Richard Waite
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waiterich.bsky.social
Richard Waite
@waiterich.bsky.social

Director, Agriculture Initiatives, World Resources Institute. Working with colleagues around the world to create a sustainable food future. DC-based. Own views.

Environmental science 27%
Biology 22%
Pinned
The world is facing a global land squeeze as food, feed, fiber and fuel demand rises. How to manage it? 🧪

- PRODUCE more food and fiber sustainably on existing working lands
- PROTECT remaining natural ecosystems
- REDUCE waste and growth in demand for land-intensive goods
- RESTORE degraded lands
How to Manage the Global Land Squeeze? Produce, Protect, Reduce, Restore
By 2050, an area of land twice the size of India will be converted to agriculture. A four-pillared approach can ensure the world meets growing demand for food and fuel without destroying the environme...
www.wri.org

Reposted by Richard Waite

EU rejects Dutch manure exemption over water pollution risks
EU rejects Dutch manure exemption over water pollution risks
The decision will tighten manure-spreading limits across the country
dlvr.it
In case you need a positive reminder:
How effective is protesting? According to historians and political scientists: very www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
How effective is protesting? According to historians and political scientists: very
From emancipation to women’s suffrage, civil rights and BLM, mass movement has shaped the arc of US history
www.theguardian.com

Feature not bug

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Please enjoy some Christmas eye candy.

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Merriam Christmas

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Merry Christmas from the Sonoran Desert 🏜️ 🌵☀️

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Quiz time: what is the song Jingle Bells about?

a. Christmas
b. Street racing
c. A vehicle accident
d. Picking up women

Basically, a Vanilla Orange Orbitz (1996-97) right now would fix me
Also, don't let any Grinch try to tell you that nostalgia is somehow unhealthy or unproductive. I am telling you as a licensed therapist that it is incredibly powerful. It is an anchor, a reminder that you have experiences and sensory memories of comfort and purpose that can never be taken away

Hold on a sec *checks notes* ashes and soot are totally cool tonight, they’re actually kinda encouraged. I’d delete the skeets above that came off as ungrateful but since you already offskeeted (offskote?) them I don’t want to break the accounting system.

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Also, don't let any Grinch try to tell you that nostalgia is somehow unhealthy or unproductive. I am telling you as a licensed therapist that it is incredibly powerful. It is an anchor, a reminder that you have experiences and sensory memories of comfort and purpose that can never be taken away

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Look in your Settings, Accessibility, Alt Text, Require Alt Text
Then you can't skeet an image without Alt Text.
It doesn't need to be a novel. Just describe the image

Well then these offsketes aren’t nearly enough, plus they’re all tarnished with ashes and soot

I could have been skeeting at 14.6 CPD this whole time, but I’ve kept it to 7.3, avoiding another 7.3. Therefore I’m already skeet-neutral and shan’t have any need for these certificates in my chimney

Thing is, I’m just going to keep cranking out cringeposts, so sounds like SOMEONE isn’t on board with doing anything about it, which is a shame really

Sounds legit

(whoops I burned another offskete)

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If you're in line for figgy pudding, stay in line

Figgy pudding? For free on demand?? In this economy???

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For context, carp is traditionally a popular Christmas Eve dish in parts of Central Europe, and people often keep them alive in bathtubs for a few days before the meal #25DaysofFishmas www.npr.org/sections/the...

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In a year of intense federal focus on immigration and removal of labor protections, we tracked the government’s actions closely.
Our Biggest Labor and Immigration Stories of 2025
In a year of intense federal focus on immigration and removal of labor protections, we tracked the government’s actions closely.
civileats.com

Anyway, there’s a little “things are bad, but not quite as bad as some others are saying, and we can still build a better future” for your Christmas Eve.

“Why is inflation down but prices are still higher than last year”

I dug into this issue in thread below. Slower yield growth due to climate change is still very bad - it means more hunger and/or more deforestation (driving more climate change).

But it’s not the same as yields declining globally from today’s levels which would be a different level of catastrophic.
A couple nuances on this:

1. The projected yield losses are in relation *to future baseline yields*, in other words, in relation to the (higher) yields we would likely see in the absence of climate change. So cutting in half not relative to current yields but tomorrow's future higher yields.

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Now with even more (natural) vibrance!

Dan is correct & this is important. I’m surprised that this data-driven article in @theguardian.com got this fundamental issue wrong. See what the study authors wrote (www.nature.com/articles/s41...).

Crop yields will likely continue to grow in the future, but climate change will drag growth down.

This is great. Since I post 7.3 cringeposts per day (CPD), this gets me through the big day tomorrow and into the middle of Friday morning. Thanks!! 🙏

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Or chimneys where there is a fire in the hearth...? I did search the physics of Santa (because of course I did) and I'm afraid its beyond my capacity to understand yet alone explain the calculations - though at least one argues that the fact (?) that he does supports quantum theory.
How does Santa do it all? Quantum physics, that's how, says scientist
Every year, Santa Claus races around the globe in a matter of hours to bring presents to children all over the world.
phys.org

Why did they call it “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” and not “The Santa Pause”

But how does he fit in the chimney and what happens in homes without chimneys 🤔

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As a holiday treat, @davidpomerantz.bsky.social and I are dropping ten free offsketes down your chimney. Guaranteed additional, permanent, etc.

Happy posting, everyone!