I have been helping out with The Guardian's coverage of the Victorian bushfires and the Tropical Cyclone in Queensland. As extreme weather grows stronger and more frequent in the climate crisis, this is a reminder to check out my Slick: Australia's Toxic Relationship With Big Oil for a primer:

The emergency declaration “wasn’t only about immediate danger; it was about buying time to rethink infrastructure, guidance for hunters, and monitoring. His words may resonate uncomfortably beyond the Arctic” - way beyond thaihut.org/10-163997-em...

How are we only 10 days into this year.

I saw the greatest minds of my generation (millennial, 34+) destroyed by madness and mortgages In zoomers we trust

The state of Victoria is on fire. From the Alps to the Central Highlands to the Great Ocean Road. From the far east near Mallacoota (again!), to the far west with bad fires at Natimuk and Wyperfeld. Stay safe friends and stay angry at the climate criminals. emergency.vic.gov.au/respond/

If you sometimes wonder where to look for hope in 2026, amid constant news of crisis in democracy and international law, I would suggest this: look to Ukraine. 🇺🇦 My editorial for @verfassungsblog.de on Lviv — and what we can learn from this city: verfassungsblog.de/laboratorium...

Additional dimension to Adelaide Writers Festival that’s not being covered

Sleeper issue in all this 👇

cc @albomp.bsky.social

I know there's A Lot to be worried about right now but India is arresting climate activists on the grounds that they're opposed to fossil fuels www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/f...

Definite End of the World vibes here. dark clouds, ravens and hawks weaving above us, weird swirling gusty wind. going to be a long night.

For those thinking that climate change can take a back seat while this other geopolitical mess is addressed - think again. Climate change is in part why Greenland has become so attractive to Pumpkin and his lot. bbc.com/news/videos/...

Took P outside for a bit once the cool change came through but realised there were tiny particles of ash raining down on our skin. Had thoughts exactly like this below. And just thinking of the people fighting the fires, in such extreme conditions. Awful & devastating.

Not apocalyptic looking at all

The sky is tinged pink as Victorians literally breathe in our cremated land and wildlife. I feel so sad and angry on days like these and all I can think of is the NW Shelf extension approval, the new coal and gas projects, the absolute cowardice and contempt of Australian governments on climate.

A country that blows up foreign fishing boats for no reason is one that will shoot its own citizens for no reason.

Bluesky community! This is my official NYC mayor account. I’ll be posting updates on what’s happening at City Hall and how we’re delivering for New Yorkers. It’s great to be here.

The US has some of the world’s best climate scientists (and more of them than anywhere else) & has contributed disproportionately to understanding the climate system. It’s idiotic for the US to withdraw from the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change & the IPCC but it’s on brand for this regime.

#BREAKING 🚨 Victorian premier Jacinta Allan has warned that “if the forecasts are right, tomorrow will be catastrophic” A statewide Total Fire Ban has been declared, with the fire danger now the worst across Victoria since Black Summer Latest updates: VicEmergency

How’s that Future Gas Strategy going, Australia

Secession from IPCC and UNFCCC www.whitehouse.gov/presidential...

Hard to view these terms of reference as anything other than a total capitulation to the media, the right and the pro-Israel lobby. Bondi is the third priority. Cracking down on immigration is before it.

This is unhinged “Sources… pointed to the fact Bell was part of a High Court ruling, Brown v Tasmania, which found Tasmanian laws restricting protest were invalid because they violated the implied freedom of political communication in the Australian Constitution.” www.smh.com.au/politics/fed...

Sort of gives away what this is all about doesn’t it.

Those who have been agitating for the Royal Commission want to make it a RC into why any criticism of Israel is evil. Australians overwhelmingly do not agree with this, and Albanese should side with the public.

“This does not mean that the US’s “special military operation” in Venezuela is entirely a matter of “it’s the oil, stupid”; there is an argument that it helps push back against Iran, China and Russia…” www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

‘The most dangerous day’: bushfires break out in Victoria as BoM warns of catastrophic conditions to come

Now we’re moving on to attacking respected former High Court judges. Great stuff

Surprise surprise! Sussan Ley is panicking at the thought that hate speech against LGBTQIA Australians and other targeted minorities might also be outlawed by Labor. She says she only wants anti-semitism covered. #auspol www.smh.com.au/politics/fed...

I wrote this in April 2024, about why people were refusing to leave X as it became undeniably a pro-white-supremacist site But holy hell could I not have predicted that by 2026, it would be a child abuse material production site and THAT TOO is not enough to get people to leave the fucking place

Solid analysis from my Melbourne Law School colleague Will Partlett: “Breaches of law are normal in any legal system. In fact, they are expected or there would be no need for a legal rule.” pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/the...

ICYMI My new article on the material politics of climate storytelling. I use an experimental approach to juxtapose two stories of climate change in the Pacific. That of the IPCC, representing the dominant narrative, & then an anti-imperial version. @geoopenaccess.bsky.social doi.org/10.1002/geo2...

The clean energy transition is turning into a power struggle. Countries built on fossil fuels are pushing back, while others are racing ahead on renewables. buff.ly/xjJ8AmU #climatesky

Reminder: two permanent lectureships (grade 8 - check essential criteria) to join the School of Law at the University of Leeds! Deadline 17th of January #academicjobfairy

About one in four Australians live on the edge of major cities. The Climate Council says they're at risk of watching their homes burn thanks to climate change. With the heatwave spreading across South Australian and Victoria this week, don't take risks.

Hard to believe this is still being written in 2026, with Trump doing what he's doing (Sam Moyn on liberalism, again? Really?) Too bad also Bojan doesn't discuss, for example, the Brazil/Bolsonaro case, or the growing evidence of Russian interference in elections in Europe.

“With intervention now framed as a standard policy instrument of the USA, it is the response of other states — including in Europe — that will determine whether the erosion of international law becomes normalised across regions” verfassungsblog.de/europe-must-...

"Policies can avoid backlash by focusing less on banning a particular action but instead on making the other options more abundant and attractive (by adding tax incentives or rebates, for example).... Or by aiming to make climate-unfriendly activities more expensive, rather than restricting them."

Excellent thread here engaging in one of my favourite pastimes - hating on Abundance 🍷

The BBC bans its journalists from stating that Maduro was "kidnapped" 👇 www.owenjones.news/p/exclusive-...

By the way, it’s still happening www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/1/...

Anxiety spread across a coastal community in Tasmania over the weekend, following the discovery in the water. au.news.yahoo.com/aussie-town-...

AMWU: “The commodification of houses into a vehicle for accumulating and hoarding wealth has exacerbated inequality and allowed property developers, real estate agents and investors to profit from denying working people the dignity of home ownership” www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

...And the UK 🙄

This is a good piece summing up why Venezuela's oil is at least a partial real factor in what happened over the past few days, beyond just 'big reserves'. Some big US oil majors aren't exactly thrilled but the industry itself never found a dirty, inefficient project it couldn't get subsidised....

This isn’t going to stop until there is enough push back.

Now more than ever, it’s important to understand how energy, climate, and environment are inextricably linked to finance and geopolitics. It’s a great time to follow some awesome journalists focused on those topics here. It’s free!

“Royal commissions are not inherently better at uncovering truth or delivering reform than other forms of inquiry.” www.smh.com.au/national/roy...

New: On the alarming politicisation of the Bondi massacre, and the calls for Albanese to announce a royal commission

I get the basic sentiment. But the problem here is in the final sentence. We dont go "blatant violation of domestic law" = no domestic law. We say rule of law imperilled for now, short cut to autocracy got some work to do. International law is not so fragile. But by damn there is work to do