Poppy Leeder
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poppyleeder.bsky.social
Poppy Leeder
@poppyleeder.bsky.social
2.1K followers 2K following 930 posts
Green, vegan, tofu-eating wokerati type. Research Manager at University of Leeds. Walker of 2 rescue dogs. More enthusiastic than skilled gardener. Retrofitting and behaviour change to be lower consuming
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Reposted by Poppy Leeder
magicmooshka.bsky.social
it’s come to my attention that my tumblr post has been crossposted to bluesky, so I’m posting it on my account here #AntiAI #GenAI
recently my friend's comics professor told her that it's acceptable to use gen AI for script-writing but not for art, since a machine can't generate meaningful artistic work. meanwhile, my sister's screenwriting professor said that they can use gen AI for concept art and visualization, but that it won't be able to generate a script that's any good. and at my job, it seems like each department says that AI can be useful in every field except the one that they know best. It's only ever the jobs we're unfamiliar with that we assume can be replaced with automation. The more attuned we are with certain processes, crafts, and occupations, the more we realize that gen AI will never be able to provide a suitable replacement. The case for its existence relies on our ignorance of the work and skill required to do everything we don't.
January 9, 2026 at 5:07 PM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
ukceh.bsky.social
🦋🌿Hiring 12 x Botanists or Entomologists for 2026 field surveys in England!

4-month, full-time roles from late April to early September.

Field sites in Yorkshire, Devon, Warwickshire, Kent/Sussex, Lincolnshire/Cambridge, Essex/Suffolk.

Apply now: ceh.wd3.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/CEH_Ca... 🧪
Recruitment poster for 12 botanical or entomological field surveyors, April-September 2026. Closing date: January 30, 2026.
January 9, 2026 at 9:36 AM
poppyleeder.bsky.social
The trouble with slippery slopes is you never know quite when/where the unstoppable slip will begin.

I can't help but feel we are already on the slope with so many issues both nationally and internationally right now.

In a democracy raising the alarm politically is the job of the opposition
January 8, 2026 at 3:37 PM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
dpcarrington.bsky.social
Nature boys and girls – here’s your chance to get published in the Guardian

- Our wildlife series Young Country Diary is looking for articles written by children (8-14, in the UK), about their winter encounters with nature

👇
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Nature boys and girls – here’s your chance to get published in the Guardian
Our wildlife series Young Country Diary is looking for articles written by children, about their winter encounters with nature
www.theguardian.com
January 6, 2026 at 10:43 AM
poppyleeder.bsky.social
Not a great start to the 2nd day of work in 2026 and I'm ready to throw laptop out the window because Copilot is making suggestions. I'm sick of how gAI is being forced on us.

No, I don't want you to email my team asking them for feedback on a file, or get your 'unbiased' feedback on my doc
January 6, 2026 at 9:33 AM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
humanists.uk
How to recognise fascism when you see it, by the the Italian humanist and author Umberto Eco. This 14-point guide is taken from Eco's 1995 essay 'Ur-Fascism' – informed by his own experiences of Nazism in the 20th century. He was born #OnThisDay 1932.
The cult of tradition. “One has only to look at the syllabus of every fascist movement to find the major traditionalist thinkers. The Nazi gnosis was nourished by traditionalist, syncretistic, occult elements.” The rejection of modernism. “The Enlightenment, the Age of Reason, is seen as the beginning of modern depravity. In this sense Ur-Fascism can be defined as irrationalism.” The cult of action for action’s sake. “Action being beautiful in itself, it must be taken before, or without, any previous reflection. Thinking is a form of emasculation.” Disagreement is treason. “The critical spirit makes distinctions, and to distinguish is a sign of modernism. In modern culture the scientific community praises disagreement as a way to improve knowledge.” Fear of difference. “The first appeal of a fascist or prematurely fascist movement is an appeal against the intruders. Thus Ur-Fascism is racist by definition.” Appeal to social frustration. “One of the most typical features of the historical fascism was the appeal to a frustrated middle class, a class suffering from an economic crisis or feelings of political humiliation, and frightened by the pressure of lower social groups.” The obsession with a plot. “Thus at the root of the Ur-Fascist psychology there is the obsession with a plot, possibly an international one. The followers must feel besieged.” The enemy is both strong and weak. “By a continuous shifting of rhetorical focus, the enemies are at the same time too strong and too weak.” Pacifism is trafficking with the enemy. “For Ur-Fascism there is no struggle for life but, rather, life is lived for struggle.” Contempt for the weak. “Elitism is a typical aspect of any reactionary ideology.” Everybody is educated to become a hero. “In Ur-Fascist ideology, heroism is the norm. This cult of heroism is strictly linked with the cult of death.” Machismo and weaponry. “Machismo implies both disdain for women and intolerance and condemnation of nonstandard sexual habits, fro
January 5, 2026 at 10:45 AM
poppyleeder.bsky.social
Well I've ruined the dog's day. He was having a fantastic time picking the crabapples off the tree one by one and eating them. Turns out it's not a great idea. So I've had to pick them all and am currently turning them into jelly

(which I will share, on toast, with said dog in due course)
A steel colander filled with loys of tiny orange and pink crabapples
January 3, 2026 at 1:00 PM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
danielsohege.bsky.social
What is shameful is that people have to use irregular crossings in the first place and we have a government which is so hostile, discriminatory and inhumane towards those seeking safety. It isn't the people seeking asylum who are the issue here

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
‘Shameful’ 41,000 people reached UK by small boat last year, says Home Office
Second highest annual number of irregular arrivals on record reached British shores in 2025
www.theguardian.com
January 2, 2026 at 11:33 AM
poppyleeder.bsky.social
On January 1 2016 I started doing #Veganuary.
I got to the end of the month and never looked back.

If you're trying #Veganuary2026 then head on over to their website for resources and support.

What a great way to start the New Year!
veganuary.com
Veganuary | Try Vegan for 31 Days
Since 2014, Veganuary has inspired and supported millions of people all over the world to go vegan for January - and beyond!
veganuary.com
December 31, 2025 at 7:57 PM
poppyleeder.bsky.social
Wishing that in 2026 we start to tackle the problems caused by these obscene levels of greed
December 31, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
leedstours.bsky.social
'The Illustrated History of Chapel Allerton' on the ground

Walking tour 14:00-16:00 Sunday 18 January relating to a new book by local historian Steve Burt.

I'm editor + author of Ch.8 & supplied loads of photos.
Book here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-illust...
(I'll be offering other dates later.)
www.eventbrite.co.uk
December 31, 2025 at 6:55 PM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
cheryl19.bsky.social
38d.gs/6v7r
Keir Starmer: Stand firm in protecting British food and animal welfare standards in trade deals
I just signed the campaign calling Keir Starmer to stand firm in protecting British food and animal welfare standards in trade deals
38d.gs
December 30, 2025 at 10:21 AM
poppyleeder.bsky.social
Jigsaw number 2 of the break underway.
Very different from my normal jigsaw - but the different patterns on this one are satisfying to work with
The outer edges of a jigsaw, not quite complete. Inside a piles of similar jigsaw pieces, grouped according to pattern and colour. There is also a picture of what the completed jigsaw should look like: a range of different mushrooms and fungi (from a painting called Champignons by Nathalie Lété)
December 29, 2025 at 10:51 AM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
keepitbluedems.bsky.social
www.kcra.com/article/trum...
December 29, 2025 at 12:34 AM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
thebeeguy.bsky.social
It’s #winter. The buzzing has stopped - mostly.
So what’s happened to all the #bees?
Let me explain.
Please #repost this thread.
Don’t just like/look.
It literally takes you a second. Costs you nothing.
Bees are in trouble and need you good people to help.
Thank you.
#share
#nature
#education
1/14
December 28, 2025 at 10:49 AM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
tomflood.bsky.social
"Annoying 8 year olds keep wanting to walk and bike to school despite city's best efforts to make it too dangerous."

creativebyrovelo.com/therovelorecord
kid in painted bike lane wearing a backpack Annoying 8 year olds keep wanting to walk and bike to school despite city's best efforts to make it too dangerous, while drivers "have had it" with all the catering to this powerful lobby group of school children.
December 28, 2025 at 2:06 PM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
katharinehayhoe.com
For years I’ve dealt with some of the nasty comments & emails I receive by writing completely unfiltered replies, telling the sender exactly what I think of them and their comment—then deleting them. Never sending.

Turns out this is an “amazing anger management technique.”

I will keep it up!!! 😎
A screenshot of an Instagram post by The Happy Broadcast outlining the anger management technique of writing something down then throwing it away.
December 27, 2025 at 4:37 PM
poppyleeder.bsky.social
One of the funniest, and yet at times painfully true, takes on perimenopause.
December 26, 2025 at 6:58 AM
poppyleeder.bsky.social
The Christmas present I always wanted but never got
Picture of a 1980s meccano set
December 25, 2025 at 9:38 PM
poppyleeder.bsky.social
My #vegan birthday tiramisu was such a hit I made it again for Christmas.
Cake for breakfast tomorrow! (As well as leftovers in the form of bubble squeak probably)
A large trifle bowl of tiramis from above showing the cream with cocoa dusting A large trifle bowl of tiramisu from the side showing the different layers
December 25, 2025 at 5:46 PM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
rhodri.biz
Unbelievably, #DuvetKnowItsChristmas generates such good will on social media that over the years we've raised somewhere approaching a quarter of a million quid for homeless charities. If you can spare a bob or two, sling some to Centrepoint, and here's the link: www.gofundme.com/f/duvet-know...
Donate to Duvet Know It's Christmas, 2025, organized by Rhodri Marsden
Unbelievably, it's the 15th year of this thing. What is it? Improbably, the nig… Rhodri Marsden needs your support for Duvet Know It's Christmas, 2025
www.gofundme.com
December 24, 2025 at 7:35 PM
poppyleeder.bsky.social
In case you've not yet discovered the utter joy of #DuvetKnowItsChristmas
rhodri.biz Rhodri Marsden @rhodri.biz · 17d
Tomorrow evening it’ll be my annual duty to vaguely shepherd the activity on the #duvetknowitschristmas hashtag and urge people to give small sums to charity. 7.30pm? Something like that?
December 24, 2025 at 7:55 PM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
monkemma.bsky.social
I’m sure the “protect our women and girls” brigade will have plenty to say about this👍🏼

There are indeed some parts of our society that don’t treat women properly…

Here is a former TORY Councillor (and 5 OTHER men) charged with the rape and sexual assault of HIS WIFE

🧵
1/10
December 23, 2025 at 11:11 AM
poppyleeder.bsky.social
It's this boy's first Christmas living in a home. Present wrapping is intriguing and rewarding (and a great opportunity to steal scrap pieces of paper for shredding!
A black and white dog tearing brown wrapping paper into tiny pieces
December 22, 2025 at 10:01 AM
Reposted by Poppy Leeder
cornellbirds.bsky.social
Discover the incredible flying skills that happen in a flash at your feeder, via ultra slow-mo! This sneak peak of our new video series, Backyard Birds Revealed, shows birds in slow-motion landings—turning midair, braking with their tails & using their legs as shock absorbers. hubs.la/Q03YxdDk0
December 21, 2025 at 9:00 PM