John Marchant
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johnmarchant.bsky.social
John Marchant
@johnmarchant.bsky.social
350 followers 260 following 46 posts
Birds, moths and other British wildlife: I have helped record our declining bird diversity for 50+ years as a BTO staffer and volunteer - in retirement, enjoying what’s left, and paying more attention to other taxa.
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Reposted by John Marchant
robinince.bsky.social
Very sad that I felt I had no choice but to resign from The Infinite Monkey Cage - a victory for the transphobes and other bigots - I did it because so much of the media has chosen to believe the kind and empathetic people are a fiction - they are real and so often unrepresented.
This is the saddest day of my professional life. Today is not only the final recording of the latest series of The Infinite Monkey Cage, it is my last ever Monkey Cage. I never thought that I would have to leave the show. I always imagined going on until | dropped dead under the studio lights due to a brain aneurysm caused by my final attempt to understand notions of quantum gravity or the shock of being told about fly maggot infestations in the sacks of macaque monkeys. I resigned in September, after sixteen years of dedication to the show, A show that I named and helped develop over all those years. Unfortunately, my opinions outside the BBC have been considered problematic for sometime, whether it has been voicing support for the trans community, criticism of Donald Trump, numerous other outlandish opinions, including once gently criticising Stephen Fry. These things were considered to conflict with being a freelance BBC science presenter In a recent meeting where BBC Studio executives again voiced problems with me, I realised my choices. Obedience and being quieter to remain making Monkey Cage, or 'Resign and have the freedom to speak out against what I believe are injustices'. • I chose the latter. It broke my heart. I love this show and I love the audience, and it is because of the audience in particular, that this decision was so difficult to make. I kept thinking about all the extremist voices promoting hate and division. They are being given so many platforms, while voices that represent kindness, open mindedness, empathy seem to be scarcer and scarcer. I felt I couldn't pamper myself with the luxury of silence. One of my many privileges is that I am able to resign and I can speak out even if it is to the detriment of my career. I have thought a lot about my heroes, Sinead O Connor, James Baldwin, Audre Lorde, and so many more. I think of Sinead's words, "the job of an artist is to be themselves at any cost". James Baldwin said prejudice was really just a word for cowardice. Audre Lorde, viewing her life, wrote that her only regrets were her silences. I think of my father as I resign, he brought me up to believe in fairness , justice and kindness. Though my heart is broken, it is also full of fire. I apologise to our incredible listeners for my departure, your love of the show means a great deal. I am so sorry to let you down. I hope that you can understand my reasoning. I have to accept that I am not what the current BBC expects of their freelance presenters. Despite this I should add that I have always worked far more than my contracted hours to try and ensure the show was always the best it could be, as well as making myself accessible and responsive to the audience wherever and whenever I met them. Every night, we have recorded, I have been filled with determination to make the best show possible. This was not "just a job" I hope that with my departure I can be a better ally to the LGBTQ community, to the neurodivergent community, to activists fighting against those who aim to brutalise society, to those currently in prison on hunger strike, and to all those who fight for a more inclusive world. From many conversations, I know there are many Monkey Cage listeners who support these communities and activists too. The strawberry is dead. Long live the strawberry. B
December 13, 2025 at 12:02 AM
Reposted by John Marchant
debbietann.bsky.social
Labour seem determined to wreck what’s left of our natural world. So many broken promises.

www.wildlifetrusts.org/news/nightma....
Nightmare before Christmas: worst environmental regression in decades looms | The Wildlife Trusts
Labour’s list of broken promises mounts
www.wildlifetrusts.org
December 11, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
kirstyfranklin.bsky.social
Seasonal field staff needed for @rspbscience.bsky.social projects in 2026 - advert live, closing date 11 Jan. Lots of #seabird (& non-seabird) opportunities!

Get in touch if you’d like to know more about any of the #seabird roles 🌊🐦

app.vacancy-filler.co.uk/salescrm/Car... #seabirds #ornithology
Research Assistant and Senior Research Assistant - Seasonal Recruitment 2026 | RSPB
We are delighted to bring the details of our seasonal Research Assistants and Senior Research Assistants vacancies on a variety of projects within Great Britain in 2026.Full details of the roles curre...
app.vacancy-filler.co.uk
December 10, 2025 at 11:10 AM
Reposted by John Marchant
sundersays.bsky.social
The Home Office continues to use language that its own data refutes
December 7, 2025 at 11:14 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
nataliegreenpeer.bsky.social
"Region imported 438,000 tons of pesticides and herbicides in 2020, two-thirds more than in 2018. More than half of such chemicals used in Nigeria are highly hazardous, at least 40% of those can’t be sold in Europe"

#Pesticide colonialism
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Europe’s Banned Pesticides Are Poisoning Nigeria
Chemicals barred by the EU are widely available across Africa, threatening food and water supplies.
www.bloomberg.com
December 8, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
adrianramsay.bsky.social
I’m hiring a caseworker. If you have experience in casework or similar work, and a passion for making a difference for individuals and the wider community, I want to hear from you. Join my team in Diss for four days a week. More info at www.adrianramsay.org.uk/jobs
Jobs — Adrian Ramsay MP for Waveney Valley
www.adrianramsay.org.uk
December 8, 2025 at 5:09 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
goodlawproject.org
'The CPS has named Jonathan Bullock, Julia Reid and Steven Woolfe, saying they followed the script provided to Nathan Gill... when giving interviews to... a pro-Russian TV channel in March 2019."

How many apples have to be rotten before you discard the barrel?
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
Three more Farage bloc MEPs alleged to have followed Russian asset’s script
At least eight MEPs elected for Ukip or Brexit party now known to have been focus of efforts by jailed Nathan Gill
www.theguardian.com
December 7, 2025 at 7:01 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
petergeoghegan.bsky.social
🔴 Nigel Farage’s Reform is more reliant on super-rich backers than any major party in modern British political history

75% of *all* Reform donations *ever* have come from just three rich men

Is this what democracy looks like?

New on Democracy for Sale
democracyforsale.substack.com/p/75-of-refo...
75% of Reform UK’s donations have come from just three rich men
Calls grow for donation caps as Democracy for Sale research reveals that three-quarters of Reform’s funding comes from a trio of wealthy donors
democracyforsale.substack.com
December 5, 2025 at 10:55 AM
Reposted by John Marchant
btobirds.bsky.social
£54 million! 😮 That’s the estimated financial value of our incredible volunteers’ efforts in 2024. They contributed an estimated over 2.6 million hours to BTO work. 📝 A huge thank you to our amazing volunteers! #InternationalVolunteerDay

📷 Ben Igglesden / BTO
A close up image of a women showing the back of her head as she stands in a field writing bird survey notes on a notebook, with trees visible in the background.
December 5, 2025 at 10:02 AM
Reposted by John Marchant
georgemonbiot.bsky.social
1. Some good news at last. This week’s column is about the amazing thing a couple of us stumbled into three years ago, which we’ve now developed into a global research programme. It doesn’t change everything, of course, but it could help change quite a lot. + 🧵 www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Over a pint in Oxford, we may have stumbled upon the holy grail of agriculture | George Monbiot
I knew that a revolution in our understanding of soil could change the world. Then came a eureka moment – and the birth of the Earth Rover Program, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
www.theguardian.com
December 5, 2025 at 6:55 AM
Reposted by John Marchant
greenparty.org.uk
"When are we going to have a cost of living special?"

Zack Polanski on #BBCQT

join.greenparty.org.uk
December 4, 2025 at 10:45 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
jeremybartlett.bsky.social
Billionaires shouldn't be able to buy a bigger voice in politics. Add your name to ‪@electoralreform.bsky.social‬'s call to put a cap on how much they can donate in the #ElectionsBill
action.electoral-reform.org.uk/page/179420/...
Sign now to demand an end to big money in politics
It takes 30 seconds
action.electoral-reform.org.uk
December 4, 2025 at 7:04 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
adrianramsay.bsky.social
In case it wasn't already obvious why Farage and his party are spreading misinformation about the climate crisis and trying to blame the most vulnerable for the problems caused by inequality - they've just received a record donation from a jet fuel multimillionaire!
December 4, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
nataliegreenpeer.bsky.social
#Glyphosate - how much damage done in those 25 years, to #PublicHealth and #biodiversity.

We have to stop this #pesticide merry-go-round of new-wonder-chemical, concerns, then obvious disaster.

We need #agroecology

www.lemonde.fr/en/environme...
Influential study on glyphosate safety retracted 25 years after publication
A 2000 study that concluded the well-known herbicide glyphosate was safe, widely cited since then, has just been officially disavowed by the journal that published it. The scientists are suspected of ...
www.lemonde.fr
December 4, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Reposted by John Marchant
wensumriverkin.bsky.social
What is & who are Wensum Riverkin? Meet a river in trouble & meet the team who will never stop fighting for it - part 2 #wensumriverkin
December 3, 2025 at 7:54 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
greenparty.org.uk
"The Labour Government is laying the groundwork for further crackdowns on dissent, whistleblowing and protest if it removes juries from so many charges that have state or corporate victims." - @sianberry.bsky.social
REAL HOPE. REAL CHANGE. "More than fifteen years of continuing austerity has caused a backlog in the courts, not juries. Instead of dismantling a centuries-old fundamental legal right, the Government must reverse the neglect and cuts that created this mess in the first place." Siân Berry MP, MP for Brighton Pavilion Green Party Promoted by Chris Williams on behalf of The Green Party, both at PO Box 78066, London SE16 9GQ
December 3, 2025 at 12:15 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
markgolley.bsky.social
One thing that stood out on our wander to Salthouse y'day was this distinctive seaweed that was really abundant along a half-mile stretch of beach. Looks just like Irish Moss (carragheen) but on the east coast? Puzzling...
@linnetincley.bsky.social
@norfolknats.bsky.social
@peediepuss.bsky.social
This may be one of those seaweed species that has always been there, that's always washed up on Cley beach but, off the top of my head, I don't ever recall seeing it before. The one species that seems to fit is Irish Moss (dead ringer for it in online search) but that's a seaweed of, primarily, Atlantic coasts. Is there a sister-species on the east coast or is this an unusual event on the Norfolk coast? I'd love to know more...
December 3, 2025 at 10:48 AM
Reposted by John Marchant
btobirds.bsky.social
1/ The UK Biodiversity Indicators, some using BTO data, have been updated by Defra and @jncc.bsky.social ➡️ jncc.gov.uk/our-work/uk-...

Here’s how BTO contributes to these indicators, which show the state of #biodiversity, its pressures and conservation responses. ⬇️
A Tree Sparrow perches on a branch. Wording above reads: UK Biodiversity Indicators 2025. Out now!
December 2, 2025 at 7:12 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
richardkbroughton.bsky.social
This table from the new UK Biodiversity Indicators is particularly stark, bleak, and awful. Almost every major group of UK birds is doing badly in the long- and/or short-term. None are showing sustained recovery, most have been declining for 50 years. Awful. #ukbirding #ornithology
December 2, 2025 at 11:04 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
jncc.bsky.social
UK Biodiversity Indicators 2025 are now live jncc.gov.uk/our-work/uk-...

With contributions from nearly 100 organisations, they are useful tools for summarising & communicating broad trends 🧵

#TogetherForNature
Wild Flower Chalk Grassland with Orchids copyright Matthew J Thomas/iStock
December 2, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
btobirds.bsky.social
Did you know our BTO HQ in Thetford was once a Benedictine monastery founded in King Canute’s time (1016-1035)? The site was then taken over by Benedictine Nuns & was run as a Nunnery until 1537. The oldest existing remains here date back to the late 12th century.

#ExploreYourArchive #EYAMedieval
The outside of the ruin photographed from an upstairs office window, showing a ruined wall with plants growing up it, including a bright yellow bush. Base of a column which is now inside the BTO office Ruins can be seen in the BTO garden in the background, with two trees in the foreground and the corner of the BTO office on the right hand side.
December 1, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
rxnature.bsky.social
Climate change isn’t something we can afford to put off any longer, we must take action.

www.nebriefing.org/open-letter-...

#climatecrisis #netzero #NEB2025
National Emergency Briefing
An unfiltered assessment of the latest threats to UK food supply, health and national security from eight leading experts to an invitation-only audience - also covering positive solutions. Westminster...
www.nebriefing.org
December 1, 2025 at 6:16 AM
Reposted by John Marchant
lukemcgee.bsky.social
This is the most alarming story I’ve read today. Giving up the fight before it’s started
November 30, 2025 at 9:57 AM
Reposted by John Marchant
russincheshire.bsky.social
Just because it's reached the 100,000 threshold, doesn't mean anything will happen.

So keep signing and sharing, because we need to show MPs that there's a huge demand.

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/74...
Petition: Call a public inquiry into Russian influence on UK politics & democracy
We are concerned about reported efforts from Russia to influence democracy in the US, UK, Europe and elsewhere. We believe we must establish the depth and breadth of possible Russian influence campaig...
petition.parliament.uk
November 29, 2025 at 4:34 PM
Reposted by John Marchant
watershed-i.bsky.social
8,000 illegal waste sites
13 million tons of rubbish
No controls on waste dumped sometimes near rivers + in floodplains
Burning of waste
Little or no policing

How criminal dumping of waste became the 'new narcotics'

Our latest article, out now:

www.theguardian.com/environment/...
At least 8,000 illegal waste sites in UK, research suggests
Exclusive: Concerns over impact on health and environment, as well as £1.63bn in avoided landfill tax
www.theguardian.com
November 29, 2025 at 8:41 AM