Solarpunk Resources

Books

• 7 sci-fi stories that imagine a better world
  • A list of (more than) 7 stories that fit into solarpunk’s optimistic view of the future
• The BIG Library: Books About Basic Income
  • An extensive list of books about Universal Basic Income
• Bikenomics
  • A book discussing the economic benefits of bicycling infrastructure. Short, sweet, and great for policy talking points.
• Just Ride
  • Another great resource for people interesting in biking that don’t want to become a Lycra-jock.
• Microcosm Publishing
  • Small press with tons of books and zines for solarpunk living. I would say they have one of the larger collections of practical info for solarpunks.
• Peers INC
  • A deep dive on the potential of the sharing economy by the co-founder of ZipCar, Robin Chase.
• Socio-political influence books on Goodreads
  • A suggested reading list from https://sunbeam.city/@solarbear/101329682227369964
• Solarpunk books list on Goodreads
  • This is THE list of solarpunk books I use to find new things to read. It’s updated sporadically by the community

Podcasts

• Climate One
  • A podcast addressing climate change and it’s influence on energy, water, food, and politics
• Future Perfect
  • Geared for effective altruists, Future Perfect explores what things we can do to exact the most good on the world.
• The Impact
  • Looking at policy experiments around the world to see if they actually work
• The Institute for Local Self-Reliance
  • Three different podcasts are run by ILSR focusing on building strong and resilient towns
• Shift Up Podcast
  • This podcast is biking-specific, and is a mix of advocacy, policy, and bike shop advice. It is particularly focused on making a more inclusive bike industry for women-identifying and trans people.
• Solarpunk Press
  • Eleven different issues/episodes of solarpunk fiction available in both text and audio formats
• Strong Towns Podcast
  • Another podcast focusing on building strong local communities regardless of your political background
• Team Human
  • Team Human asks, “Are you using technology, or is it using you?”
• Unchained
  • Start with Crypto 101 and go from there to learn more about what’s happening in the world of cryptocurrencies and blockchain
• The War on Cars
  • How urban planning can save us from these metal beasts

Software

• Always Own Your Own Platform
  • Say no to centralized services
• Dicidim
  • Integrated system for cities and organizations including participatory budgeting and decision making
• Open Collective
  • Transparent organization financials
• Loomio
  • Consensus-based decision making software designed by part of the Enspiral Network
• Mastodon
  • Open source decentralized social networking platform (Twitter-esque)
• Scuttlebutt
  • Open source decentralized social networking platform
• Sharetribe
  • Sharetribe offers an open source software framework for the development of platform cooperatives and sharing economy businesses.
• sTher
  • Self-proclaimed socially-conscious alternative to Patreon. The founder has stated they hope to move to a co-op model.

Websites

• Appropedia
  • A wiki about appropriate technology
• Drawdown
  • Project Drawdown may be the most comprehensive plan ever proposed to reverse global warming.
• Dystopias Now by Kim Stanley Robinson
  • “Or maybe we should just give up entirely on optimism or pessimism—we have to do this work no matter how we feel about it. So by force of will or the sheer default of emergency we make ourselves have utopian thoughts and ideas.”
• Explainer: ‘Solarpunk’, or How to be an Optimistic Radical
  • Survey piece comparing solarpunk to its punk forbears
• In the Mesh
  • A web magazine funded by GoTenna and devoted to decentralization
• Is Ornamenting Solar Panels a Crime?
  • Article outlining the genesis of solarpunk
• Little Free Pantry
  • A Little Free Library to combat food waste
• METAEFFICIENT – A Guide to Efficient Living
  • Reviews and news on renewable energy, rechargeable batteries, and other exciting solarpunk-related technologies.
• MissOliviaLouise
  • This post is considered to be the seed that grew to the art nouveau-influenced aesthetic of some solarpunk
• National Geographic’s Sustainable City of the Future
  • National Geographic asked experts at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) how they would design a city of the future, educated by lessons of the past and anticipating challenges of the future.
• New Dream Resources
  • Videos, webinars, and blog posts about the cooperative economy. Especially good resources for community solar and how to envision an economy beyond growth-based models.
• New School’s Platform Cooperativism
  • The New School has a website devoted to the development of platform cooperatives including a directory of current businesses using this model.
• No Tech Magazine
  • The outlet that introduced me to solarpunk. They have a focus on appropriate technology and asking important questions regarding our current political/technological/social state
• P2P Foundation
  • The P2P Foundation provides resources for those interested in peer-to-peer and commons-based businesses and governance
• The Rules Blog
  • A blog asking big questions about society with a focus on universal basic income (UBI), technology, and globalization.
• ROAR Magazine
  • An independently-funded news agency dedicated to democracy, including municipalism.
• Solarpunk Anarchist
  • One of the most popular solarpunk blogs out there. Discusses important topics in solarpunk living and policy through an anarchist lens.
• Solarpunk: A Reference Guide
  • A nearly-exhaustive list of happenings in solarpunk dating back to 2008
• Solarpunk Druid
  • Solarpunk blog from the UK with insightful articles on our relationship with technology and the environment
• Solarpunk: Notes toward a manifesto
  • This is one of the earliest pieces about the solarpunk ethos
• Waging Nonviolence
  • News and analysis about movements for peace and justice

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