We're Hosting #SolarpunkChat on June 16th

On June 16, 2018, from 12-1 EST, please join us for the #SolarpunkChat Twitter chat! World Weaver Press is hosting this month, and the topic will be Sustainable Technologies of the Future. We'll be talking about all the Earth-friendly tech that already exists and what could exist someday, as well as what kinds of interesting technology makes for great optimistic sci-fi stories even if it probably isn't practical in real life. Everyone with an interest in environmental speculative fiction is welcome to join. This chat is a great way to connect with other solarpunk, eco-speculation, or cli-fi readers and writers. A few of the authors from the Glass and Gardens: Solarpunk Summers anthology are likely to stop by.

Not sure what solarpunk is? Check out our explanation here, and browse the Solarpunk Reference Guide here.

How does a Twitter chat work? Basically, we'll start with introductions and then post a number of questions throughout the hour. Use the hashtag #solarpunkchat in every tweet or response you want the other participants to see, even if you're responding or quote-tweeting. Using the hashtag creates a sort of chatroom within Twitter — click the hashtag and sort for "Latest" to see what other chat participants are posting. Our questions will be labeled "Q1", "Q2", etc. and it's helpful to label your responses "A1", "A2," etc. But so long as you include the hashtag on every tweet, it's all good. For more on how Twitter chats work, click here.

Thanks to Upper Rubber Boot Books, the publishers who brought you Sunvault: Stories of Solarpunk & Eco-Speculation, for putting together this monthly chat, and allowing us to host it this month! Here's a glimpse of last month's conversation.

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Q2 #SolarpunkChat: The -punk in cyberpunk: arguably nihilism and anti-capitalism in computerized dystopias. The -punk in steampunk: arguably DIY, feminism & anti-imperialism. Which punk subcultures and ideologies do you feel have homes in solarpunk and ecopunk?

— Upper Rubber Boot (@upperrubberboot) May 19, 2018

...optimism is way punk. Not that we will emerge from catastrophic dystopia into a difficult, but hard-fought utopia, but that we will simply create utopia because the best in us is better, more brilliant, and more epic than we think it is.

— Paul Czege (@PaulCzege) May 19, 2018

A2 #solarpunkchat: we believe that #solarpunk reflects egalitarian, anti-corporativist and humanist ideologies since it imagines that people can become independent from unsustainable economic models of infinite growth and from the corporations that promote them. https://t.co/NVNUdVilfg

— Commando Jugendstil (@CJugendstil) May 19, 2018

Q4 #SolarpunkChat: Solarpunk emphasizes that it isn’t just a literary or art genre, but a movement/lifestyle. What are some ways that you bring solarpunk ideals directly into your life?

— Upper Rubber Boot (@upperrubberboot) May 19, 2018

A4 #solarpunkchat: we're trying to collaborate with architects to implement #solarpunk solutions into buildings and we're also designing artworks that promote and disseminate the #solarpunk ideals. https://t.co/ByIl4jbfcN

— Commando Jugendstil (@CJugendstil) May 19, 2018

Q5 #SolarpunkChat: A common critique of solarpunk as a genre is that it focuses on large ideas/fixes rather than the necessary minutia needed to make change. Is this critique justified? How can we solarpunks balance large goals with small steps?

— Upper Rubber Boot (@upperrubberboot) May 19, 2018

A5 #solarpunkchat (cont.) If someone wants to create a solarpunk piece focusing on the little things, great! But, let's get those grand ideas & ideals out there so that people can see a vision of what the future could be.

— annee (@Obtusata_) May 19, 2018