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Solarpunk - Blog Posts
This, is perfect idea of the future! A world that a cross between Solarpunk & Cyberprep. Where rual america is thriving, plants are as common as people, the farm land is diverse in GMO crops, & the the land shelters local wildlife. I know, it's a bit of a stretch. But, when it comes to the future of Humankind, I'm a major optmist!
I fact this is what my home town dimension I am from!
i remember the heat like i remember my own name.
i live in florida now, mind u, so im not unfamiliar with the heat but...it's a different kind of heat.
men carrying water jugs over to the local mercado to refill for their homes, sometimes making five or more trips to do so, because sometimes the running water in the favelas either stops working or runs dirty, and the sweating from the weather is not a scent u want ur house to be filled with. families walking around the city covering themselves with parasols and cobertorinhos to buy groceries and whatnot. children running down to the river to bathe and swim not necessarily just for fun but because that was the only way to cool down. women hanging up wet clothes to dry between as varandas das ruas, sitting shirtless on their balconies because inside is almost hotter. our seasons are different from North America's because they are switched around, so "winter" hits in June/July/August for us -- it's very similar to florida though, in the sense that we pretty much have two seasons -- summer and less summer. i have vivid memories of running down to the beach with my cousins in my father's hometown of Iguape, just outside of São Paulo, naked as the day we were born and jumping into the sea to feel the cool relief away from the blazing heat.
this heat has killed over 48,000 people (source link) from 2000-2018, and climate change is only going to make it worse. in 2023, the country recorded its hottest temperature ever at 44.8°C -- that is 112.6°F. in g20climaterisks.org's article recounts a study done about climate change and its impact in Brasil in a projected 2050-2100 timeline - the study predicts heat wave/heat-related excess deaths will increase by 854%. when Gomes da Silva describes the feeling of being able to breathe again, it is no exaggeration.
green roofs have been around since the 60s, its nothing new. in fact, as Cassiano said, what would be considered the Brasilian "1%" has already planned and built homes with green roofs and has been doing so for quite a while. it has taken this long to get to a point where it's semi-accessible to the general public, and it does not cost as much to us in the US as it does to those in Brasil -- this is an amazing development but there is still more work to be done. for example, this spring is odd to floridians since it feels like its fucking July, but thats because florida's in a fucking drought right now -- there have been 17 wildfires as of April 22nd, only one of which that was contained (and only 70% contained at that). green roofs wouldnt kill the problem entirely, but i would really like to see this or some version of this in the United States while i'm still living.
Pictured: Luis Cassiano is the founder of Teto Verde Favela, a nonprofit that teaches favela residents in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, how to build their own green roofs as a way to beat the heat. He's photographed at his house, which has a green roof.
Article
"Cassiano is the founder of Teto Verde Favela, a nonprofit that teaches favela residents how to build their own green roofs as a way to beat the heat without overloading electrical grids or spending money on fans and air conditioners. He came across the concept over a decade ago while researching how to make his own home bearable during a particularly scorching summer in Rio.
A method that's been around for thousands of years and that was perfected in Germany in the 1960s and 1970s, green roofs weren't uncommon in more affluent neighborhoods when Cassiano first heard about them. But in Rio's more than 1,000 low-income favelas, their high cost and heavy weight meant they weren't even considered a possibility.
That is, until Cassiano decided to team up with a civil engineer who was looking at green roofs as part of his doctoral thesis to figure out a way to make them both safe and affordable for favela residents. Over the next 10 years, his nonprofit was born and green roofs started popping up around the Parque Arará community, on everything from homes and day care centers, to bus stops and food trucks.
When Gomes da Silva heard the story of Teto Verde Favela, he decided then and there that he wanted his home to be the group's next project, not just to cool his own home, but to spread the word to his neighbors about how green roofs could benefit their community and others like it.
Pictured: Jessica Tapre repairs a green roof in a bus stop in Benfica, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Relief for a heat island
Like many low-income urban communities, Parque Arará is considered a heat island, an area without greenery that is more likely to suffer from extreme heat. A 2015 study from the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro showed a 36-degree difference in land surface temperatures between the city's warmest neighborhoods and nearby vegetated areas. It also found that land surface temperatures in Rio's heat islands had increased by 3 degrees over the previous decade.
That kind of extreme heat can weigh heavily on human health, causing increased rates of dehydration and heat stroke; exacerbating chronic health conditions, like respiratory disorders; impacting brain function; and, ultimately, leading to death.
But with green roofs, less heat is absorbed than with other low-cost roofing materials common in favelas, such as asbestos tiles and corrugated steel sheets, which conduct extreme heat. The sustainable infrastructure also allows for evapotranspiration, a process in which plant roots absorb water and release it as vapor through their leaves, cooling the air in a similar way as sweating does for humans.
The plant-covered roofs can also dampen noise pollution, improve building energy efficiency, prevent flooding by reducing storm water runoff and ease anxiety.
"Just being able to see the greenery is good for mental health," says Marcelo Kozmhinsky, an agronomic engineer in Recife who specializes in sustainable landscaping. "Green roofs have so many positive effects on overall well-being and can be built to so many different specifications. There really are endless possibilities.""
Pictured: Summer heat has been known to melt water tanks during the summer in Rio, which runs from December to March. Pictured is the water tank at Luis Cassiano's house. He covered the tank with bidim, a lightweight material conducive for plantings that will keep things cool.
A lightweight solution
But the several layers required for traditional green roofs — each with its own purpose, like insulation or drainage — can make them quite heavy.
For favelas like Parque Arará, that can be a problem.
"When the elite build, they plan," says Cassiano. "They already consider putting green roofs on new buildings, and old buildings are built to code. But not in the favela. Everything here is low-cost and goes up any way it can."
Without the oversight of engineers or architects, and made with everything from wood scraps and daub, to bricks and cinder blocks, construction in favelas can't necessarily bear the weight of all the layers of a conventional green roof.
That's where the bidim comes in. Lightweight and conducive to plant growth — the roofs are hydroponic, so no soil is needed — it was the perfect material to make green roofs possible in Parque Arará. (Cassiano reiterates that safety comes first with any green roof he helps build. An engineer or architect is always consulted before Teto Verde Favela starts a project.)
And it was cheap. Because of the bidim and the vinyl sheets used as waterproof screening (as opposed to the traditional asphalt blanket), Cassiano's green roofs cost just 5 Brazilian reais, or $1, per square foot. A conventional green roof can cost as much as 53 Brazilian reais, or $11, for the same amount of space.
"It's about making something that has such important health and social benefits possible for everyone," says Ananda Stroke, an environmental engineering student at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro who volunteers with Teto Verde Favela. "Everyone deserves to have access to green roofs, especially people who live in heat islands. They're the ones who need them the most." ...
It hasn't been long since Cassiano and the volunteers helped put the green roof on his house, but he can already feel the difference. It's similar, says Gomes da Silva, to the green roof-covered moto-taxi stand where he sometimes waits for a ride.
"It used to be unbearable when it was really hot out," he says. "But now it's cool enough that I can relax. Now I can breathe again."
-via NPR, January 25, 2025
How to begin a sustainable way of life
This is a draft of something I've been writing for a couple months. It is mainly focused on the culture of the USA. Feel free to repost or otherwise share, with or without credit.
Do not tell people what to do—help them do it!
Give the gift of relief from being forced to engage in society’s unsustainable ways of life.
“People need to eat more plant-based foods.” ->Talk about your favorite recipes, give others recipes, cook for them, and grow vegetables and plants in your garden and give them away as gifts.
“People need to repair their clothes.” -> Offer to repair others’ clothes, and teach people how to repair their clothes.
“People need to buy less clothes.” -> Give them old clothes that you don’t want, help them repair their clothes
“People need to buy less plastic stuff.” -> Learn to make things that can serve the same purpose, such as baskets, and give them as gifts. Let people borrow things you own so they don’t have to buy their own.
“People need to stop using leafblowers and other gas-guzzling machinery.” -> Offer to rake the leaves. You can use them as compost in your own garden.
“People need to be more educated about nature.”-> Learn about nature yourself. Tell people about nature. Be open about your love of creatures such as snakes, spiders, and frogs. Do not show awareness that this could be strange. You are not obligated to quiet down your enthusiasm for creepy crawlies to demonstrate awareness that it is weird. Point out at every opportunity how these animals are beneficial.
“People need to use cars less.” -> Offer rides to others whenever you must go somewhere. Whenever you are about to go to the store, ask your neighbor or your friend who lives along the way, “Is there anything you need from the store?”
You cannot control others’ behaviors, but you can free them from being controlled.
If you think to yourself, “But this would be so difficult to do!” ask yourself WHY? Why does your society coerce you into less sustainable ways of living, forcing you to consume excessively? After thinking about this, consider that it is less simple and easy than you thought to make more sustainable choices, so why would you judge others for not doing it?
Do not act alone—act with others!
Environmentally friendly behaviors that can be done alone, without collaborating with or consulting another person, are the least powerful of all. Whenever an “environmentally friendly” behavior is suggested, figure out “How can I give this as a gift?” or “How can I make this possible on the level of a whole community?”
“Personal choices” do not work because every single person has to make them individually. If you are focused on making your own personal choice, you are not focused on others. If you are not focused on others, you are not helping them. If nobody is helping each other, most people won’t be able to make the “personal choice.”
You inherently share an ecosystem with your neighbors
Start with your neighbors, the people physically close to you. You live on the same patch of land, containing roots from the same plants and trees. You can speak to them face to face without traveling, which means you can easily bring them physical things without using resources to travel.
Always talk to your neighbors and be friendly with them. Offer them favors unprompted and tell them about how your garden is doing. Do not be afraid to be annoying—a slightly annoying neighbor who is helpful, kind, and can be relied upon for a variety of favors or in times of need is a necessary and inevitable part of a good community. If you make the effort to be present in somebody’s life, they will have to put up with you on some occasions, but that is just life. We cannot rely on each other if we do not put up with each other.
Simply spending time with someone influences them for good
Every hour you spend outside with your neighbor is an hour your neighbor doesn’t spend watching Fox News. Every hour you spend talking with someone and interacting with them in the real world, eating real food and enjoying your real surroundings, is an hour you don’t spend only hearing a curated picture of what reality is like from social media.
Isolation makes it easy for people to become indoctrinated into extremist beliefs. When someone spends more time alone, watching TV, Youtube, or scrolling social media, than they do with others, their concept of what other people are like and what the world is like comes more from social media than real life. TV and online media are meant to influence you in a specific way. Simply restricting the access these influences have to yourself and others is helpful.
A garden is the source of many gifts
If you grow a garden, you can give your neighbors and friends the gift of food, plants, and crafted objects. This is one of the foundational ways to form community. When you give food, you provide support to others. When you give plants, you are encouraging and teaching about gardening. It is even better when you give recipes cooked from things you grew, or items crafted from things you grew. You can also give the gift of knowledge of how to grow these plants, cook these recipes, or craft these objects.
More on gift-giving
Some people are uncomfortable with receiving items or services as gifts. They want to feel like they are giving something back, instead of having obligation to return the favor hanging over them.
It can help to ask a simple favor that can be easily fulfilled. People generally like the feeling of helping someone else.
When you give someone a gift, it can help to say something like “Oh, I have too many of this thing to take care of/store/eat myself! Do you think you could take some?” This makes your neighbor feel like they are helping you.
When allowing others to borrow items, you might not get them back. Don’t worry about that. It just means the item found a place where it was needed the most. You can ask about the item if you think it might have been forgotten, and this can create an opportunity for a second meeting. But don’t press.
If the person you give to insists upon some form of payment, this is a good opportunity to negotiate a trade.
Ask to be given compostable or recyclable things
Ask your neighbor to save compostable scraps, biodegradable cardboard and paper products, and any other items that might be put to use. Use them in your own compost pile. Or, start a compost pile at the edge of the yard where you both can add to it. Remember that “wet” compost like vegetable and fruit bits needs to be mixed with twice as much of “dry” and “woody” compost like cardboard, leaves, small twigs, paper and wood bits.
Use the front yard for gardening
Overcome the cultural norm that the front yard is only decorative. Use the front yard for gardening so you can be seen by others enjoying your garden, and others can witness the demonstration of the possibilities of land. In the front yard, anything you do intentionally with your land can be witnessed. It also makes you a visible presence in your community.
Grow staple foods
Don’t just grow vegetables that cannot be the core component of a meal themselves. Grow potatoes, dry beans, black eyed peas and other nourishing, calorie-dense foods. Grow the ingredients of meals. You could even build a garden around a recipe.
Invite neighbors and friends over to eat food made from things you grew
Be sure to send them home with leftovers.
Grow plants for baskets
Containers are one of the fundamental human needs. If we had more containers, we wouldn’t need plastic so much. You can learn to make baskets, and to grow plants that provide the raw materials for baskets.
If someone rakes their leaves, ask to have the leaves
If you see someone putting leaves in bags, don’t be afraid to ask if you can have the leaves. More likely than not they will be happy to agree.
Collaborate with neighbors to plant things in the no-man’s-land of the property line
In the border land between your neighbor’s yard and your yard, it is almost always just mowed grass because no one can plant anything without it affecting their neighbor. But these border lands add up to a lot of space. It would be much better if you talked to your neighbor about what would be nice to plant there, and together created a plan for that space.
Give others the freedom to wander
Make it clear that you will not get mad if the neighbor’s kids play in your yard or run across it. Invite the neighbors onto your land as much as possible. Tell them they are allowed to spend time in a favored spot whenever they would like.
The power of the hand-made sign
If there is a yard sale, you always know about it because of the hand-drawn signs placed around. Therefore, a cookout or unwanted item exchange can be announced the same way. In rural areas I have seen hand-made signs that say: FIREWOOD or WE BUY GOATS or EGGS. This is one of the few technologies of community that remain in the USA. If someone who looks to buy and sell can put up a hand-made sign, why shouldn’t you?
Religious people or people with strong political opinions like to put signs everywhere. If they have the confidence and courage to do so, why shouldn’t you?
So if there is a message you would like everyone to see, use the simple power of the hand-made sign. Proclaim “BEE FRIENDLY ZONE!” above your pollinator garden with all the confidence of a religious fundamentalist billboard. Announce to the world, “VEGETABLES FREE TO ALL—JUST ASK!” “WE TAKE LEAVES—NO PESTICIDES.” Instead of YARD SALE, or perhaps in conjunction with YARD SALE, you can write, PLANT EXCHANGE or SEED SWAP or CLOTHING SWAP. Who can stop you?
Someone has to do it for society to change
Some of these ideas might be eccentric, strange, or even socially unacceptable, but there is no way to change what is normal except to move against it. Someone has to be weird. It might as well be you.
I thought I’d post more Luc Schuiten because I am in love with his work.
I mean, look at this:
Isn’t it beautiful? Here’s what it looks like inside:
Here’s a 3D model:
Imagine if all that glass was solar-collector glass. It’s stunning and it would generate huge amount of energy.
I’m just going to sit and sigh over this for a while.
Here’s a thing I’ve had around in my head for a while!
Okay, so I’m pretty sure that by now everyone at least is aware of Steampunk, with it’s completely awesome Victorian sci-fi aesthetic. But what I want to see is Solarpunk – a plausible near-future sci-fi genre, which I like to imagine as based on updated Art Nouveau, Victorian, and Edwardian aesthetics, combined with a green and renewable energy movement to create a world in which children grow up being taught about building electronic tech as well as food gardening and other skills, and people have come back around to appreciating artisans and craftspeople, from stonemasons and smithies, to dress makers and jewelers, and everyone in between. A balance of sustainable energy-powered tech, environmental cities, and wicked cool aesthetics.
A lot of people seem to share a vision of futuristic tech and architecture that looks a lot like an ipod – smooth and geometrical and white. Which imo is a little boring and sterile, which is why I picked out an Art Nouveau aesthetic for this.
With energy costs at a low, I like to imagine people being more inclined to focus their expendable income on the arts!
Aesthetically my vision of solarpunk is very similar to steampunk, but with electronic technology, and an Art Nouveau veneer.
So here are some buzz words~
Natural colors! Art Nouveau! Handcrafted wares! Tailors and dressmakers! Streetcars! Airships! Stained glass window solar panels!!! Education in tech and food growing! Less corporate capitalism, and more small businesses! Solar rooftops and roadways! Communal greenhouses on top of apartments! Electric cars with old-fashioned looks! No-cars-allowed walkways lined with independent shops! Renewable energy-powered Art Nouveau-styled tech life!
Can you imagine how pretty it would be to have stained glass windows everywhere that are actually solar panels? The tech is already headed in that direction! Or how about wide-brim hats, or parasols that are topped with discreet solar panel tech incorporated into the design, with ports you can stick your phone charger in to?
(((Character art by me; click the cityscape pieces to see artist names)))
Solarpunk Action Week 2021
It’s that time again, space cadets!
Solarpunk Action Week has been ongoing twice a year since 2019, with every week looking bigger and better than the last. People all over the world are planting gardens, learning new skills, building things, reducing waste, spreading information, taking direct action, and getting their neighborhoods and workplaces organized. We, your humble hosts, have consulted the auguries and scheduled Solarpunk Action Week 2021 for:
April 25th to May 1st!
Mark your calendars, kids
What is Solarpunk?
Solarpunk is a movement in speculative fiction, art, fashion and activism that seeks to answer and embody the question “what does a sustainable civilization look like, and how can we get there?” The aesthetics of solarpunk merge the practical with the beautiful, the well-designed with the green and wild, the bright and colorful with the earthy and solid. Solarpunk can be utopian, just optimistic, or concerned with the struggles en route to a better world — but never dystopian. As our world roils with calamity, we need solutions, not warnings. Solutions to live comfortably without fossil fuels, to equitably manage scarcity and share abundance, to be kinder to each other and to the planet we share. At once a vision of the future, a thoughtful provocation, and an achievable lifestyle.”
And what is Solarpunk Action Week?
Solarpunk Action Week is a week dedicated to taking radical environmentalist and anticapitalist action to make the world a better place. Previous Action Weeks have seen people starting gardens, learning new skills, making and repairing things, reducing waste, spreading information, getting involved in community organizing
All you have to do participate is begin or continue with an environmentalist, anticapitalist project and talk about it in the #SolarpunkActionWeek tag; it’ll get a lot of signal boosts to connect with other people around the world doing the same. &and follow along on Mastodon at @SolarpunkActionWeek@ecosteader.com
- - -
The previous Solarpunk Action Weeks saw a lot of individual actions, and those were incredible to witness, but we’re at our most powerful when we come together, so your homework for the next 6 months between now and the end of April is: Get organized! If we were able to do so much as individuals back in March, just imagine what you could get done rolling into Solarpunk Action Week with a crew ready to go
If you’re new to organizing, here are some great places to get started:
The Industrial Workers of the World (which has that good good Environmental Unionist Caucus and Southern Coordinating Committee)
Food Not Bombs
Mutual Aid Disaster Relief
Transition Initiative
Buy Nothing Project
Food Not Lawns
Can’t find anything in your area? Start something yourself!
Got 1 or 2 friends? You can start an affinity group
Guide to small-town organizing
7 steps to starting a Food Not Bombs group
Wet’suwet’en supporter toolkit
And I’m sure people will link to all sorts of other great projects and resources in the rebagels, so keep an eye on the notes!
If you’re already part of a union or a tenants’ association or what have you, even better! Get them in on it.
What can I do?
So many things! You can check out the #SolarpunkActionWeek tag to see what others have done in the past for inspiration. The two dinguses organizing these events have got resource tags full of just so many things you might could do and how to get started on them, here and here respectively. And here are some other fun ideas:
Everything you need to know about solarpunk
Everything you need to know about gardening
Everything you need to know about agitprop
Everything you need to know about antifascist action
Everything you need to know about making and repairing things
Everything you need to know about organizing in your workplace and your community
Learn how to become a street medic
Learn how to repair clothes
Regrow food plants from kitchen scraps
Recycle scrap fabric into yarn
20 plants to grow indoors
Make your apartment more energy efficient
Build a beautiful and functional vertical garden out of your literal garbage
Get out there and invent the future, space cadets, because we have a world to win. I know y’all are gonna make me proud; y’all always do.
If you want to keep up with/support the mods between Action Weeks, here’s our info:
Pops: Mastodon, tumblr (resources tag), Patreon, ko-fi
Natalie: Mastodon, tumblr (resources tag), Patreon, cashapp $NatalieIronside, buy Natalie’s book
—
“We have always lived in slums and holes in the wall. We will know how to accommodate ourselves for a time. For, you must not forget, we can also build. It is we the workers who built these palaces and cities here in Spain and in America and everywhere. We, the workers, can build others to take their place. And better ones! We are not in the least afraid of ruins. We are going to inherit the earth; there is not the slightest doubt about that. The bourgeoisie might blast and ruin its own world before it leaves the stage of history. We carry a new world here, in our hearts. That world is growing this minute.“
–Buenaventura Durruti
If everybody lived like that economy would collappse, society would not be stable..." i hear this so often...and it makes me the odf one out in my small town and in my family .
tbh: a diffrent society and the end of economy as it is now wouldn't be that bad in my opinion.
I love spirituality,art and crafting. I believe that life is than just work We don’t want kids. I work only part time to have time for my partner, to take care for a loved one with dementia, for my art and spiritual progress.
No interest in owning a house, car or other status symbols. Only buying what i absolutly need , having hobbies that requiere no money ( walking, yoga, reading books from the libary...)
My peace and feeling fullfilled is my top priority. ...and obvisouly that's going against the capitalist doctrine.I once read the sentence: " happy people are the nightmare of economists bc the don't need so much stuff anymore!" My goal in live since then is to be the absolute nightmare if this people.
Solarpunk Action Week: Spring 2020!
(Eventually you people are going to learn to stop encouraging me to do stuff)
Since the main organizer of the previous festivities has migrated to Mastodon pretty much exclusively, ya’girl is gonna go ahead and get started on the Tumblr side of 2020′s Solarpunk Action Week. Mark your calendars for March 8th thru 14th!
“But Lyudmila,” you say, “why in the entire hell are you talking about March in November?” – Well, it’s never too early start learning and planning.
What is Solarpunk?
Solarpunk is a movement in speculative fiction, art, fashion and activism that seeks to answer and embody the question “what does a sustainable civilization look like, and how can we get there?” The aesthetics of solarpunk merge the practical with the beautiful, the well-designed with the green and wild, the bright and colorful with the earthy and solid. Solarpunk can be utopian, just optimistic, or concerned with the struggles en route to a better world — but never dystopian. As our world roils with calamity, we need solutions, not warnings. Solutions to live comfortably without fossil fuels, to equitably manage scarcity and share abundance, to be kinder to each other and to the planet we share. At once a vision of the future, a thoughtful provocation, and an achievable lifestyle.”
And what is Solarpunk Action Week?
Solarpunk Action Week is a week dedicated to taking and spreading actions–complex or simple, big or small–to build our communities, practice our skills, and make the world just a little bit better. Make a Tumblr post about whatever action(s) you take and tag me in or use the #SolarpunkActionWeek tag, and I’ll reblog them here and archive them over on @the-last-girl-scout. No doubt many other blogs will be doing likewise!
What can I do?
Oh, so many things! No, really, one of the reasons I’m making this post so far in advance is that the sheer number of possibilities can be pretty overwhelming. What you do is up to you! but for instructions and inspiration, you should check out the Sunbeam City wiki, and I’ve spent the past year archiving how-to and educational posts over on @the-last-girl-scout (check out the #solarpunk [obvs], #gardening, #diy, #organizing, and #afa tags specifically), and you should also go ahead and follow the laundry list of blogs I’m gonna @ at the bottom of this post b/c they are all very good, and make sure and check the notes for anyone/anything I may have forgotten!
You could start a garden, flyer/sticker your neighborhood, share food w/ your pals and the neighborhood, do some self-education, learn how to make something instead of buying it, overthrow capitalism … the possibilities are endless!
Get out there and invent the future, space cadets.
@solarpunkcast @solarpunkwobbly @systlin @plantanarchy @solarpunk-gnome @solarpunkwitchcraft @antifainternational @tropicalhomestead @akradicalgardener @kropotkindersurprise @solarpunkbaby @advocateforearth @plantyhamchuk
A lunarpunk book recommendation:
The Darkness Manifesto: On Artificial Light and the Threat to Our Ancient Rhythm by Johan Eklöf. It's a nonfiction book regarding all the ways artificial light disturbs animals and human beings. Johan himself studies bats in Sweden and I think people who want to take a more activist approach to lunarpunk would love this book! ^^
Follow us on Instagram too: https://www.instagram.com/yup.that.exists
This startup is turning plastic waste into affordable housing
The company called Eco Domum, or Eco Home, is based in Puebla, Mexico. Founder Carlos Daniel González collects, sorts and melts down non-toxic plastics into a liquid, according to Unreasonable. That sludge is then put into a hydraulic press, which forms the plastic into hardened panels. It takes two tons of plastic to make one house. At scale, González’s plastic houses could be just what Mexico needs.
Follow @the-future-now
DANDELION JELLY! !! It tastes like honey! 🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝 been a busy bee last few days harvesting flowers, plucking petals, extracting nectar, straining and canning this delicious jelly! Very Tideaous work but it’s worth it!
3 cups dandelion tea (made from 4 cups of petals in boiled water overnight ) 4 cups of sugar 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice 6 tbsp of regular ball fruit pectin Water bath can for 10 minutes Makes 6 - ½ pints
4/20/16
solarpunk actions for minors/ppl with generally less independence ?
WOW LATE! Sorry, I’ve been without computer for a while.
Reuse! Wash and save jars. Rescue cans for planters. Before you toss something, think: is there another use for this?
Blow dandelion seeds around. Seriously, they grow anywhere and they’re useful from flower to tip.
On that note, learn what plants are edible where you are. Eat them.
Learn, research!
Find local organizations focused on conservation, food, and local sustainability. Donate money, time, stuff, whatever they need/you have.
Walk/bike places if you can/it’s safe
That’s all I have right now!! Anyone can reblog with more.
Researchers at Michigan State University have created a fully transparent solar concentrator, which could turn any window or sheet of glass (like your smartphone’s screen) into a photovoltaic solar cell. Unlike other “transparent” solar cells that we’ve reported on in the past, this one really is transparent, as you can see in the photos throughout this story. According to Richard Lunt, who led the research, the team are confident that the transparent solar panels can be efficiently deployed in a wide range of settings, from “tall buildings with lots of windows or any kind of mobile device that demands high aesthetic quality like a phone or e-reader.”
So some dude got sent to the hospital with cyanide poisoning because he was eating cherries and decided, for some fucking reason, to crack the pits open and eat the meat inside.
“I didn’t think nothin’ of it. Thought it was just a seed.”
“Deep breath”
I SWEAR TO THE FUCKIN GODS…..
(cue 25 minutes of unintelligible yelling)
….and that is why being separated from our food’s origins and not knowing anything about botany is what is wrong with the world today goddamnit.
Solarpunk fashion
So a lot of the solarpunk fashion I see is very pretty flowy sorts of things in muted natural colors like green and yellow, and it all looks very crystal spires and togas… But much of it runs counter to what I think of as sustainable clothing? Where the fuck are your pockets?
I pose that medical scrubs are ideal solarpunk fashion. Comfy as hell with good freedom of movement, simple patterns that most people can easily make at home, pockets for days. They’re intensely functional clothes, made from durable materials that are meant to withstand frequent washings, and often made from sustainable fabric.
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.
By copyrighting his property as an artwork, he has prevented oil companies from drilling on it.
Peter Von Tiesenhausen has developed artworks all over his property in northern Alberta. There’s a boat woven from sticks that is gradually being reclaimed by the land; there is a fence that he adds to each year of his life, and there are many “watching” trees, with eyes scored into their bark.
Oil interests pester him continually about drilling on his land. His repeated rebuffing of their advances lead them to move toward arbitration. They made it very clear that he only owned the top 6 inches of soil, and they had rights to anything underneath. He then, off the top of his head, threatened them that he would sue damages if they disturbed his 6 inches, for the entire property is an artwork. Any disturbance would compromise the work, and he would sue.
Immediately after that meeting, he called a lawyer (who is also an art collector) and asked if his intuitive threat would actually hold legally. The lawyer visited, saw the scope of the work on the property, and wrote a document protecting the artwork.
The oil companies have kept their distance ever since.
This is but one example of Peter’s ability to negotiate quickly on his feet, and to find solutions that defy expectations.
8 vegetables that you can regrow again and again.
Scallions
You can regrow scallions by leaving an inch attached to the roots and place them in a small glass with a little water in a well-lit room.
Garlic
When garlic begins to sprout, you can put them in a glass with a little water and grow garlic sprouts. The sprouts have a mild flavor than garlic and can be added to salads, pasta and other dishes.
Bok Choy
Bok choy can be regrown by placing the root end in water in a well-lit area. In 1-2 weeks , you can transplant it to a pot with soil and grow a full new head.
Carrots
Put carrot tops in a dish with a little water. Set the dish in a well-lit room or a window sill. You’ll have carrot tops to use in salads.
Basil
Put clippings from basil with 3 to 4-inch stems in a glass of water and place it in direct sunlight. When the roots are about 2 inches long, plant them in pots to and in time it will grow a full basil plant.
Celery
Cut off the base of the celery and place it in a saucer or shallow bowl of warm water in the sun. Leaves will begin to thicken and grow in the middle of the base, then transfer the celery to soil.
Romaine Lettuce
Put romaine lettuce stumps in a ½ inch of water. Re-water to keep water level at ½ inch. After a few days, roots and new leaves will appear and you can transplant it into soil.
Cilantro
The stems of cilantro will grown when placed in a glass of water. Once the roots are long enough, plant them in a pot in a well-lit room. You will have a full plant in a few months.
We See Seashores Shifting with Satellites
If you’re like us, as soon as the summer Sun is out, you start feeling – well, just beachy, sand you very much.
Lots of our favorite beaches are inside protected marine areas, which are regulated by governments to keep their ecosystems or cultural heritage intact. If you beachcomb at Cape Cod, swim in the Florida Keys or learn about Hawaiian culture at Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, congrats! You’ve visited a protected marine area.
But time and tide haven’t been kind to some protected beaches.
Beaches are constantly changing, and science teams are using our 30-year record of Earth images from the NASA/USGS Landsat program to study what’s happening.
Overall, the sum total of sandy beaches has increased a bit over the last 30 years. But time and tide haven’t been as kind to our protected beaches – the team found that more than 1/3 of sandy beaches in protected marine areas have been eroding away.
Some of these areas were designated to protect vulnerable plant and animal species or connect delicate ecosystems. They are home to humpback whales and sea turtles, reefs and mangroves that protect the land from erosion and natural disasters, and species which are found in only one habitat in the world. Losing land area could upset the balance of these areas and endanger their future.
Next step: Looking for pearls of wisdom to save the beaches!
Right now, we aren’t sure which beaches are eroding due to natural processes, and which are due to humans – that’s the next step for science teams to investigate. Once we know the causes, we can start working on solutions to save the beaches.
Those 30 years of Landsat data will help scientists find answers to these questions much faster – instead of using airplanes or measuring the beaches by hand, they can use computer programs to rapidly investigate millions of satellite photos spanning many years of change.
By tracking beaches from space, scientists can help keep our summers sandy for years to come.
And that makes us as happy as clams.
Read the full story HERE.
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I haven’t even read any communist stuff my ideology is “share and be nice” like the first two rules of a kindergarten
Yacouba Sawadogo is an exceptional man – he single-handedly managed to solve a crisis that many scientists and development organizations could not. The simple old farmer’s re-forestation and soil conservation techniques are so effective they’ve helped turn the tide in the fight against the desertification of the harsh lands in northern Burkina Faso.
Over-farming, over-grazing and over population have, over the years, resulted in heavy soil erosion and drying in this landlocked West African nation. Although national and international researchers tried to fix the grave situation, it really didn’t really make much of a difference. Until Yacouba decided to take matters into his own hands in 1980.
Yacouba’s methods were so odd that his fellow farmers ridiculed him. But when his techniques successfully regenerated the forest, they were forced to sit up and take notice. Yacouba revived an ancient African farming practice called ‘zai’, which led to forest growth and increased soil quality.
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