All Episodes - Solarpunk Now!
The podcast about politics, science/tech, philosophy, and whatever else it'll take to get us out of this mess. Let's demand a brighter future together!
View Podcast Details21 Episodes
After the LA Fires: Scholars and Activists on Altadena's Black History, Present, and Future
Dr. Wesley Cox, Dani Haogue, and Zaria Smith all grew up in Altadena, CA. In the wake of the Eaton Fire which destroyed more than half of the city in January 2025, they share their personal stories and how they connect to the wider picture of Black history in Los Angeles, environmental racism, and the struggle for a brighter future.DONATE to Dena Rebuild: denarebuild.comFor show notes and more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the show
We Have to Consider Collapse
As solarpunks, we have to consider the possibility of collapse. Matthew Azoulay–aka EpicTomorrows–introduces us to collapse awareness, a view of the climate crisis which accepts the inevitability of societal collapse on some level. We'll hear a bit about his forthcoming book, an anthology of global perspectives on collapse, as well as how this view might fit within a solarpunk perspective.Help launch the book by Nov. 15th: Ecological crisis, revolutionary change & collapseFor show notes and more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the show
No Healing Without Decolonizing: Community Mental Health in Gaza w/ Dr. Jess Ghannam
In 1995, Dr. Jess Ghannam was one of two psychiatrists for the entire population of the Gaza strip. Jess’s work centers around community mental health, a model that aims to deliver care at scale by integrating with the community. We talk about how Jess’s own experience with intergenerational trauma as a Palestinian drew him to the mental health profession, how the Western model fails to meet global needs, and where we go from here.Note: Since October 7th, much of this work in Gaza has been destroyed. And the needs right now are much more immediate–food, water, shelter, and a ceasefire. If you have the resources, Jess recommends a donation to KinderUSA (http://www.kinderusa.org/), currently providing food support to the region.For show notes and more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the Show.
Ecology is Radical: A People’s History of Environmentalism
This Earth Month, we’re looking back on the history of environmental radicalism. Brian Tokar is a teacher, activist, and writer who’s been involved in the movements he writes and teaches about since the 70s. We discuss how leftism and environmentalism came together, why ecology matters for the left, and what lessons we can learn from these traditions and put into practice today.Support Solarpunk Now!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcastFor show notes and more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the Show.
When the Aliens Land, Invite Them to Dinner: Ruthanna Emrys on Monsters, First Contact, and Hope
What happens when a solarpunk world is visited by aliens?Ruthanna Emrys writes stories for monsters - stories that challenge the role of the monster as something “other,” something to be feared. Her latest novel, A Half Built Garden, is a story of high-stakes interspecies negotiations, of hope and progress despite immense challenges, and of bridging the divide between the familiar and the alien.Ruthanna Emrys (website, and links to buy the book): http://ruthannaemrys.com/Support Solarpunk Now!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcastFor show notes and more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the Show.
Bringing Theory Beyond the Academy: Strange Matters Magazine
The editors of Strange Matters Magazine want your reading experience to feel like meeting a grad student friend for coffee. Meaning: they explain the most exciting parts of their research, give you all the hot gossip in their field, skip the jargon and elitism, and still deliver the information in a rigorous manner. Strange Matters publishes a variety of genres and viewpoints, all committed to “a new culture of open-minded inquiry on the Left.” In this episode I chat with two Strange Matters editors, Kyle and Frances, to discuss the magazine, the process of developing it, and what makes it so exciting!Strange Matters MagazineStrange Matters on TwitterSupport Solarpunk Now!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcastFor show notes and more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the Show.
From Capitalist Realism to a Solarpunk Reality
After the 2023 Solarpunk Conference, my fellow panelists and I got together for a follow-up. Our panel, From Capitalist Realism to a Solarpunk Reality, discussed the thought and action necessary to bring solarpunk to life. In this episode, we expand on these ideas and develop connections between our related areas of research. Featuring Joey of The Fire These Times, Ariel of Solarpunk Presents, and Andre of HydroponicTrash.Support Solarpunk Now!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcastFor show notes and more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the Show.
AI is Already Existential: The Case for an Anti-fascist Resistance
AI, as it currently exists, already poses immediate risks. We don’t need to wait on the singularity for AI to become existential – the resistance starts now! In this episode, Dan McQuillan (Goldsmiths Department of Computing) critiques AI from an informed, technical basis. We explore the risks of currently existing models, from shaping our subjectivities to eradicating marginalized groups. And finally, Dan makes the case for an anti-fascist alternative: radical care as the antidote to careless tech-solutionism.Find Dan on Twitter, Mastodon, or visit his websiteSupport Solarpunk Now!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcastFor show notes and more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the Show.
Fashioning the Future: Why Accessible Fashion Matters
AJ is a fashion designer who focuses on making accessible fashion: clothing for diverse bodies, abilities, and genders. AJ offers his view of the problems with the fashion world, how he’s navigated fashion as a trans man with disabilities, and how his design processes challenges harmful norms. We’ll also hear some great ideas for making fashion part of a brighter future!Support Solarpunk Now!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcastFor show notes and more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the Show.
More than a Measure: Building Political Consciousness through the Electoral System
In fall 2022, Pasadena’s Measure H established citywide rent control, “just cause” eviction protections, and a rental housing board to implement the law. But the campaign to get there wasn’t easy, and the struggle certainly isn’t over. On the face of it, Measure H might seem like just another electoral campaign. But Aeryn, Ryan, and Bee of the Pasadena Tenants Union saw an awakening of political consciousness, and an expansion of the horizon of possibility for disempowered and disillusioned tenants.Support Solarpunk Now!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcastFor show notes and more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the Show.
Scientists for Socialism! Why Activism and Research Go Hand-in-Hand
Bee Rooney is both a scientist and a socialist. She got her PhD in environmental engineering and science at Caltech (Pasadena, CA), and now organizes with the Socialists of Caltech and Pasadena Tenants Union.Bee shares her insights on balancing the demands of research and activism. We also discuss her work in relation to climate, public health, and building a solarpunk future. Scientists can do a lot when they organize together, and when they bring their skills and knowledge outside of the academy to benefit their community. In this episode we’ll hear what it takes to get together, get involved, and make change happen as a scientist.Support Solarpunk Now!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcastFor show notes and more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the Show.
The Union Makes Us Strong! Stories of Tenant Organizing for a World in Crisis
This episode is about tenants unions, fighting for the right to secure housing in an increasingly precarious world.Tenants are uniquely situated between socioeconomic inequality and climate change, so a tenants union fights against a wide variety of challenges: harassment and illegal evictions, gentrification, natural disasters, displacement, racism, and more. In this episode, we’ll hear from two tenants unions who have faced unique regional challenges. We’ll see where their struggles overlap, as well as unique obstacles they face and strategies they’ve developed as a result.Support Solarpunk Now!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcastFor more info about this episode, <click here>.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the Show.
Your Imagination is Haunted: Exorcising Neoliberalism's Ghosts with Joey Ayoub
This is a collab episode with fellow podcaster Joey Ayoub of The Fire These Times. We talk in detail about the research I was doing before I started my show, as well as how it connects to Joey’s current research. We cover neoliberalism, capitalist realism, hauntology and ghosts, and all sorts of issues with temporality and imagining the future.Support Solarpunk Now!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcastThe Fire These Times website: https://thefirethesetimes.com/You can also follow Joey on Twitter and Mastodon, and support his show on Patreon.For more info about this episode, click here.Follow me on Twitter: @solarpunkcastMastodon: @solarpunkcast@spore.socialSupport the Show.
It's Not a Revolution if We Can't Dance! (Chaia Heller Pt. 2)
The theories of social ecology and social desire provide a rational basis for solarpunk projects of all kinds. This is the second part of my conversation with Chaia Heller, author of The Ecology of Everyday Life. In this episode we bring her theory of the five aspects of social desire to life, showing how this theory unfolds into practice: direct actions, illustrative opposition, building alternative political structures, and beyond!Check out the Institute for Social Ecology: https://social-ecology.org/wp/Read Chaia’s book The Ecology of Everyday LifeFor more info about this episode, click here.Support my work: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcast…and be sure to follow Solarpunk Now on Twitter at @solarpunkcast!Support the Show.
The Sensual Side of Social Ecology (Chaia Heller Pt. 1)
What if we could meet not just our needs, but also our desires, without harming the environment? What if our society and nature actually worked together to strengthen each other? Chaia Heller, author of The Ecology of Everyday Life, explains social ecology and her work developing a philosophy and politics of social desire. Social ecology, starting with the work of Murray Bookchin, envisions a rational society that values both social justice and the environment. Sounds pretty solarpunk to me!Check out the Institute for Social Ecology: https://social-ecology.org/wp/Read Chaia’s book The Ecology of Everyday LifeFor more info about this episode, click here.Support my work: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcast…and be sure to follow Solarpunk Now on Twitter at @solarpunkcast!Support the Show.
The Roleplaying Game Helping Us Build Utopia
Imagining the future isn’t easy, but artist collective Solarpunk Surf Club is here to help. Nick and Max, two members of the group, designed Solarpunk Futures, a card-based tabletop RPG, to break down barriers to radical imagination and strengthen our imaginative capabilities. It’s well-researched, beautifully executed, and ultimately a powerful and versatile tool for imagining a better future. In this episode, we dig into the design process, artistic philosophy, and utopian vision behind Solarpunk Futures.Get Your Copy of Solarpunk Futures: https://thefuture.wtf/More from the Solarpunk Surf Club: https://solarpunksurf.club/Follow @solarpunkclub on TwitterFor more info about this episode, click here.Support my work: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcast…and be sure to follow Solarpunk Now on Twitter at @solarpunkcast!Support the Show.
Let's All Do Acid Communism! (HydroponicTrash Pt. 2)
This is Part 2 of my conversation with Andre–hacker, gardener, organizer, and all-around solarpunk. In this episode we continue our discussion of historical social movements, then talk about how to build power and organize your community in the 21st century. The secret? A little something called Acid Communism.Follow Andre on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HydroponicTrashOn TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hydroponictrashOn Substack: https://anarchosolarpunk.substack.com/For more info about this episode, click here.Support my work: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcast…and be sure to follow Solarpunk Now on Twitter at @solarpunkcast!Support the Show.
Log On, Clock In, Drop Out: Tech and Liberation (HydroponicTrash Pt. 1)
Andre–aka HydroponicTrash–is a hacker, gardener, organizer, and all-around solarpunk. In this episode we discuss technology: as an industry, as a cultural phenomenon, and as a potential method of liberation. We also cover the history of the 60s counterculture, which is surprisingly relevant to technology and utopianism today.Follow Andre on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HydroponicTrashOn TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hydroponictrashOn Substack: https://anarchosolarpunk.substack.com/For more info about this episode, click here.Support my work: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcast…and be sure to follow Solarpunk Now on Twitter at @solarpunkcast!Support the Show.
Compassion Is Radical: Care Work Within a Punitive System
Sarah is an addiction counselor at a nonprofit agency in California. Her agency offers a wide range of services, both inpatient and outpatient, and they primarily serve low-income clients with publicly funded health insurance. In this episode we discuss: the structural barriers her clients face, encouraging developments in addiction treatment, and a vision for a future where everyone gets the care they deserve.For more info about this episode, click here.Support my work: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcast…and be sure to follow Solarpunk Now on Twitter at @solarpunkcast!Support the Show.
Building a Better Democracy... with Computer Science!
Matthew Gray is a computer science researcher and history buff passionate about sortition, a method of allocating public offices by lot rather than by election. In this episode we explore the potential benefits of sortition, and Matthew explains the computer science that could make it work securely and efficiently at the national level.For more info about this episode, click here.Support my work: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcast…and be sure to follow Solarpunk Now on Twitter at @solarpunkcast!Support the Show.
Why Solarpunk?
Why do certain futurist aesthetics appeal over others? What does art have to say about our political goals, or about the psychological landscape of our world today? Art can be speculative: posing questions and potential answers about how things could be, or should be, in the future. In this inaugural episode of Solarpunk Now, I show how art and politics intertwine, and make the case for solarpunk as a speculative political project.For more info about this episode, click here.Support my work: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/solarpunkcast…and be sure to follow Solarpunk Now on Twitter at @solarpunkcast!Support the Show.