hogwash go give people false hope and designed to put no limits on aviation travel despite ever faster extreme climate
Some of these bio fuels will actually increase emissions
e360.yale.edu/features/cor...
Some of these bio fuels will actually increase emissions
e360.yale.edu/features/cor...
October 5, 2025 at 9:07 PM
Flying our way into oblivion
#climate
#climate
Part of what made the international rules-based system work was that we had a powerful anchor for it:...We expected leaders to pull back from their greed. And if they didn’t, journalists would expose these things. Now...
Luxon?
Food for thought
www.theguardian.com/books/2025/o...
#nzpol
Luxon?
Food for thought
www.theguardian.com/books/2025/o...
#nzpol
How to live a good life in difficult times: Yuval Noah Harari, Rory Stewart and Maria Ressa in conversation
From superintelligent AI to the climate and democracy, three leading thinkers discuss how to navigate the future
www.theguardian.com
October 5, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Part of what made the international rules-based system work was that we had a powerful anchor for it:...We expected leaders to pull back from their greed. And if they didn’t, journalists would expose these things. Now...
Luxon?
Food for thought
www.theguardian.com/books/2025/o...
#nzpol
Luxon?
Food for thought
www.theguardian.com/books/2025/o...
#nzpol
Reposted by Paul van Brakel
Watching Nicola Willis:
- hedge
- misdirect
- screw up basic facts
- confidently lie
- pivot
- bloviate
- gaslight
…it was clear she was way out of her depth & uninterested in learning anything that might contradict her delusions (as was Luxon).
Well… the numbers are in.
It’s brutal.
#nzpol
- hedge
- misdirect
- screw up basic facts
- confidently lie
- pivot
- bloviate
- gaslight
…it was clear she was way out of her depth & uninterested in learning anything that might contradict her delusions (as was Luxon).
Well… the numbers are in.
It’s brutal.
#nzpol
The data in this article is absolutely damning. In the face of this, Nicola Willis’ response is idiotic.
It’s a long article. If you don’t have time for all the words, the graphs tell the story.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3608...
It’s a long article. If you don’t have time for all the words, the graphs tell the story.
www.thepost.co.nz/nz-news/3608...
‘Not sound economics’: 20 economists slam government’s economic strategy
The signatories – including former Productivity Commission chair Ganesh Nana and economist Susan St John – say the Government’s fiscal approach has worsened the recession, weakened public services, an...
www.thepost.co.nz
October 5, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Watching Nicola Willis:
- hedge
- misdirect
- screw up basic facts
- confidently lie
- pivot
- bloviate
- gaslight
…it was clear she was way out of her depth & uninterested in learning anything that might contradict her delusions (as was Luxon).
Well… the numbers are in.
It’s brutal.
#nzpol
- hedge
- misdirect
- screw up basic facts
- confidently lie
- pivot
- bloviate
- gaslight
…it was clear she was way out of her depth & uninterested in learning anything that might contradict her delusions (as was Luxon).
Well… the numbers are in.
It’s brutal.
#nzpol
Anthropogenic EMF can affect sensitive species. We are not alone.
#biodiversity
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
#biodiversity
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
October 5, 2025 at 6:33 PM
Anthropogenic EMF can affect sensitive species. We are not alone.
#biodiversity
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
#biodiversity
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
Reposted by Paul van Brakel
"After only one year, the transformation is dramatic. A colony of 2000 Sooty Terns, where there was previously none, were feeding hundreds of chicks. We also counted 1000’s of native Pisonia grandis tree seedlings across just 60 12m monitored plots on the forest floor—in 2024 we found zero." 🌏
Press Release: Staggering Recovery of Plants and Seabirds on Marshallese Islands Just One Year After Rat Removal - Island Conservation
Astonishing results from our work to restore sites in the Republic of the Marshall Islands, boosting climate resilience and ocean health!
www.islandconservation.org
October 4, 2025 at 6:55 PM
"After only one year, the transformation is dramatic. A colony of 2000 Sooty Terns, where there was previously none, were feeding hundreds of chicks. We also counted 1000’s of native Pisonia grandis tree seedlings across just 60 12m monitored plots on the forest floor—in 2024 we found zero." 🌏
If you haven't seen the "1st Politician on the Show", and yes it's someone from AoNZ, then watch this at least to when she talks about meeting with the coalminers who supposedly hate her and she breaks it down
#nzpol
youtu.be/zl_LgDjpzxE?...
#nzpol
youtu.be/zl_LgDjpzxE?...
The first politician on Gary's Economics
YouTube video by Garys Economics
youtu.be
September 29, 2025 at 4:27 AM
If you haven't seen the "1st Politician on the Show", and yes it's someone from AoNZ, then watch this at least to when she talks about meeting with the coalminers who supposedly hate her and she breaks it down
#nzpol
youtu.be/zl_LgDjpzxE?...
#nzpol
youtu.be/zl_LgDjpzxE?...
Simeon says clarity on new projects ... but no clarity on what will be cut in the money shuffle... our tax dollars shuffle
#nzpol
www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
#nzpol
www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
New funding for EDs, but where does the money come from?
An emergency doctor is concerned the $20 million funding injection could mean cuts to other areas of Health New Zealand.
www.rnz.co.nz
September 21, 2025 at 8:48 PM
Simeon says clarity on new projects ... but no clarity on what will be cut in the money shuffle... our tax dollars shuffle
#nzpol
www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
#nzpol
www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...
Reposted by Paul van Brakel
This is worth watching, here is a preview of their parody video
September 19, 2025 at 6:38 PM
This is worth watching, here is a preview of their parody video
Reposted by Paul van Brakel
Monte Perdido
1965 | 2025
How moving! 🤍
Jaime, standing on the same stone as his grandfather 60 years later, on top of Cilindro de Marboré (3325 m)! 🏔️⏳🔥
Monte Perdido (3355 m) at the background!
In the 20th c, there were glaciers on the W face of Monte Perdido!
📷 Joaquín and Jaime Romeo 🙏
1965 | 2025
How moving! 🤍
Jaime, standing on the same stone as his grandfather 60 years later, on top of Cilindro de Marboré (3325 m)! 🏔️⏳🔥
Monte Perdido (3355 m) at the background!
In the 20th c, there were glaciers on the W face of Monte Perdido!
📷 Joaquín and Jaime Romeo 🙏
September 16, 2025 at 9:32 AM
Monte Perdido
1965 | 2025
How moving! 🤍
Jaime, standing on the same stone as his grandfather 60 years later, on top of Cilindro de Marboré (3325 m)! 🏔️⏳🔥
Monte Perdido (3355 m) at the background!
In the 20th c, there were glaciers on the W face of Monte Perdido!
📷 Joaquín and Jaime Romeo 🙏
1965 | 2025
How moving! 🤍
Jaime, standing on the same stone as his grandfather 60 years later, on top of Cilindro de Marboré (3325 m)! 🏔️⏳🔥
Monte Perdido (3355 m) at the background!
In the 20th c, there were glaciers on the W face of Monte Perdido!
📷 Joaquín and Jaime Romeo 🙏
So we're in a free market AoNZ right? Anyone noticed the price of butter drop 20% as it has on the international market. No comments from the politicians...https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/butter/
#nzpol
www.rnz.co.nz/news/busines...
#nzpol
www.rnz.co.nz/news/busines...
Food prices keep crunch on household budgets
Food prices are rising much faster than wages, making it a "slow grind" for households waiting for relief from the cost of living crisis.
www.rnz.co.nz
September 16, 2025 at 1:01 AM
So we're in a free market AoNZ right? Anyone noticed the price of butter drop 20% as it has on the international market. No comments from the politicians...https://tradingeconomics.com/commodity/butter/
#nzpol
www.rnz.co.nz/news/busines...
#nzpol
www.rnz.co.nz/news/busines...