Solarpunk Prompts

Hosted by James Tomasino

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Jul 2025

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About the show

What is Solarpunk? Why does it matter? In this series we discuss Solarpunk as a movement within art, literature, and activism. We explore its themes and talk about what separates it from its genre peers. Each episode explores a writing prompt set in a Solarpunk aesthetic with examples and inspirations from our world today. Based upon story prompts created by Paweł Ngei⁩ . Episode transcripts available here New logo and cover image by Natalia Vish (CC-BY-SA 4.0)

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25 recent

November 3, 2023Episode 19 min

Season 2 Introduction

Season 2 Introduction Welcome back to season two of Solarpunk Prompts. In this brief introduction to the season we talk about the “punk” in Solarpunk, and the need for continuity between our world today and the good place to come. Transcript: https://wiki.tomasino.org/writing/Solarpunk-Prompts---Season-2-Introduction Links mentioned: Solarpunk - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solarpunk In our first season - https://podcast.tomasino.org/@SolarpunkPrompts/episodes?season=1 National Novel Writing Month - https://nanowrimo.org/ Music from: The Roche Limit by State Azure - https://stateazure.bandcamp.com/track/the-roche-limit (CC-BY-SA)

November 10, 2023Episode 211 min

The Moonshot

The Moonshot How can Solarpunk address the problems of a massive project, like travel to the moon? Will the genre crumble under the need for macro-level power and industry? Come explore the latest story prompt and dream of a future together. Transcript: https://wiki.tomasino.org/writing/Solarpunk-Prompts---The-Moonshot Links mentioned: Our world energy production - https://ourworldindata.org/energy-mix Frying potatos in space - https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Human_and_Robotic_Exploration/Research/Flying_frying_in_microgravity Our Shared Storm - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58690965-our-shared-storm “Terra Ignota” tetralogy by Ada Palmer - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26114545-too-like-the-lightning Music from: ‘Last And First Light’ and ‘Artemis’ by Scott Buckley - www.scottbuckley.com.au (CC-BY 4.0)

November 17, 2023Episode 312 min

The Disabled Community

The Disabled Community How will our Solarpunk future be shaped by the tenacity and activism of the disabled community? What role does inclusivity and accessibility play in creating that future vision? What new challenges await us all? Special thanks to Martyna Lysiakiewicz for a sensitivity read. Transcript: https://wiki.tomasino.org/writing/Solarpunk-Prompts---The-Disabled-Community Links mentioned: Defying Doomsday - http://defyingdoomsday.twelfthplanetpress.com/ 2022 report - https://accesstomedicinefoundation.org/resource/what-are-pharma-companies-doing-to-expand-access-to-insulin-and-how-can-efforts-be-scaled-up Access to Medicine Foundation - https://accesstomedicinefoundation.org 99% Invisible - https://99percentinvisible.org Curb Cuts - https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/curb-cuts/ Carol J. Gill - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK11435/ Music from: ‘Adrift Among Infinite Stars’ and ‘Bring Me The Sky’ by Scott Buckley, released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au Illustration CC-BY-SA 4.0 The Lemonaut - https://www.tumblr.com/the-lemonaut

November 24, 2023Episode 410 min

The Pharmacists

The Pharmacists How will access to pharmaceuticals impact the Solarpunk future? In this prompt we explore data miners seeking to liberate the data buried by intellectual property to find new cures and hopes for their communities. We also discuss the state of the pharma industry in the global south and how the reality of today shapes the futures of tomorrow. Transcript: https://wiki.tomasino.org/writing/Solarpunk-Prompts---The-Pharmacists Links mentioned: …because they are too cheap - https://www.economist.com/international/2019/09/14/a-dire-scarcity-of-drugs-is-worsening-in-part-because-they-are-so-cheap Malaria could be eradicated by 2050 - https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2019/9/10/20857132/malaria-eradication-2050-gene-drive-lancet-study Music in this episode is: “$50 to Breathe”, “It Will Make You Feel Better If You Put It In the Right Place”, and “I Refuse to Accept That There’s Nothing I Can Do About It” from Angie’s Sunday Service by Chris Zabriskie (CC BY 3.0 Deed)

December 1, 2023Episode 511 min

The Miners

The Miners Rare earth metals are essential for our modern life, whether in EV motors, cell phones, or in electronics in general. Mining these metals is notoriously difficult and dirty. How might a Solarpunk future address this issue? How might we get there from where we are today? Through this prompt we explore the realities of rare earth mining today and a few ways it might evolve into a sustainable future. Transcript: https://wiki.tomasino.org/writing/Solarpunk-Prompts---The-Miners Links mentioned: https://www.escatec.com/blog/rare-earth-elements-electronics-manufacturing https://getrepowered.org/rare-earth-metals-recycle-technology/ https://cacm.acm.org/magazines/2019/3/234917-electronics-need-rare-earths/abstract https://www.sciencenews.org/article/rare-earth-mining-renewable-energy-future https://www.snexplores.org/article/recycling-rare-earth-elements-hard-reuse-greener-technology https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2213297X1730054X https://www.ica.coop/en/cooperatives/cooperative-identity https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murray_Bookchin Music in this episode is: “Golden” and “Kelp Grooves” by Little Glass Men (CC BY)

December 15, 2023Episode 610 min

The Epidemiologists

The Epidemiologists How will a Solarpunk future address community distrust in public health? How will we restore faith in vaccines or heal the long history of abuse of minority and indiginous peoples? Is it hopeless? Today’s episode of Solarpunk Prompts takes a look at difficult themes and finding a better future. Transcript: https://wiki.tomasino.org/writing/Solarpunk-Prompts---The-Epidemiologists Links mentioned: https://www.bbc.com/news/health-485129230 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6768751 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuskegee_Syphilis_Study https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2702151/ https://www.westhawaiitoday.com/2023/07/13/nation-world-news/canadas-indigenous-women-forcibly-sterilized-decades-after-other-rich-countries-stopped/ Music in this episode is: Suspension and Homage by Kjartan Abel (CC BY-SA 4.0)

February 7, 2024Episode 716 min

The Tower

The Tower Displaced people are moved into a new sustainable climate-controlled tower designed to help them find community. For some it’s a dream come true, for others a culture shock. How will this setting come to life as a vision for a Solarpunk future? How can we envision a better way of living by focusing on their humanity? Transcript: https://wiki.tomasino.org/writing/Solarpunk-Prompts---The-Tower Links mentioned: https://unece.org/climate-change/news/future-sustainable-building-wood Palaces For The People by Eric Klinenberg https://www.theparliamentmagazine.eu/news/article/in-defence-of-density-benefits-of-highly-populated-city https://www.smartcitiesdive.com/ex/sustainablecitiescollective/urban-density-and-sustainability/241696/ https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-12-10/why-denser-cities-are-smarter-and-more-productive https://www.theguardian.com/housing-network/2014/jul/29/cities-density-building https://www.cnu.org/publicsquare/2023/04/17/when-density-good-and-when-it-harmful-cities https://www.npr.org/2023/10/08/1203950823/15-minute-cities-climate-solution Music in this episode is: ‘Moonlight’ and ‘A Kind of Hope’ by Scott Buckley (CC-BY 4.0) Illustration CC-BY-SA 4.0 The Lemonaut & Scan101 - https://www.tumblr.com/the-lemonaut

September 14, 2024Episode 815 min

The Tailors

The Tailors A new tailor joins a community with different ideas from the previous one. How will the community react? What sort of role will they fill in a future of sustainability and harmony with the local environment? Transcript: https://wiki.tomasino.org/writing/Solarpunk-Prompts---The-Tailors Links mentioned: Report by the European Environment Agency The Looop machine Heart-monitoring sweaters and armbands Music in this episode is: At The End Of All Things by Scott Buckley (CC-BY 4.0) and Lo-Fi Ambient by Nver Avetyan (CC-BY 3.0) Illustration CC-BY-SA 4.0 The Lemonaut - https://www.tumblr.com/the-lemonaut

July 6, 2025Episode 942 min

Special - Interview with Ada Palmer: History of ideas and our climate imaginations

This is a special episode - instead of a regular writing prompt, it’s a recording of an interview with professor Ada Palmer from Bazyliszek convention in Warsaw, Poland in July 2025. Professor Ada Palmer, a well-acclaimed historian of ideas, set the action of her science fiction series “Terra Ignota” several hundred years from now. The world she imagined presents vast societal and cultural changes, but the topic of climate change is treated much more implicitly. Within the context of professor’s books - and the now growing genre of climate fiction - let’s discuss why it’s so hard for us to imagine and describe the climate change of the XXI century. Links and resources: Ada Palmer’s Homepage Apocalypses by Eugen Weber Against Purity by Alexis Shotwell Purity and Futures of Hard Work by Ada Palmer Daybreak Game Earth Rising Game alxd’s Homepage A History Of Saving The World - another interview with Ada Palmer Bazyliszek Homepage [PL] Episode cover CC-BY 4.0 Henry Söderlund

October 31, 2022Episode 18 min

An Introduction

What is Solarpunk and why should we care? Why would I want to write Solarpunk stories? In this introduction video I talk briefly about what Solarpunk is and why it is important to create new stories with its unique optimistic framing. This video sets the stage for a series of videos with individual writing prompts, and grounds the writer firmly in the genre with guidelines to follow. Transcript: https://wiki.tomasino.org/writing/Solarpunk-Prompts---Introduction Links mentioned in the video: HOPE 2020: Technological Narratives - https://bit.ly/3sKsB0g Coindesk Solarpunk - https://bit.ly/3TShfTx Chobani Commercial - https://youtu.be/z-Ng5ZvrDm4 Story Hooks - https://bit.ly/3zu6QW6 Music from: float oat - how we found it

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