Building a greener word is possible, feasible, and we’re doing it!

To combat the resource waste, pollution and total economic malfeasance of the modern world, we have to work towards creating alternative economic systems in addition to doing activism and showing support for de-growth economics for reducing economic output and consumption as a means of achieving environmental sustainability, social justice, and human well-being.

To get from where we are to where we need to be, we need to put together actionable plans and projects with clear milestones and achievable goals. This is easier said than done because it demands a more personal commitment to the vision of SolarPunk, and for each of us to work hard and contribute to it. Which is very difficult for most people who are living in our current cyberpunk dystopian world that does its best to crush our human spirit with mundane jobs and endless economic and social demands to keep us too occupied to make a difference.

The answer to this issue is community development. Bringing like-minded people from all over the world into one centralized location (Such as an Eco-Village) to apply the best of our knowledge and experience to labor together to create the systems that will lead to a Solarpunk future and a more humane economy. A system that aims to create a steady-state economy that meets people’s needs and allows for ecological regeneration, without relying on constant growth; since the only thing that grows endlessly without any reason is a cancer or invasive species. The objective would be to create a positive symbiosis between the earth and humanity.

This holistic approach won’t be implemented via collective awakening or changing the minds of the masses with good literature, imagery and video games. And it wont be achieved by governments since they can only act in the benefit of firms. Instead it will be achieved though the collective laboring of ordinary people working towards sensible policies and technologies and applying those technologies to meet the needs of humanity. Such as creating food forests to meet the caloric needs of cities or water desalination plants in areas lacking potable water due to climate change, pollution and other human-made hazards.

We should focus our collective energy on these actionable projects and achieving these milestones. Creating non-profits and teams that are capable of delivering them and supporting these teams with the resources they need to achieve success. This includes fundraising as well as strong online activism and community building campaigns.