And I don't mean simply as an aesthetic, but as an approach to fiction, as I keep seeing a dismissal of solarpunk as a literary genre for shallow reasons like it's just about a "perfect" world/lacks conflict, it's only aesthetics, it's like a boring cyberpunk. But solarpunk needs to be thought of as the new steampunk.

Steampunk as a genre is about Victorian values and understandings of what the future can be; it's a form of retrofuturism that explores how a people from a certain century believed their future would evolve.

Solarpunk is futurism. The mistake is making it a utopia rather than how we believe the future will come about according to these ideas. It should be a future more or less realised. It should be taking our understanding of technology, culture, fashion, and beliefs and pushing it to how it could be utilised according to the values of this era/this community. Steampunk examines nationalism, scientific advancements, empires rise and fall, burgeoning class systems in the West, globalisation, industrialisation, equality and social reform, etc etc. because that's what Regency/Victorian/Edwardian and even early 20th century was examining.

Solarpunk fiction needs to examine the same kinds of issues and ideas as pertaining to our modern world and values, and how that eventuates into a future world. Spec-fic requires speculation. What does reality mean if X were to happen? How does humanity react to X? Z must happen because Y which will come from X, and if so, what does that mean morally/socially/personally?

Less ideals, more ideas. Imagine how a person from today lives if thrown into the world of tomorrow. That's what solarpunk fiction needs to be.

^Illustration by Phoebe Wahl

A depressing theme I have seen lately both online and among my peers is the idea that we cannot or should not have children because of the state of the world right now. I fully support anyone who decides not to have children, whatever their reasoning may be. However, even people who want to have children and would genuinely enjoy being a parent are questioning whether it’s the right choice at this moment in time.

Not only are there the obvious factors—climate change, capitalism, and the sheer brutality of the world we live in—but there is also a distinct sense among many of us that becoming a parent robs an individual of their life. Their identity, their hobbies, their status among other adults: everything is subsumed into parenthood. I can’t help but understand why people feel this way, especially women.

Parenthood is demanding. It requires so much of the adults involved. We have long known that the nuclear family is not only an inapt solution, but actually amplifies many of the challenges that come along with raising children. We need a cultural shift towards communal child rearing, and this needs to be a key tenet of solarpunk and similar ideologies.

Things that need to go: - The idea that parents have ownership of children, and that the people genetically related to a child always know what is best for them and should always have the final say on important matters - Calls for segregation of families from adults without children - Individualistic mindsets that encourage people to neglect their responsibility towards their communities

Things that need to begin: - Building strong support networks for parents before, during, and after a child is born - A sense of belonging for all those living in the same building, neighborhood, or area - Robust education for all adults on child development and positive guidance

I know that this is one of the most challenging aspects of building a better future, but as someone who works with children and hopes to someday be a parent, I believe it is absolutely necessary. I would love to hear more ideas or thoughts from other people about this topic and how it fits into solarpunk.

I live in a small town that is about half an hour away from the big city, just at the foot of the mountains. It’s a bit of a downgrade career-wise. I moved here because I wanted to “live where I work”.

Yes it’s a bit of a rural town, but I really enjoy the simple life. There are community plots tended by my neighbors, everything is walkable, things are affordable.

And oftentimes, we get fresh produce for free. Yesterday, someone brought bags and bags of golden kiwi fruits from the tree in their yard.

Title

A Eulogy for Each and Every End.  By Jana Bianchi.

An apprentice undertaker learns the art of death and dying.

Read it here: https://grist.org/climate-fiction/imagine2200-a-eulogy-for-each-and-every-end/

https://preview.redd.it/w4w3vlcmi6ce1.png?width=1024&format=png&auto=webp&s=21b1d3a801b8a1f6829a584f7e5d9ccb6ae491e9

Tangles in the Weave. By Katharine Tyndall.

The time for Ever’s metamorphosis has arrived.

Read it here: https://grist.org/climate-fiction/imagine2200-tangles-in-the-weave/ 

https://preview.redd.it/v4h9gysdi6ce1.jpg?width=1024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=109a13a75aff6003c4fa4b29e64ca7b3fe0b6d4a

Recently went down the rabbit hole regarding how to temporarily mount external mirrors to windows in the winter for passive solar heat and light, and this blog post has the instructions if you want to try it out.

https://www.conservationfund.org/our-impact/projects/urban-food-forest-at-browns-mill/

I’ve always loved business and capitalism, even admiring megacorps in cyberpunk media, but when I discovered solarpunk through this Reddit thread, it made me realize cyberpunk critiques capitalism, and I now can’t enjoy my favorite genre or play 2077 without thinking about fixing the economy. I'm not being silly when I say this sub made me start questing all of my economic views (now its all I post about on reddit).

So if I may, I'd like to propose how businesses could exist and be both sustainable and distribute profits fairly. I have no excuse for posting this here as its not solarpunk, but you guys are the reason I have become so interested in fixing how businesses work:

How businesses must be structured:

• Built-in: Donut/circular environmental model: Businesses operate within the Earth's ecological limits (think: eco-ceiling). Furthermore, like Patagonia, businesses have a circular model built in to incentivize consumers to return materials which are then recycled and re-used
• Built-in: Worker Ownership: Via ESOPs and/or co-ops. These distribute profits to workers, and prevents the exploitation of the Global South by making all employees shareholders. Incentives both entrepreneurship and worker ownership.

Another benefit of worker ownership is that shareholders from far away aren't making decisions about the company, which incentives businesses to be more environmental as well. And, even in a democratic state owned society, it runs the same risk of industrial production being put over environmental concerns. That said, I also think some version of a state needs to exist to manufacture things the market doesn't make (like rare drugs) and provide healthcare to those who cannot afford it.

I live in a place where hurricane Helene devastated it. I was homeless during the storm and now have new ptsd on top of my childhood ptsd.

Right now it's freezing outside and a snow storm is rolling in. It's terrifying to be alone without the resources to survive.

California just has populated center destroyed by fire. Fire is just a season there now. Like fall or summer.

The rich have insane tech. Killer robot dogs with machine guns on their back. Genetic modifications to diseases. We have bird flu and Covid. War waged by drones and entire populations bombed into near genocide.

The billionaires but elections, politicians, policy. They build doomsday bunkers while they are the ones ushering it in.

The common masses squabble over petty TikTok viral outrage. While ignoring everything around then that matters. Then carry on business as usual. Only poking their heads out of the sand to rage about egg or gas prices.

I feel alone and I am alone. I don't relate to anyone I know. This all just feels so hopeless. I try to not be nihilistic. I just always come back to it though.

Solar punk or Star Trek are my great maladaptive day dreams. Places to escape my near constant anxiety and dread.

Anyway just needed to vent. Let the attacks and criticisms begin.

Is Aaron Fletcher, the sheep herder?

https://youtu.be/brQRVbtayK4?si=Xq0-ms9hadSngftr

I'd love to see this built! I'm daydreaming of all the wonderful OpenSource projects I could host on some scrappy Docker servers... all powered by the sun and protected by the earth!

https://open.substack.com/pub/bioharmony/p/solarpunk-tech-hubs

Hello everyone. So I want to share a project that I've been working for a while. I am somewhat new to website development, but I am loving the learning process while working on this project.

What is the project about?

Basically, I am creating a website that is focused on native trees from Mexico (my home country). The website is divided in a number of sections: Homepage, List of Trees, Map of Mexico (I'm still deciding if actually make an interactive map or just make a list of Mexican cities), Favorites and a section for environmental education like water conservation, making mulch, etc.

The purpose of this project is to create a website so people in Mexico can have easy access to information about native tree species that grow where they live.

I would like to hear suggestions or any tips/feedback and what things can I improve.

I apologies in advance if the website is all on Spanish, and also if the website is not fully completed.

https://leonardo-cpu.github.io/Ecoversion/

Drumroll please ... 3rd Place!

Mousedeer Versus the Ghost Ships. 🚢 By Dave Chua.

When automated ships threaten their recovering ecosystem, it falls to Ah Ma and the crew of the Mousedeer to fight back.

https://grist.org/climate-fiction/imagine2200-mousedeer-versus-the-ghost-ships/

https://preview.redd.it/i0jzi4rzw0ce1.png?width=1024&format=png&auto=webp&s=c5f917636a1df8782b769fd4af29e555cac570d6

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20240715-the-simple-japanese-method-for-a-tidier-and-less-wasteful-fridge

What's up solar punk ppl I have a weird thing going on with my solar set up. Hoping someone can help me.

I have an Anker GaN Prime power bank and the complimenting 200W panels from Anker. The first set I had shorted out at the panels and I had them replaced.

The new set seemed to work okay but never pulled anything much over 90W (the first set never pulled much beyond 115) even in ideal conditions. I live at 7500ft in the high desert so we get a ton of sun! Currently, we're in winter season so the days are shorter, but the sun is often still bright. I am only pulling 50W max even on the brightest days.

I've contacted Anker to figure out the problem but they just responded with the basic troubleshoots (reminding me about angles and temperature and yaddah yaddah, thanks, everythings ideal!) and not much help there, they are offering another exchange (I have a warranty).

My concern is that I'll get this third set and still have the low input problem.

HERES THE KICKER THOUGH.

Last week the power bank was at 28%, and with the 50W per day and light use to charge my phone, I was getting about 5-10% increase per day. Well, by the evening of the day that it had started at 28%, it was suddenly at 100%! And, of course, that was not a day I had checked the input W from the panels. The ONLY thing different about that day was super super high winds. How would that make the panels draw more??

Since that day the panels have continued to draw max 50W and the bank is back to charging at a rate of about 5-10% increase on sunny days.

What the hecks goin on???