Val team earth
@valakay.bsky.social
Living here on this absolute jewel of a planet. Thank you First Nations. PhD in sustainability, equity & health. Former policy adviser ALP & Greens. Banned from Greens 20 yrs ago by silly rule they’ve now gotten rid of, but still waiting for apology! …🙄
Pinned
Val team earth
@valakay.bsky.social
· Jun 23
What lies beneath … the jewelled sea in my profile picture suffered a marine heatwave this year, there was an algal outbreak and most of the sea life died.
Four years ago bushfires burned through nearly half the island, now this.
We must change our way of life, no matter how hard it is to accept
Four years ago bushfires burned through nearly half the island, now this.
We must change our way of life, no matter how hard it is to accept
I do not accept this as Australia Day, it is Invasion Day and it’s an insult to First Nations to call it Australia Day.
If we are to have a national day, let it be when we finally have a national #Treaty. I hope I live to see that day.
If we are to have a national day, let it be when we finally have a national #Treaty. I hope I live to see that day.
January 25, 2026 at 9:56 PM
I do not accept this as Australia Day, it is Invasion Day and it’s an insult to First Nations to call it Australia Day.
If we are to have a national day, let it be when we finally have a national #Treaty. I hope I live to see that day.
If we are to have a national day, let it be when we finally have a national #Treaty. I hope I live to see that day.
Living in one of the most fire-prone places in the world during a time of #ClimateChange is not a lot of fun. It’s really not
www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01...
www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01...
Out-of-control bushfire in Victoria's Otways grows, threatens properties
An out-of-control bushfire continues to threaten communities in Victoria's Otways as heatwave conditions continue in some parts of the state.
www.abc.net.au
January 24, 2026 at 9:39 PM
Living in one of the most fire-prone places in the world during a time of #ClimateChange is not a lot of fun. It’s really not
www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01...
www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01...
Really it should not be too much to legislate that deliveries can’t be made under certain conditions - it could just mean eg that you have to wait a bit later for your meal. For example it may be still be hot after 6pm but there’s much more shade
“Australia’s safety regulators are clear on one foundational point – working in heat can be hazardous and can cause harm.”
theaimn.net/delivering-i...
theaimn.net/delivering-i...
Delivering in 43 Degrees
It’s the kind of day where the air feels thick before you even step outside. The morning forecast is already grim – heat building fast, a high in the forties, overnight temperatures that barely count ...
theaimn.net
January 16, 2026 at 9:08 AM
Really it should not be too much to legislate that deliveries can’t be made under certain conditions - it could just mean eg that you have to wait a bit later for your meal. For example it may be still be hot after 6pm but there’s much more shade
The world is terrible but I made this pretty dish for dinner
January 16, 2026 at 8:50 AM
The world is terrible but I made this pretty dish for dinner
Reposted by Val team earth
War is the worst. Resolving disagreements by seeing who can put the most living human biomass through the meat grinder. I really can't get excited about all the debates about the details of this rising outbreak of gore-based human relations. I am really worried about the people I love.
March 3, 2025 at 12:46 PM
War is the worst. Resolving disagreements by seeing who can put the most living human biomass through the meat grinder. I really can't get excited about all the debates about the details of this rising outbreak of gore-based human relations. I am really worried about the people I love.
The #IPCC has warned us that #ClimateChange will lead to more frequent bushfires, longer bushfire seasons, and less frequent but heavier and more intense rainfall. We are seeing this all in Victoria right now.
We must take urgent climate action
We must take urgent climate action
Wye River: “Alistair Drayton from the SES said the intensity of the rainfall eclipsed everything authorities had seen before.
"The previous totals down there for a whole day total was 123mm... In the last 6 hours, we've seen 178mm...
"…This is significantly off-the-charts with respect to records.”
"The previous totals down there for a whole day total was 123mm... In the last 6 hours, we've seen 178mm...
"…This is significantly off-the-charts with respect to records.”
January 15, 2026 at 7:21 AM
The #IPCC has warned us that #ClimateChange will lead to more frequent bushfires, longer bushfire seasons, and less frequent but heavier and more intense rainfall. We are seeing this all in Victoria right now.
We must take urgent climate action
We must take urgent climate action
Reposted by Val team earth
Hard to believe the scenes in Wye River.
The Great Ocean Road closed twice in one week - bushfires then flash floods. Just terrifying for all those affected.
Once again emergency services doing an incredible job.
We cannot accept this as the new normal.
The Great Ocean Road closed twice in one week - bushfires then flash floods. Just terrifying for all those affected.
Once again emergency services doing an incredible job.
We cannot accept this as the new normal.
January 15, 2026 at 5:50 AM
Hard to believe the scenes in Wye River.
The Great Ocean Road closed twice in one week - bushfires then flash floods. Just terrifying for all those affected.
Once again emergency services doing an incredible job.
We cannot accept this as the new normal.
The Great Ocean Road closed twice in one week - bushfires then flash floods. Just terrifying for all those affected.
Once again emergency services doing an incredible job.
We cannot accept this as the new normal.
Flash flooding at Wye River in Victoria, cars and caravans floating away from the campground into the ocean, days after bushfires nearby. This is so frightening #ClimateChange #ClimateEmergency
January 15, 2026 at 7:14 AM
Flash flooding at Wye River in Victoria, cars and caravans floating away from the campground into the ocean, days after bushfires nearby. This is so frightening #ClimateChange #ClimateEmergency
Reposted by Val team earth
Until humanity realises that money is the problem & gets shot of it, we’re not going to move anywhere except to extinction. The system has got us here & although there’s some positives, the simple truth is that it’s destroying life on earth & wasting limited resources for cash. It’s unsustainable.
January 14, 2026 at 10:49 AM
Until humanity realises that money is the problem & gets shot of it, we’re not going to move anywhere except to extinction. The system has got us here & although there’s some positives, the simple truth is that it’s destroying life on earth & wasting limited resources for cash. It’s unsustainable.
This is horrendous - the UK govt is acting with extreme cruelty
Stephen Sedley's letter strongly reinforces the point of this column: if, as seems imminent, the hunger strikers die, the government bears responsibility.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Let’s be clear: if the Palestine Action hunger strikers die, the government will bear moral responsibility | George Monbiot
The three remaining hunger strikers have been convicted of nothing. Yet with astonishing cruelty, ministers refuse to listen to their reasonable demands, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
www.theguardian.com
January 13, 2026 at 11:01 AM
This is horrendous - the UK govt is acting with extreme cruelty
Reposted by Val team earth
Since the Adelaide Festival has issued an *apology* that references 'Australia's worst terror attack in history', perhaps you good folk who like reading would care to look up the worst massacre of Aboriginal people in SA, by Scottish Pastoralist James Brown
#AvenueRangeMassacre
#AdelaideWritersWeek
#AvenueRangeMassacre
#AdelaideWritersWeek
January 13, 2026 at 4:40 AM
Since the Adelaide Festival has issued an *apology* that references 'Australia's worst terror attack in history', perhaps you good folk who like reading would care to look up the worst massacre of Aboriginal people in SA, by Scottish Pastoralist James Brown
#AvenueRangeMassacre
#AdelaideWritersWeek
#AvenueRangeMassacre
#AdelaideWritersWeek
I wrote an article 6 years ago about how sexist and racist assumptions are embedded in mainstream systems of knowledge
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
It was published in an academic journal, but when I tried to rewrite it for a broader audience it was rejected. That threw me
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
It was published in an academic journal, but when I tried to rewrite it for a broader audience it was rejected. That threw me
A socioecological discourse of care or an economistic discourse: which fits better with transition?
Objective: To analyse a ‘socioecological’ health promotion discourse and its relationship to orthodox ‘economistic’ discourse in Australia. Method: In research on health promotion addressing equity a...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
January 12, 2026 at 9:32 PM
I wrote an article 6 years ago about how sexist and racist assumptions are embedded in mainstream systems of knowledge
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
It was published in an academic journal, but when I tried to rewrite it for a broader audience it was rejected. That threw me
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
It was published in an academic journal, but when I tried to rewrite it for a broader audience it was rejected. That threw me
What would you do if you were the Premier of a small state and you’d just fucked up one the best events your state has going for it?
Possibly not keep digging?
Possibly not keep digging?
January 12, 2026 at 9:56 AM
What would you do if you were the Premier of a small state and you’d just fucked up one the best events your state has going for it?
Possibly not keep digging?
Possibly not keep digging?
Reposted by Val team earth
Another baby has died in the Gaza Strip from exposure to the cold as a result of Israel's ongoing genocide of the people of Palestine.
english.palinfo.com/news/2026/01...
english.palinfo.com/news/2026/01...
Another baby boy dies from cold in Gaza
A two-month-old baby boy died in the Gaza Strip on Saturday as a result of prolonged exposure to low temperatures.
english.palinfo.com
January 11, 2026 at 9:32 PM
Another baby has died in the Gaza Strip from exposure to the cold as a result of Israel's ongoing genocide of the people of Palestine.
english.palinfo.com/news/2026/01...
english.palinfo.com/news/2026/01...
Reposted by Val team earth
Our Jewish tradition teaches us that we cannot stand idly by when we see injustice. We cannot stand idly by when the Israeli government commits genocide in Gaza. We cannot stand idly by when Israeli settler violence against Palestinian families surges across the occupied West Bank.
January 9, 2026 at 3:48 PM
Our Jewish tradition teaches us that we cannot stand idly by when we see injustice. We cannot stand idly by when the Israeli government commits genocide in Gaza. We cannot stand idly by when Israeli settler violence against Palestinian families surges across the occupied West Bank.
Imagine you lived in a small faraway place in the south - not much between you and Antarctica. This place is similar in size to the US state of Minnesota, bit bigger than Great Britain, bit smaller than Uganda, definitely smaller than New Zealand. Imagine there were 250 fires in this place yesterday
January 10, 2026 at 9:17 AM
Imagine you lived in a small faraway place in the south - not much between you and Antarctica. This place is similar in size to the US state of Minnesota, bit bigger than Great Britain, bit smaller than Uganda, definitely smaller than New Zealand. Imagine there were 250 fires in this place yesterday
So now they’re saying Melbourne is going to be 44C tomorrow. Northern and western Victoria will be even hotter and there will be a wind change.
I’ve had a bad feeling all week. Probably picking it up from the controlled tones of emergency services people on the news. But
I’ve had a bad feeling all week. Probably picking it up from the controlled tones of emergency services people on the news. But
January 8, 2026 at 9:12 AM
So now they’re saying Melbourne is going to be 44C tomorrow. Northern and western Victoria will be even hotter and there will be a wind change.
I’ve had a bad feeling all week. Probably picking it up from the controlled tones of emergency services people on the news. But
I’ve had a bad feeling all week. Probably picking it up from the controlled tones of emergency services people on the news. But
Reposted by Val team earth
🌡️ As several southern Australian states are forecast to experience dangerously high temperatures this week, read the latest data on heat and health from the 2025 Global Report of the Lancet Countdown: buff.ly/kShWxD5
January 8, 2026 at 6:00 AM
🌡️ As several southern Australian states are forecast to experience dangerously high temperatures this week, read the latest data on heat and health from the 2025 Global Report of the Lancet Countdown: buff.ly/kShWxD5
Reposted by Val team earth
Can't believe so many data centres are being approved in Australia - seemingly with insane water rights and power deals.
It is well known that data centre construction sites, at night when the workers have gone, just fucking explode.
Just, for unknown reasons, blow the fuck up.
Over and over again.
It is well known that data centre construction sites, at night when the workers have gone, just fucking explode.
Just, for unknown reasons, blow the fuck up.
Over and over again.
January 8, 2026 at 7:13 AM
Can't believe so many data centres are being approved in Australia - seemingly with insane water rights and power deals.
It is well known that data centre construction sites, at night when the workers have gone, just fucking explode.
Just, for unknown reasons, blow the fuck up.
Over and over again.
It is well known that data centre construction sites, at night when the workers have gone, just fucking explode.
Just, for unknown reasons, blow the fuck up.
Over and over again.
Reposted by Val team earth
Parts of Victoria upgraded to Catastrophic fire danger for Friday. Time to head home if camping in these Vic regions...
www.bom.gov.au/vic/forecast...
www.bom.gov.au/vic/forecast...
January 7, 2026 at 5:22 AM
Parts of Victoria upgraded to Catastrophic fire danger for Friday. Time to head home if camping in these Vic regions...
www.bom.gov.au/vic/forecast...
www.bom.gov.au/vic/forecast...
Reposted by Val team earth
Quietly, without much scrutiny, NSW has climbed into the global top 10 rankings of jurisdictions with the most heavy-handed anti-protest laws. The media treats this normal. It’s isn’t. #auspol
January 6, 2026 at 10:46 PM
Quietly, without much scrutiny, NSW has climbed into the global top 10 rankings of jurisdictions with the most heavy-handed anti-protest laws. The media treats this normal. It’s isn’t. #auspol
Reposted by Val team earth
Do not cook at home. Eat cold food. Drink iced tea. Don’t shop during daytime - food will go off unless you transport it in an esky. Do not walk pets until the sun is down and the ground doesn’t burn. Keep curtains drawn. Wash sheets and hang them damp in front of a fan to cool the room
January 5, 2026 at 8:11 AM
Do not cook at home. Eat cold food. Drink iced tea. Don’t shop during daytime - food will go off unless you transport it in an esky. Do not walk pets until the sun is down and the ground doesn’t burn. Keep curtains drawn. Wash sheets and hang them damp in front of a fan to cool the room
This is a message for people in southern Australia where there is a major heatwave expected over the next few days. Please check the advice on heat health which should be available from your local council or state health department.
In general please try to stay inside and keep cool. If your house
In general please try to stay inside and keep cool. If your house
January 5, 2026 at 8:33 AM
This is a message for people in southern Australia where there is a major heatwave expected over the next few days. Please check the advice on heat health which should be available from your local council or state health department.
In general please try to stay inside and keep cool. If your house
In general please try to stay inside and keep cool. If your house
In 1776 when the American colonies declared independence, they wanted to break free from King George III whom they saw as a tyrant. George III had mental health issues and later was sometimes known as the Mad King.
250 years later …
250 years later …
January 5, 2026 at 7:44 AM
In 1776 when the American colonies declared independence, they wanted to break free from King George III whom they saw as a tyrant. George III had mental health issues and later was sometimes known as the Mad King.
250 years later …
250 years later …