No one ever talks about how on the eighth day of Christmas your true love presumably also gives you eight cows.

We're looking forward to attending the @plaidcymru.bsky.social Conference next week, and to having the chance to share our work and ideas.

If you’re at the conference, do come and say hello!

Music has so much to teach us about innovation and - by extension - how to do social change.

Every single UX upgrade to Google Maps over the past few years has made it slightly worse.

It’s actually quite impressive.

Mission Manager (Wales), A Sustainable Future We are recruiting for a Mission Manager, A Sustainable Future (Wales)

Another role at Nesta Cymru is live now. My old job (!) looking after our work on decarbonising homes.

www.nesta.org.uk/jobs/mission...

Happy to chat to interested applicants.

👋 @andyregancdf.bsky.social, Jono and I will be in Llandudno for the Welsh Labour conference next week. Fancy a chat? 🌞
We like to chat about how to:
🍎 reduce obesity at pop. level
⚡ speed-up home decarb
👶 use data in the early years
💡 'do' policy differently! Innovation tools and techniques

I’ll do you a deal, internet… I’ll buy one of those small metal wallets that block RFIDs or whatever if you promise I will then never see an advert for one ever again.

Mission Manager (Wales), A Fairer Start We are recruiting for a Mission Manager, A Fairer Start (Wales)

Join the Nesta Cymru team!

Mission Manager (A Fairer Start, Wales)

Help us develop innovative, scaleable solutions to the factors that prevent children from disadvantaged backgrounds from thriving.

www.nesta.org.uk/jobs/mission...

Mission Manager (Wales), A Fairer Start We are recruiting for a Mission Manager, A Fairer Start (Wales)

Join the Nesta Cymru team!

Mission Manager (A Fairer Start, Wales)

Help us develop innovative, scaleable solutions to the factors that prevent children from disadvantaged backgrounds from thriving.

www.nesta.org.uk/jobs/mission...

We need cheaper electricity to unlock a more effective fuel poverty strategy As fuel poverty rates remain stubbornly high, we call for a stronger role for low-carbon heat, cheaper electricity through levy reform and a move away from deep retrofits in hard-to-treat homes

My colleague @martinakavan.bsky.social has written a blog setting out Nesta's view on how a new DESNZ Fuel Poverty strategy can better address energy bills AND decarbonisation.
www.nesta.org.uk/blog/we-need...

Focus is UK policy, but many ideas that the next Welsh Government could adopt too.

Watching Conclave. Someone should tell them about Slido.

Had to explain to my 6yo what a sun tan was today. #wales

So I’m pleased to have the chance to help shape how this expanded role for Nesta Cymru evolves, and bring in the perspectives of our partners and friends in Wales.

As part of this we’re also increasing our focus on devolved policy, to complement our continued work on our missions and innovation partnerships in Wales.

The next few months are going to be a key period for figuring out what those lovely preceding sentences actually mean in practice.

Nesta is investing in developing our capacity for wider policy work and government partnerships to support our missions. By bringing this together with our innovation methods, we have an opportunity to shape not just the what but the how of policy making.

A bit of news.... I’m pleased to say that for the next few months I will be taking on the role of Interim Head of Nesta Cymru, whilst a replacement for the irreplaceable Rob Ashelford is recruited.

Can time-of-use tariffs make heat pumps cheaper to run? Using heat pumps flexibly could cut your bills by up to £600 annually – without shifting your energy use

Sharing this late, but @andyregancdf.bsky.social and I wrote a thing about time-of-use electricity tariffs and heat pumps.

We have a surprising finding: you can save a LOT of money running a heat pump by using a flexible tariff, even if you don’t use it flexibly

www.nesta.org.uk/blog/can-tim...

Can time-of-use tariffs make heat pumps cheaper to run? Using heat pumps flexibly could cut your bills by up to £600 annually – without shifting your energy use

New Nesta blog... Our HeatFlex trial has convinced us you can use heat pumps flexibly - but can doing so really save money?

www.nesta.org.uk/blog/can-tim...

with @acjsissons.bsky.social

Businesses are increasingly vocal about the uncompetitiveness of energy prices. It has long been the case that Europe has higher energy prices than the US because the US has embraced fracking. President Trump is going to inflict many wounds on the US economy, but his “drill, baby, drill” approach to energy policy will lower the cost for US businesses further. Even in the European context, our energy costs are high. Industries such as steelmaking and chemicals are increasingly priced out of the UK for this reason. Nor is this just a problem for established industries. Artificial Intelligence requires data centres and data centres require a lot of energy. An ambition to lead the world in AI is incompatible with high energy prices.

I generally like David Gauke's writing, but this is really poor on energy prices and net zero I'm afraid.

Not going to rebut the whole thing, but a couple of quick points...

www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk-...

A plan for Wales’ clean heat future Nesta calls for all party manifestos to prioritise policies which embrace clean heat and prioritise the people of Wales at the heart of their approach to decarbonisation

The next Welsh Government will preside over a crucial period in Wales' pathway to net zero. We need a dramatic acceleration in the rollout of clean heat - and a focus on how to deliver the current heat pump targets.

Read more about Nesta's proposals here:
www.nesta.org.uk/project-upda...

Pinned tweet for the ages.

Nesta Cymru We work in several ways across Wales to help solve big challenges.

What has @nestauk.bsky.social been doing in Wales?

As a devolved nation, there is a unique opportunity to develop, test and scale new ideas for social good, finding places where devolution allows us to go further and faster in achieving our aims.

Find out more:
www.nesta.org.uk/project/wales/

Watchdog accuses HMRC of deliberately ‘degrading’ phone services Long call waiting times have ‘damaged trust in the tax system’, public accounts committee report says

I had to raise an HMRC issue last year. It wasn’t possible to choose a route to an advisor by phone. So I filled in online forms, to which they replied by post.

Overall it took around *nine months* to resolve. Is this counted in their waiting times data?
www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

No matter how long one spends in Wales the Mari Llwyd never quite becomes normalised.

A life spent on Zoom has created unrealistic expectations that in large groups there will only ever be one person speaking at a time.

Overheard in a deli “How much is the smallest panettone?”

And now I have that in my head to the tune of “How much is that doggie in the window?”.

God help us if there’s a war.

Live At The Moon Cardiff, by Various Artists 10 track album

Ed from @themooncardiff.bsky.social has put together a lovely compilation of tracks recorded at the venue - proceeds going to the staff crowdfunder.

Pre order here: themooncardiff.bandcamp.com/album/live-a...

Is there a term / buzzword phrase that means something like "a situation where a series of individual decisions, which are reasonable / successful in themselves, cumulatively result in net negative outcomes"?

Cheaper electricity, fairer bills Electricity prices are disproportionately higher compared to gas prices

Levies currently account for 11% of a household's energy bill, but they are not allocated evenly. They are 16% of a electricity bill, but only 5.5% of a gas bill.

Read Nesta's new analysis of what to do about this>> www.nesta.org.uk/report/cheap...