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martincjones.com
🇦🇺/🇩🇪 climate change/energy economist and policy wonk; former academic (CEEM) and consumer advocate (CUAC); amateur footballer. Personal views. He/him.
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Google is raising my Google Workspace pricing claiming all the “AI value” added. I turned off Gemini in Gmail and Docs because it just doesn’t work / do anything useful for me. So why am I being charged more? Having costs b/c of AI is not the same as generating value with AI…

I heard Scott Morrison had received an award, but didn't know it was in the top category. Unbelievable. He was an awful Prime Minister. "Honouring Scott Morrison makes a mockery of awards system." www.theage.com.au/national/hon...

'Apple researchers: while AI models perform extremely well at maths and coding, when it comes to more complex problems, they only provide "The Illusion of Thinking."' mashable.com/article/appl...

Do not go to the World Cup.

This is not a joke. This is very fucking serious. Avoid this place at absolutely all cost. It didn’t have to be this way, but we’re here, please just keep yourselves safe. Soccer isn’t worth it. Fuck the United States.

I’m taking over as the menswear guy. Men should rotate through the same four band t-shirts for 35 years. Replace the shirts with identical shirts if the holes in them get big or you get too fat for them

Saw today for the first time a seriously brilliant way to cut wildlife roadkill: virtual fencing! These devices, installed every 25m for $10K km warn wildlife by detecting approaching vehicles and emitting a flashing light and a beep. Has cut deaths by 90%! #WildOz www.abc.net.au/news/2025-06...

Great chat w @greenprofgreen.bsky.social about why climate institutions are fundamentally broken, because they exist to avoid talking about the real problem - assets, not emissions. And she has views on the Ozone comparison: Watch it all: youtu.be/6cBpbuR-qbc?...

Worth a read; Dr Evans researches the design, implementation and evaluation of environmental policy, with a particular focus on biodiversity and carbon markets.

I'm not a Behic fan, but that was a cracking goal #AUSJPN

It hasn’t been five months and the judges are quoting Kafka in their opinions

A notable presentation at last week's Energy Efficiency National Conference was a paper by Dr Ron Ben-David, former chair of the ESC and a fellow known for his insightful (but often quirky) writings: The 500lb gorilla of the gas transition www.monash.edu/__data/asset...

GBCA: "Domain's 2025 Sustainability in Property Report ... finds energy-efficient homes are a top priority for buyers across all budgets and postcodes. On average, they are selling for $118,000 more – that’s a 14.5% premium over non-efficient homes." new.gbca.org.au/news/thought...

When Anthony Albanese appointed Peter Khalil as special envoy for social cohesion, the PM said Khalil would "report directly to him". A FOI request to the PM's office uncovered zero reports (and just an email and a calendar entry) from the now-eliminated role. www.crikey.com.au/20...

"The paperwork is done: Time for feds to 'lean in' on offshore wind, says [Victorian Energy Minister] D’Ambrosio" reneweconomy.com.au/the-paperwor...

Whoof, Ketan Joshi is really taking a swing at Cwth Labor over at Crikey: "Labor is not a climate denier. It’s worse: it’s a tactical fatalist. It ... understands the gas industry dies in the potential future where we get to live, and is whipping open the gas taps" www.crikey.com.au/2025/06/02/n...

US gas-fired turbine wait times as much as seven years; costs up sharply www.spglobal.com/commodity-in... $2400/kilowatt for a combined cycle! 🔌💡

Carbon Pulse: "China plans to reform its intensity-based emissions trading scheme in the coming years and impose an absolute cap on carbon emissions" ($) carbon-pulse.com/403578/

The European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change has recommended the EU adopt a 2040 GHG emissions reduction target of 90–95% below 1990 levels, with domestic abatement only (no international/Article 6 offsets). climate-advisory-board.europa.eu/news/staying...

Football Australia get right coach in Joe Montemurro, but why did it take so long? | Joey Lynch

'Monash University researchers have published a study into how well current certification schemes ensure hydrogen made from renewable electricity actually delivers climate benefits, applying life-cycle analysis to Australia’s NEM as a case study' fuelcellsworks.com/2025/05/30/e...

"Natural gas will play a bigger role in Australia’s shift to cleaner energy as Labor advances plans for new gas-import terminals and industry braces for new rules to force gas exporters to reserve more supplies of the fossil fuel for domestic use." www.theage.com.au/politics/fed...

www.nytimes.com/2025/05/30/o...

I FOUND MATT CANAVAN'S MUSIC VIDEO AND YOU ARE NOT READY FOR THIS (ping @pollytics.bsky.social especially)

This is the kind of stuff that history suggests will never be wound back by any future administration. Maybe President Rahm/Gretch/Gavin won't do insane tariffs but the security state banks its wins

Inside the Bradfield recount: painstaking and polite, but sometimes heartbreaking

Victoria has launched its latest Future Climate Tool, providing an interactive dashboard of climate projections and climate-related hazard indicators vicfutureclimatetool.indraweb.io/cmip6/

Good news: "The [European] Commission's assessment shows that the EU is currently on course to reduce net GHG emissions by around 54% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels, if Member States implement fully existing and planned national measures and EU policies." ec.europa.eu/commission/p...

May I recommend an article we wrote based on a cut chapter? foreignpolicy.com/2024/01/21/s...

ABC doing ‘all the heavy lifting’ as commercial networks abandon local kids’ TV drama