No, Listen, When I Say I Want To Integrate More Specific Solarpunk Stuff In My Life, I Don’t Mean To

7 reasons why solarpunk is the most important speculative fiction movement in the last 20 years

It’s hopeful. Solarpunk doesn’t require an apocalypse. It’s a world in which humans haven’t destroyed ourselves and our environment, where we’ve pulled back just in time to stop the slow destruction of our planet. We’ve learned to use science wisely, for the betterment of ourselves and our planet. We’re no longer overlords. We’re caretakers. We’re gardeners.

Scientists are heroes again. And not just physicists and astronomers. Knowledge of biology and earth sciences matter, they’re the building blocks for a future on Earth. Scientific literacy isn’t just for academics – it’s part of daily life. People know how the things they use work, and if they don’t, they can access that information. 

It’s diverse. Solarpunk is rooted in using the environment, so it looks different in different places. Alternative energy is best when specific to place (I imagine geothermal, wind, tidal, and hydroelectric energy sources are still used in certain places) so no overarching government system is needed. Communities can organize themselves, taking their own location and needs and history into account. Brazilian, Inuit, Egyptian, Pacific Northwest, and New Zealand solarpunk can all look very different, but be unified in resourceful, intentional, low impact living.

Individuality still matters. In a post-scarcity society, ingenuity and self-expression are not sacrificed on the altar of survival. With solar power there’s no reason not to go off grid, if that’s what you want to do. Communities can self-organize. You can find a community that suits you, or go live by yourself if that floats your boat.

There’s room for spirituality and science to coexist. Solarpunk is rooted in a deep understanding and reverence for natural processes. There’s room for spirituality there, be it pagan, Buddhist, Sufi, Transcendentalism – anything. There’s so much to explore, from nature worship to organized monotheistic religions, and how they interact with solarpunk.

It’s beautiful. The most common solarpunk aesthetic is art nouveau, but again there’s room for diversity, incorporating art styles from multiple cultures in respectful, non-appropriative ways. The most important aspect of solarpunk aesthetic is the melding of art and utility. The idea of intentional living is strong in art nouveau, but it’s not the only art movement with that philosophy.

We can make it happen. Now. Earthships. Permaculture. Aquaponics. Algae lighting. Compostable products that turn into fields of flowers. Buy Nothing organizations. Tiny, beautiful, efficient homes. Solar power cells you can see through. That’s all happening now. Solarpunk is within our grasp, at least on a personal level. I’m not saying there aren’t still big, ugly infrastructures devoted to unethical consumption, but we can start to tear them down. We can build a solarpunk world with stories and small changes. And small changes lead to big changes. That’s the real beauty of solarpunk. It’s not a post-apocalyptic power fantasy. It’s not a wistful daydream, or an elite future only for physicists. It’s something we can work towards right now. It’s tangible.

Circus Tree: Six individual sycamore trees were shaped, bent, and braided to form this.

What are your favorite online planty boy shops?

I did a post about generally all places I’d found to buy plants online which folks made some very lovely additions to. Some of those in my original post I wouldn’t necessarily recommend because there are way cheaper/better places to shop, but that was more of a “here’s what’s out there and is most popular” type post that I really need to do an updated version of someday. But anyway here are some of the places I’ve ordered from that I had a good experience with or seen people order from that I would really like to attempt to order from.

Glasshouse Works - this place has a huge selection and some very old stock plants and does not…. necessarily keep up with current trends and price markups so you can find some cool stuff here for relatively low prices (and low resolution lol). Also, their “collections” are very cool and cost effective. I have ordered twice from them, once in the spring and once in the fall and was very happy with my orders. They also regularly throw in a free “extra” if one fits in your box which is my favorite.

Steve’s Leaves - this place is a wee bit pricier than I’d like but in the end, I think it’s worth it because they ship big and healthy plants. they have a huge stock of begonias and tradescantia and peperomia, if you’re into that and their catalog changes frequently. they do a weekly email special which is fun! I’ve only ordered once from them (got my West Texas Blizzard begonia) but I see loads of people consistently having good experiences with them.

Etsy - I don’t really have a favorite specific shop but etsy is a great place to find a lot of different plants, especially cuttings. definitely look into the reviews of the shop before purchasing though.

Logee’s - tbh this place barely makes it on my list of favorites, just because I have only ordered there once and they tend to be… overpriced and overhyped for the plant you get/what they stock. but they also have a cool catalog and frequent email specials that are lots of fun to look through. I ordered my Begonia maculata wightii from them last year and have been pleased with it, though it was definitely overpriced for a plant so easy to propagate.

Arid Lands Greenhouse -disclaimer here that I have placed an order but not received it yet because I asked them to hold if they felt the weather was bad (which it has been), but they have an absolutely huge catalog of less frequently offered succulents and seem very much geared toward serious hobbyists rather than gimmicks and are very knowledgable. they’re located in arizona and grow a lot of their stuff from seed. 

The People’s Plants - is one I am including here only because this is the website where I recently preordered my Thai Constellation Monstera. This is I think their second or third preorder run and I have seen several people very happy with the plants they received, so I feel comfortable linking them. They have some other cool tropicals in and out of stock from time to time it seems but I don’t know how they compare to other shops.

NSE Tropicals - is one I enjoy seeing instagram updates from but probably wouldn’t order from just because giant aroids aren’t my thing. They have some really awesome beautiful stock plants (almost nothing is in stock currently because winter).

Taylor Greenhouses - this one is similar to Glasshouse Works where it’s owned by some older folks who can barely run a web page. But does have some cool plants (especially begonias) hidden in there and free shipping on orders over $85. I’ve watched a few unboxing videos from folks and not been overly impressed by the size of the plants for the price but still a cool place to poke around.

Josh’s Frogs - I’ve never ordered plants from here (maybe ordered water plants I can’t remember) but if you’re looking for terrarium/vivarium plants and supplies, they’re a great website. They sometimes have some pretty cool plants for cheap, though they’re vivarium sized so pretty small.

PA Orchid Exchange - I have not looked too deeply into this one and haven’t seen any unboxing videos but they’re the newest plant place that’s caught me eye, especially if you’re after some Trendy Boys for what looks like relatively affordable prices?

Rising Seas Are Going to Drown Way More Cities Than We’d Thought: Study

In a low-warming scenario, we expected rising tides to cover areas currently occupied by 37 million people. The real number is closer to 150 million.

But none of the challenges posed by our warming climate has loomed larger in the popular imagination than sea-level rise. With global populations and wealth heavily concentrated in low-lying coastal cities, humanity has been preoccupied by the prospect of the oceans reclaiming the high points of our civilization. And for good reason: The best available models suggest that 37 million people currently live in places that will be below high tide by 2050 — in an optimistic low-carbon-emissions scenario.

Or rather, that’s what such models suggested before this week. On Tuesday, a new study revealed that those alarming statistics — which had gotten so many of us all worked up about our favorite cities’ impending doom — were wildly inaccurate.

The actual impacts of sea-level rise are going to be much, much worse.

Listen, folks, few understand the enormity of what is happening, nor how fast it’s occurring, and, look, I don’t count myself among those few. 

The rest of us do not realize the catastrophe that is happening right now. 

Maybe that’s not fair to say: the people of California probably understand all too well. Even if their home is not on fire, certainly they see the hellish red glow in the sky and cannot avoid the acrid smell of wildfire smoke.

For sure, the indigenous folk who subsist on whale meat understand the crisis, since the bowheads they hunt have not appeared. None of them. They are way out to sea, trying to avoid the warming oceans and underwater heat waves. 

The people of Key West, who have endured a “king tide” flooding their city streets for 60+ days straight, probably think there’s a big problem. Some of them, no doubt, are hanging on to the foolish belief that this tide is going to subside – it’s not – it’s rapid sea level rise. 

It’s not our fault though, that we do not know … did not know, because, everything we have been told, the stuff that has made it out of the media in the past decade or so, has all been based on these same “optimistic low-carbon-emissions scenarios.”

This is not the world we live in. We live in the high-emission catastrophic scenario. We were shown these, when we were shown anything at all, but we were told these catastrophic emission scenarios would never, ever – couldn’t possibly – ever be so. 

Yeah, well, we were wrong about.

Prairies are some of the most endangered ecosystems in the world, with the tallgrass prairie being the most endangered. Only 1-4% of tallgrass prairie still exists. Prairies are critically important, not only for the unique biodiversity they possess, but for their effect on climate. The ability to store carbon is a valuable ecological service in today’s changing climate. Carbon, which is emitted both naturally and by human activities such as burning coal to create electricity, is a greenhouse gas that is increasing in the Earth’s atmosphere. Reports from the International Panel on Climate Change, a group of more than 2,000 climate scientists from around the world, agree that increased greenhouse gases are causing climate change, which is leading to sea level rise, higher temperatures, and altered rain patterns. Most of the prairie’s carbon sequestration happens below ground, where prairie roots can dig into the soil to depths up to 15 feet and more. Prairies can store much more carbon below ground than a forest can store above ground. In fact, the prairie was once the largest carbon sink in the world-much bigger than the Amazon rainforest-and its destruction has had devastating effects.

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What if, instead of tropical fish tanks, you had a live video stream of a section of coral reef? Every time you “fed” the fish, it would be a button you clicked to donate to the reef’s protection. As more you “feed” the fish, you’re granted more access to other reefs. And nightvision cameras are included so you can see your wild pets at night too without disturbing them with harsh lighting.

Perfect for folks like me who love fish, but do not love cleaning tanks.

I… I spend a lot of time talking to my husband about climate change. 

Politics being what it is, I feel like societal change is where I can find hope.  And hey, if we all start making choices based on preparing for an oil-free world, we can actually make oil obsolete!

[On AO3]

earlier this month it was 120 degrees in Australia , but yeah lets continue to mock those trying to save us in the 12 years we have left to slow climate change’s effects. 

What is the worst thing that could happen if we listen to scientists and change our ways, and then it turns out they were lying? 

Slowly dying in a mad max hell world to own the libs I guess. 

california anti-drought measures are always like “take shorter showers! consider brushing your teeth with the sink turned off” and never mention the fact that nestle is bottling all of our fucking water and selling it to people who live in areas with plenty of water