7 Reasons Why Solarpunk Is The Most Important Speculative Fiction Movement In The Last 20 Years

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.

What is Lunarpunk?

So far, I feel like solarpunk has been the thing that’s well defined in terms of what it means to people. It is not just an aesthetic, it is a vision for the future, and an activist methodology. Learning how to grow your own food in your backyard in a bucket in 2018 is just as solarpunk as delicate and elaborate solar jewelry that also functions as your phone.

This is the same with lunarpunk. There are things you can do now in your life that are anti-capitalist and punk and easily accessible, and there are beautiful aesthetics that capture the feeling we want our future society to have.

I believe that lunarpunk is the other side of the coin of a solarpunk society, and that a fully solarpunk society without its lunar counterpart wouldn’t be complete. That in every person there are two parts and those parts correspond with the day and the night.

Daytime is a time meant for experiencing this world. Science is a daytime thing, and so is getting your errands done and making phone calls. The sun illuminates our world in such brightness that it can’t and shouldn’t be ignored.

On the flipside, nighttime is for spirituality, and transcending this world. It is for experiencing art and stories and music and integrating them into our selves. Its for getting high. Its for watching the moon and the stars and contemplating your place in the universe, and it is for dreams.

Human beings need both sides of this coin. They need both science and spirituality in their lives. I think that right now (at least in the US) people focus too much on the daytime sides of themselves, and neglect their more personal and spiritual needs.

Now, solunarpunk definitely resembles this philosophy that I have. On solarpunk blogs you get lots of articles about the newest scientific breakthrough, and gardening tips. However it also delves into lunarpunk territory a bit, with the emphasis on beauty and happiness and art being Incorporated into almost every design that I see for the future. I think that this is great, and we can not completely separate the sides of the world. There has to be bleedthrough or else it just ends up with two different cultures. I think that the solarpunk community on tumblr is very well balanced.

However, lunarpunk is a little bit less understood, because in western society, individual spirituality isn’t a bit priority. This means that there are way less lunarpunk blogs than solarpunk blogs. Those that I have seen have been mostly posting about aesthetic, and stories about the distant future. Again, this is great! I love seeing all of that stuff! But I want to post more about the things we can today to become lunarpunk, the way that there are gardening tips on solarpunk blogs.

Well, this was a good talk. Now I have something to look back on if I get confused about what I’m supposed to be doing. Hopefully someone got something out of this.