New Weather West update is out now! Some relief, at last, from recent record warmth and astonishing lack of Mountain West snow in the coming days as cooler/wetter pattern returns. But just how much relief should we expect? Read more:

The California State University system spent $16.9 million last year giving ChatGPT to all students, faculty, and staff. We are asking the CSU chancellor not to renew the contract with OpenAI when it expires. Anyone can sign the petition — link below!

The Eureka Dunes are home to several rare plants some of which occur no where else in the world. Park biologists documented damage to five rare plants including the federally listed Eurkea Valley Dune Grass (Swallenia alexandrae) listed due to impacts from OHV.

Wildflower watch 2026 continues and all eyes on Death Valley, world renowned wildflower hotspot 👀. It was a pleasure to speak w/ @alanhalaly.bsky.social as I conducted reconnaissance w/ the supreme defender of wildflowers 💚 @bitterwaterblue.bsky.social. www.reviewjournal.com/news/environ...

We just had the warmest November and December on record and simultaneously experienced a series of drought quenching storms, but everyone still wants to know, will California have another super bloom? www.latimes.com/lifestyle/st...

This Agave ‘blue flame’ bloomed in my yard last year, but I have been remiss to remove the decaying plant. The stalk is still technically green so it’s not actually dead right? I think the bird agrees.

We are hiring at California Botanic Garden! The Restoration Intern will have the opportunity to work on a variety of projects involving out-planting, seed collection, plant propagation and monitoring. This is a full time temp position (6 months) that can be extended. Please share! lnkd.in/gaNuNGxA

Join me Fri Dec 12 @ 2pm PT for a for a presentation with Huntington-USC Institute on California and the West. I'll be discussing how "Mining for the Renewable Energy Transition Threatens Endemic Plant Diversity". Zoom info in the link dornsife.usc.edu/icw/upcoming/

A beautiful documentary on the work of @criordor.bsky.social on a mission to document the microbes in salt flats of the Atacama Desert, Chile. Life invisible, but essential to a hauntingly beautiful ecosystem under threat from the worlds demand for lithium. www.grainmedia.co.uk/work/life-in...

Con mucha alegría comparto el micro documental "Life invisible" (Vida invisible) que habla de la importancia de preservar los salares para salvar la vida de las personas a través de la búsqueda de nuevos antibióticos. Que lo disfruten 😊🎥🦩🦠🩷 www.theguardian.com/film/ng-inte...

📣 The latest issue of the journal published by The International Compositae Alliance (TICA) is out! Check it out at: www.compositae.org/capitulum_04...

It’s hard to believe, it's already been three weeks since I married my love and #Teambuckwheat co-conspirator @bitterwaterblue.bsky.social in a beautiful ceremony in the Amargosa River Basin. 💕

A fossil-fueled surge in U.S. data center growth to serve the #ArtificialIntelligence boom threatens to sabotage the country’s already faltering climate goals, according to our recent report: Data Crunch. Get the full report ➡️ bit.ly/4hvYguI

The more I hike this road the more and more I want to proselytize for chaparral love ❤️ I am pretty sure this California towhee sitting on a San Gabriel scrub oak is feeling it with me.

I overheard someone say the thing they didn’t like about living in CA was the lack of “seasons”. I didn’t want to be rude, but I wanted to say that maybe haven’t been paying close enough attention. Go outside, touch some grass & maybe a buckwheat. I’ll forgive you if you don’t touch the poison oak.🍂

Finally! 🤩 Our position piece: Against the Uncritical Adoption of 'AI' Technologies in Academia: doi.org/10.5281/zeno... We unpick the tech industry’s marketing, hype, & harm; and we argue for safeguarding higher education, critical thinking, expertise, academic freedom, & scientific integrity. 1/n

I fired up the old newsletter machine for the first time in a while. In it, I take a lay of the land of the Western public lands extraction boom. TLDR: it's chaos. Read more: sageandsand.substack.com/p/sage-and-s...

The Department of Botany and Plant Pathology at Oregon State University is Hiring! We are searching for a Director of the Oregon State University Herbarium and applications are welcomed at the ranks of assistant, associate, or full professor.

More bad news for butterflies. Our new paper led by Wendy Leuenberger shows common species are declining even more rapidly than rare ones. @ZipkinLab Three decades of declines restructure butterfly communities in the Midwestern United States | PNAS www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2501340122

In a time where a new crisis seems to drop every min due to the current political regime, two crises remain at center of all life on earth: biodiversity & climate. Our inability to plan, prioritize & rein in consumption leads us to a false choice between the existence of a whole species and a mine.

This story is not new but a presentation at #Botany2025 raised awareness on the impact of avocado production on biodiversity. U.S. demand is driving deforestation in rich Mexican cloud forests which also support monarch butterflies. www.nytimes.com/2023/11/28/u...

The story of our fight to save Tiehm’s buckwheat continues. “There’s a real tension there, where we need to avert the worst of the climate crisis. But in doing so, we can cause real harm to ecosystems,”story by @sammyroth.bsky.social @latimes.com www.latimes.com/environment/...

My talk is today Aug 30 at 3pm in Conservation Biology III in Smoketree C.

The West’s data centers suck (water and power). Lots of great information and visualizations here from @landdesk.bsky.social ‪@highcountrynews.org‬ www.hcn.org/issues/57-8/...

Above Palm Springs is the NE face of the San Jacinto Mountains, the steepest escarpment in the continental US rising from 800 to 10,834 feet in 7 horizontal mi. A nice way to get your heart rate up in the morning! I am awake and ready for #Botany2025.

I'm almost ready to upload my #Botany2025 talk. Mining for the Renewable Energy Transition Threatens Plant Diversity. Its a not so cheery topic, but an urgent one. How can scientists prevent extinction in the face of accelerated mining and does a just energy transition include biodiversity?

Hey #Botany2025! The California Botanic Garden is only a 1 hour drive from the convention center and attendees get free admission when showing their badge at the ticket kiosk. It’s a botanists paradise, the perfect side trip while you are here! Don’t miss the buckwheats in bloom!

A little belated but I've started a faculty position at Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology department at @ucsantabarbara.bsky.social. I'm absolutely stoked! I'll be recruiting at all levels and will be at #Botany2025 Reach out! www.martinezgomezlab.com

I am excited to welcome #Botany2025 to my big backyard in the California desert. I kicked off the conference with a field trip up the Palm Springs tramway to explore the beautiful flora of the San Jacinto Mountains. I hope everyone enjoys Palm Springs!

One week until #Botany2025! Check out the (unofficial) starter pack below to follow along. Let me know in the replies if you're attending and would like to be added. go.bsky.app/Gu9T4st

Each year we trek out the Death Valley region to monitor the Amargosa Niterwort. These rare alkali wetland plants like it hot 🔥 and July is peak season. To accommodate working in extreme temps we start our day at first light to take advantage of the cool morning hours (about 80° F).

In the face of mounting threats, we are in a race to document the rare plants of NV. We’re using remote sensing to identify previously undocumented pops of rare plants in alkali wetlands. Spiranthes infernalis is now known from 3 new locations, unfortunately, all are highly threatened.

Thank you @alanhalaly.bsky.social @reviewjournal.com for covering the potential devastation to a rare plant population in the path of the Greenlink West Transmission Line. My student, Chloe Novak has been collecting data to shed light on this issue. www.reviewjournal.com/business/ene...

I had the opportunity to speak with @sammyroth.bsky.social from the @latimes.com about the lithium dilemma on the Boiling Point Podcast. Listen as we discuss the risks to biodiversity and Nevada, a special place that had been deemed a sacrifice zone. boiling-point.simplecast.com/episodes/the... 🎧

Flower filled hikes have always been a respite from the daily grind, but they have take on a greater importance for me in these challenging times. I am so grateful to have access to these beautiful public lands. Castilleja foliosa, Tauschia arguta, Lithophragma affine, Clematis lasiantha.

🌿🌸🌾🪴 🌿🌸🌾🪴 🌿🌸🌾🪴 🌿🌸🌾🪴 For American students planning to start grad school who are reconsidering their USA offers (or had offer rescinded), my Canadian university #QueensU announced a special funding call. Want to join my lab to study #plant #evolution? Get in touch! 🌿🌸🌾🪴 🌿🌸🌾🪴 🌿🌸🌾🪴 🌿🌸🌾🪴

Institutions across the world are saving seeds of the rarest plants to safeguard against extinction, but preserving them is no simple task. I am always happy to talk plants and seeds. Thanks to @katarinazimmer.bsky.social for highlighting the work. 🌱 knowablemagazine.org/content/arti...

Seed banking is crucial to safeguarding threatened plants from extinction, but seeds can be surprisingly fussy, as I learned in my latest for @knowablemag.bsky.social ☘️🌱🌳🌼🌺 Featuring @naomibot.bsky.social @rbgkew.bsky.social #plantconservation #botanicalgardens knowablemagazine.org/content/arti...

This night urgent. Research.gov maintenance is planned for tomorrow:

Hey, I am leading a field trip to Hidden Lake in the San Jacinto Mountains for #Botany2025. It’s a super special spot that hosts a single site endemic! You won’t want to miss it! 🌱 💚

Tiger beetles are amazing in general, but take a look at these ones living around hot springs in Yellowstone! New research suggests they may carry around little heat shields on their undersides. 🧵 🧪🪳🪲 www.youtube.com/watch?v=axbt...

📣Job Announcement! California Botanic Garden, the largest garden dedicated to #CAnativeplants, is seeking a Nursery Manager to join our team! To view the position click the link: drive.google.com/file/d/1MGcA... Please share! 🌱

BREAKING: Trump today issued his most unhinged, illegal Executive Order yet. It orders federal agencies to "sunset" nearly all U.S. enviromental regulations implementing everything from the Endangered Species Act to the Safe Drinking Water Act. @biologicaldiversity.org will sue the second he tries.

Breaking: Kathleen Sgamma, longtime oil and gas industry advocate, withdraws her nomination to be the next director of the Bureau of Land Management. The White House said in a statement it accepts her withdrawal and looks forward to naming another nominee: www.publicdomain.media/p/trumps-blm...

Great piece in today's @latimes.com about my wife Marie Massa's project to establish a California native plant corridor on a neglected strip of land in our neighborhood! This has been a truly herculean effort on her part and its great to see her work getting some recognition. So proud! #nativeplants

One of the bright spots in my day is seeing the lupines pop in my garden. The Hesperoyucca flower stalk is still trying to find its way. #canativeplants

Poodle dog bush is a fire following plant that causes extreme dermatitis. LA area hikers beware, but also remember it’s a native plant that’s part of the natural recovery process. Thanks to @lilaseidman.bsky.social @latimes.com for profiling the species. 🔥🌱 www.latimes.com/environment/...

My biggest frustration in terms of rising to this moment is: people obviously do not understand that there's a whole psyop strategy around DEMORALIZATION. I do not necessarily think that every doomcryer is insincere, but to steal hope is still to hand our enemies weapons.

I’ve been thinking about people and institutions cowering around DEI. I’m a proud beneficiary of DEI programs. It doesn’t mean that I’m less qualified. It does mean that mentors intentionally offered opportunities and extended support. I’m grateful for where I am today. I take nothing for granted.