These are posts I wrote in the first couple months after I found out about Solarpunk, starting to grapple with the actual implementation of what I see as solarpunk values, in the face of real-world complexity.
Read MoreIt's not strictly solarpunk, but CGP Grey's "Humans Need Not Apply" is a 15 minute video about the inevitability of complete machine takeover of virtually all labor - one of the serious near-future issues that solarpunk writers should be aware of, both as a relief to look forward to and a problem that needs solving. (Since the global economy is currently based on the idea that people prove their right to keep living by employment.)
Read MoreI want to move away from calling Solarpunk utopian because a utopia is basically an impossible future, utopia means ‘not a place’ and that’s not what Solarpunk is about, it’s about actually creating a sustainable, real future. A real possible future for everybody.
I support this move. I’ve been mostly using the word optimistic, which can also be a problematic word sometimes but I think it more closely reflects the idea of stories that are about a world where the big problems are solvable, not a world where the big problems are solved.
Read MoreI got in an argument a while back with a couple Tumblr users about whether solarpunk is misusing the -punk suffix. Here's that thread, heavily edited, with the trolls' comments abridged completely into questions, because reading the original thread can be kind of infuriating.
Read MoreAlright, only two of these actually call themselves manifestos. But here are some essays that strongly influenced solarpunk, or that we feel are important to solarpunk as we understand it.
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