For funsies, my comprehensive exams were in: 1. 20th century American modernism 2. Contemporary American lit (which, at the time, was like 1989-2009) 3. Books by white male authors my chair thought I should read 4. Books by women, queer authors, and BIPOC authors I wanted to read

Oh joy, I got my first literary promo email from an AI bot! Double joy, it is addressed to a whole other Sara Davis, offering to promote a book I most assuredly did not write. What a confidence boost on a day when I am literally actually trying to finish my first book. 😅

This week, you can stand up for science, read local environmental news, and plan ahead for the coming month.

Short month, but a good month of reading even though my local library branch was still closed for most of it. 💙📚 #BookSky

Climate links from 2026 so far: what the White House is up to, more plastics where we don't want them, and some odds and ends of interest.

What we're reading this month—featuring gorgeous prose that weaves personal stories of loss and recovery with environmental themes.

It's pretty snowy out there, but there are some great webinars this week, including one about biodiversity and storytelling.

OH MY GOD why did none of you tell me they were turning VLADIMIR into a limited series?! With Rachel Weisz?!?!

A reminder about this labeler bsky.app/profile/harp...

Since the troll column seems to have worked: The very very very very very very very obvious question is not "why hasn't the left embraced AI" but "why has the right so eagerly embraced a tech product built on theft, sold by fraud, and optimized for abuse and misinformation"

“Is there a technology the left is excited about?” High-speed rail! MRNA vaccines! New cancer treatments! Solar and wind energy collection! Better and longer-range EVs! That wood that's harder than steel! New apples! Fibermaxxing! Buldak Swicy ramen! Muppets! Muppets are too a technology, shut up!

Last week saw a major setback in the fight to regulate harmful greenhouse gas emissions. You can read more about it--and you can also seek out ways to learn about and connect with the environment.

Happy Valentine's Day from my foster fail, who has loved everyone he ever met and expects to be fully and equally loved by us all. Truly an icon-- May his brave open heart be an inspiration.

This is an outstanding resource and very clear rundown on a) why Substack is bad because people apparently still need to be spoonfed in 2026 and b) the MYRIAD options to use instead

My doomer-worry about AI is not that the LLMs become omnipotent and take over the world but that the wealthy and powerful use it as a means to consolidate power and marginalize or lay off skilled workers and also everything about our technological and political and social life gets worse

This week you can layer up and show some love to a local park--or you can stay warm and read the news.

What we're reading this month— featuring themes like ag-tech, disability and queerness, and the untamed pockets of urban spaces.

Last week we learned that a high-performing magnet school focused on environmental education was one of 20 Philly schools slated to close. Learn more about Lankenau and other local news this week.

The Rewilding Our Stories Discord is reading IS A RIVER ALIVE? by Robert Macfarlane together this spring. If reading this gorgeous book with a group of eco-nerds sounds fun to you, you're welcome! We read and discuss at our own pace, so there's time to grab a copy and join in. discord.gg/gjub7nHEfQ

This month I read HAMNET, DANGEROUS FICTIONS, and WHY FISH DON'T EXIST. I also reread some favorites because that's the kind of comforting book you want in a snowstorm.💙📚 #BookSky

Just updated this gigantic document, so it's time to reshare. I've been collecting and curating links about genAI since 2023; every so often I add more or replace some. This is how I process the news, but it's also handy when someone asks why I won't use genAI. literarysara.net/for-writers/...

Friday is salt snapshot day, so I already plan to be out of the office with my fellow volunteer stewards, carefully collecting samples from our ice-covered urban streams and testing sodium chloride levels. Unpaid work, but how lucky I feel to be able to choose environmental data over my day job.

This hit so fucking hard today.

The last week in January is Winter Salt Week--a great time to learn about how salt pollution impacts the natural world. We need road salt and sidewalk salt to stay safe--especially in this weather!--but we use more than we need.

"Slavery was real" Tiny sign at the base of a brick wall that, until yesterday, held panels about the people enslaved by George Washington. Presidents House, Philadelphia.

Fun bluesky fact is that no matter what else is going on, someone is always reading Moby Dick

What you can do: Week of January 19 This week, you can submit comments on environmental policy at the local and federal levels.

Hello. If you need a moment to interrupt the feedback loop of scrolling, come on a walk with me courtesy of a snowy winter morning in FDR Park in Philadelphia.

I've been saying to get rid of your ring for years, but SERIOUSLY. Get rid of your ring!!!

This is a big reason why I've been trying to use physical media at my library whenever it's on offer, even if there are digital options. Anyway, if your local library has a friends of the library chapter, set up a recurring donation and help your library out.

God I'm glad I'm not on the food culture beat anymore. I used to love writing explainers and citing Lévi-Strauss and Bourdieu and all that, but I take psychic damage every time something like this drops. "They're just such fucking weirdos" pretty much sums it up anyway.

Introduce yourself with: 1 movie 1 book 1 TV show 1 album Flow (2024) Braiding Sweetgrass Abbott Elementary Vespers of the Blessed Earth (John Luther Adams)

Introduce yourself with: 1 movie 1 book 1 TV show 1 album Clue: The Movie Middlemarch Crazy Ex Girlfriend Until Morale Improves the Beatings Will Continue

I admit I haven't been calling my reps every day, but when I called today, *a human picked up the phone* in my rep's office and one of my useless senators' offices. That tells me I (we?) am (are?) not being enough of a pain in the ass. I resolve to be more relentless.

Every week, we share environmental news and opportunities to learn or do more. This week's short roundup includes MLK Day park cleanups, Delaware River news, and a webinar about trees.

This is stunning. Listen to this in Philadelphia. Thousands singing “Hey-Oh, we won’t be silent while our friends are gunned down.” Really listen to it.

This framing is going to give me strength for a year of semiquincentennial nonsense in Philadelphia.

Rounded up the links I saved in the last few months of the year. Includes some coverage of the still-developing story of Venezeula, more links about AI and the environment, and--as always--a little bit of good news.

Let’s make 2026 the year of the bog. The world’s most unique and interesting plants, clean water, cooler climate. Bogs deserve our thanks, care, and deep respect. Please join me and love a bog today.

2025 was not a great year for reading, for me. But here are the 13 books I loved best this year.

This month I read Someone You Can Build a Nest In, Exile and Pride, and Saltcrop. 💙📚 #BookSky But the larger part of this post reflects on the year that was and the one that will be.

What you can do: Week of January 5 This week, you can learn about the local birds of winter.

I do not understand this creature. He is a true extrovert. I had people in and out of my house all afternoon to ring in the new year with black eyed peas and greens, and he was in the middle of it the whole time. I am exhausted but more attention only makes him more powerful.

Every now and then I hear folks dreamily wish for the city to plant edible trees along the streets. They are always surprised to learn that many of our city trees ARE edible--apples, cherries, pears, and more! They just don't look like fruits in the grocery store. For that, we need skilled workers.

Buried Creek Collective is a Philly-based initiative to connect local creatives to environmental information and resources. We launch officially in a month or so, but meanwhile, you can get to know us through our blog--and check out our fave reads of 2025! buriedcreekcollective.com/2025/12/26/o...

It's a strange, liminal week--but there are still several things You Can Do to enjoy, support, or understand the environment in the Philadelphia area! buriedcreekcollective.com/2025/12/22/w... Buried Creek Collective posts short round-ups like this weekly, if you're local and interested.

“America has produced nothing that wasn’t stolen from another culture or instantly corrupted by the same culture that created it” No! America has produced one book about a whale

In November I read The Möbius Book, Eleutheria, An Original, and Middle Spoon. 💙📚 #BookSky

I was vibing with this morning's gentle, reverent poem in my inbox, but somehow missed that it was penned by the wonderful @mkdordiggsy.bsky.social!