What happens to our used clothes after we donate them to charity? Every year, over 90 million tonnes of textiles waste is produced globally, but less than one per cent of that is recycled or reused. My latest for @sciencefocus.bsky.social: www.sciencefocus.com/science/clot... 🧪

You really don't want to know what happens to your donated clothes | BBC Science Focus Magazine

You may want to hold onto and repair that damaged outfit

sciencefocus.com

Archaeology, ancient DNA and aerial survey data now challenge the claim that the Rapanui suffered a self-inflicted collapse before Europeans arrived. 🧪

What really happened on Easter Island?

For decades, an influential theory blamed the Rapanui for their own downfall—a story made famous by Jared Diamond’s book Collapse. New evidence tells a different tale

scientificamerican.com

This was a fun one to write for @sciencefocus.bsky.social! From space harpoons to robotic tentacles, here are 5 weird and wonderful methods proposed to clean-up space junk: www.sciencefocus.com/space/space-... 🧪

5 bizarre ways space experts want to clean up Earth’s orbit | BBC Science Focus Magazine

Sticky satellites? Space harpoons? Robotic tentacles? Laser cannons? Space lassos? The fight against space junk continues

sciencefocus.com

'Checking before strimming could save a hedgehog.' 🧪 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

East Yorkshire charity urges people to check for hedgehogs

Holderness Hedgehog Hospital is caring for two hedgehogs with serious injuries caused by strimmers.

bbc.co.uk

✨ New bonus episode! ✨ At #ERF2026 there were several workshops on sustainability, conservation, and environmental issues. I spoke to some of the presenters and attendees about the latest developments in these fields. Check out our conversations here: www.patreon.com/ClaireAsher/... #Robots

📢 Do you have a passion for robotics that you'd like to share with the world? Do you work on, with, or adjacent to robotics? I'm looking for fun and interesting guests for Season 7 of the podcast. 🤖 Think that could be you? Get in touch here: www.robottalk.org/apply-to-be-...

Apply to be a guest - Robot Talk

If you would like to be considered as a possible guest on a forthcoming episode of the Robot Talk podcast, please submit your details below.

robottalk.org

Are wasps feeling the heat this summer? Be kind to wasps at your picnic this summer: share your meal & tell us what they're after. Is it Ham (protein-rich)? or Jam (sugary) @uclnews.bsky.social @theconversation.com @femi-benny.bsky.social @cintiaoi.bsky.social theconversation.com/where-have-a...

Where have all the wasps gone this summer?

And why you should let them share your picnic ham and jam.

theconversation.com

A landmark reassessment shows Sumatran orangutans fell nearly 20% over 12 years, proving deforestation is not the only threat. Co-authored by Indonesia's Forestry Ministry, the study marks a shift toward science-based policy after past claims that orangutan numbers were rising. Learn more! 👇️

Major orangutan study finds Sumatran population fell nearly 20% despite slower forest loss

JAKARTA — The number of Sumatran orangutans has declined by nearly 20% in the past decade and the critically endangered Tapanuli orangutan remains perilously close to extinction despite years of…

mongabay.cc

Plastic pollution and drug-resistant infections are intersecting. New research shows microplastics promote bacterial biofilms that accelerate the spread of antibiotic resistance. Experts to call for urgent wastewater management reforms. @claireasher.bsky.social reports for #Mongabay.

Microplastic pollution can fuel rise in antibiotic resistance, studies find

Plastic pollution is among the gravest environmental crises facing humanity. Plastic production since 1950 has exceeded 8,300 million metric tons, with most plastic waste ending up in the…

mongabay.cc

A new-to-science colobus monkey species, locally called the likweli, has been confirmed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Entirely black with distinct bare skin around its mouth, the rare primate has a population under 1,000 and is facing threats from hunting. @shreyadg.bsky.social reports.

New colobus monkey, ‘Likweli’, confirmed in DRC

In 2008, wildlife researchers surveying a massive, underexplored forested region in the Democratic Republic of Congo photographed a black monkey. That region eventually became Lomami National Park.…

mongabay.cc

In the first second after the Big Bang, a scorching hot sea of light and particles filled the Universe. Over the last two decades, scientists have managed to recreate this liquid light and study its properties. 🧪 My latest for @sciencefocus.bsky.social: www.sciencefocus.com/space/recrea...

Experts have recreated the Universe's first liquid – and it's unlike anything on Earth | BBC Science Focus Magazine

It's not the sea as you see it – more like a primordial goo

sciencefocus.com

I had a fantastic time at @fosgoodwood.bsky.social this weekend, chatting to Isabelle Blanchot from Enchanted Tools and Nick Thompson from OLO Robotics and exploring the amazing exhibits at Future Lab! Watch this space for the videos coming soon! #FOSFutureLab #FOS

Plastic pollution and drug-resistant infections are two of the biggest crises facing humanity. New research is finding deeply concerning links between them. My latest article for @mongabay.com explores how plastic pollution is enhancing antimicrobial resistance. 🧪 news.mongabay.com/2026/07/micr...

Microplastic pollution can fuel rise in antibiotic resistance, studies find

Plastic pollution is among the gravest environmental crises facing humanity. Plastic production since 1950 has exceeded 8,300 million metric tons, with most plastic waste ending up in the environment,...

news.mongabay.com

Can coastal engineering protect shorelines and harbor marine life? Ireland's first Living Seawalls installation is tracking how textured panels help nature gain a foothold on urban coastlines. Learn more in this report by @elizabethalberts.bsky.social for #Mongabay. 👉️ mongabay.cc/YshXuM

🎉 Happy International Women in Engineering Day! 🎉 Today I'm celebrating all the amazing women in engineering that I've interviewed on the podcast. Their inspirational research is having a huge impact on the world, from medicine to education. #INWED26 #WomenInSTEM #EngineeringIntelligence

EXCLUSIVE: Voyager 1 will be 1 light-day away from Earth on November 18, 2026! The spacecraft is already the most distant human-made object in space, and in less than five months it will cross that incredible threshold!! www.iflscience.com/its-official... 🔭🧪

The Trump administration has repealed the 2024 Public Lands Rule, stripping conservation of equal priority with industry across 245 million acres of federal land. Consequently, the DOI revoked a Montana grazing permit for 950 wild bison, ruling leases must prioritize commercial livestock.

Trump administration repeals rule that allowed bison to graze on public lands

U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration recently repealed the 2024 Public Lands Rule, which established that conservation should have equal priority with industry when it comes to accessing…

mongabay.cc

Recently, I was interviewed by Mar Yvette from Robots Good or Bad. We discussed recent developments in robotics, public perceptions of robots, and what I've learned from interviewing over 200 roboticists on the podcast. Check out the interview here: robotsgoodorbad.com/robot-talk-p...

What Robot Talk Host Claire Asher Learned From 200+ Roboticists

Robot Talk podcast host Claire Asher discusses autonomy, bio-hybrid machines made with living cells, and the human skills that robots can't replace.

robotsgoodorbad.com

🌟 It's publication day! 🌟 I'm absolutely thrilled that my children's book, Marvolution, was published today by Bloomsbury. Marvolution is a fantastical encyclopaedia of future animals, based on real evolutionary science (and a bit of imagination!). www.bloomsbury.com/uk/marvoluti...

Robot Talk is returning to the @exrdfestival.bsky.social in London this June for another live recording of the podcast! I'll be chatting to three expert panellists about #robotics and #AI in medicine and healthcare. 🤖 📅 Sat 6th June @ 5pm Register free here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-robot-...

Mongabay has been shortlisted for the @oneworldmedia.bsky.social Awards 2026 in the News Content Creators category for “Conservation Entangled.” 🧵 Watch all of the "Conservation Entangled” series on our YouTube channel! mongabay.cc/Conservation... 📺️

This week's episode of Robot Talk covers a topic particularly close to my heart - visual navigation in ants and bees. 🧪 Andy's research is fascinating and it was lovely to hear him talk with such enthusiasm about social insects and what roboticists can learn from them. Definitely worth a listen!

Robot Talk@robottalkpod.bsky.social · 4mo ago

📢 New Episode Alert! This week, I chatted to Prof. Andrew Philippides from the University of Sussex about what we can learn from ants and bees to improve robot navigation. 🤖 🐝 🐜 Listen now: www.robottalk.org/2026/05/01/e... #Robots #Robotics #BioInspired #AI

Scientists have found one of the world’s largest cold-water coral reefs deep off Argentina. Home to dozens of species new to science, the reef already shows signs damage. Researchers are now testing "artificial corals" to help restore this fragile ecosystem. @elizabethalberts.bsky.social reports.

One of the world’s largest deep-sea coral reefs discovered off Argentina

Biologist Erik Cordes has spent much of his career studying cold-water reefs — coral systems typically found in chilly, dark waters far below the ocean’s surface. But his latest project took him by…

mongabay.cc

📢 New Episode Alert! This week, I chatted to Dr. Simona Aracri from the National Research Council of Italy about innovative robot designs for oceanography and environmental monitoring. 🤖 🐟 Listen now: www.robottalk.org/2026/04/10/e... #Robots #Robotics #Environment #Marine

April 3, now recognized as Jane Goodall Day, is a day of action to carry forward the habits and responsibilities she encouraged, rather than simply commemorate her A long-time @mongabay.com advisory board member, we got to know this legend & bask in her glow, and carry her message of hope forward:

Today is Jane Goodall Day. Her movement continues.

April 3 now carries a different kind of weight. It was always Jane Goodall’s birthday. Now it is also a marker—a point in the year when people are asked not just to remember her, but to do something w...

news.mongabay.com

‪ 🌳 Do you want to contribute to research on how humans perceive forests? Take this quick, anonymous 10-min survey 🌲 👉 www.biodiful.org#/forest This will help us explore how people experience forest biodiversity! Please share on 🦋 & tag @biodiful.bsky.social to reach more participants 🙏💚 🌐🌍🦤🦑🪴🍁🧪

Chemists have developed a "self-deconstructing" plastic that can be programmed to break down on cue. Researchers at Rutgers University have developed a method to modify materials so they break down into molecular components at a specific time or in response to triggers. Story by Claire Asher.

Promising breakthrough creates plastics that self-deconstruct on cue: Study

Plastics have a gigantic built-in problem: They’re tenacious, which is very good for a milk jug or a car bumper. But they don’t easily break down, which is bad for the environment. From the 1950s,…

mongabay.cc

Plastic pollution is a global environmental crisis, but what if we could design plastics that automatically break down after use? 🧪 My latest article for @mongabay.com looks at a recent study that used clever chemistry to do just that. news.mongabay.com/2026/03/prom... #CircularEconomy #Plastics

Promising breakthrough creates plastics that self-deconstruct on cue: Study

Plastics have a gigantic built-in problem: They’re tenacious, which is very good for a milk jug or a car bumper. But they don’t easily break down, which is bad for the environment. From the 1950s, whe...

news.mongabay.com

Curious about #robots inspired by insects? 🤖 Later this season, I'll be chatting to Prof. Andrew Philippides from @sussex.ac.uk about what we can learn from ants and bees to improve robot navigation. Send me your questions for Andy in the comments below!

Brazil has cleared vast Amazon areas, and the impacts go beyond biodiversity loss. Further deforestation could push it toward a tipping point. Agroforestry offers a path to restore forests while producing commodities, according to a new analysis. ** Views are author's.

Agroforestry offers market-based way to boost Amazon rains & farmer incomes (analysis)

The Amazon Rainforest generates its own weather. Each day, the forest’s 390 billion trees release approximately 20 billion metric tons of water vapor into the atmosphere through evapotranspiration,…

news.mongabay.com