What is solarpunk?

Where it came from

Solarpunk grew online in the 2010s as a reaction to gloomy science fiction full of ruined, polluted cities. Artists and writers began imagining futures where people solved problems together.

Real technologies in solarpunk worlds

• Solar panels, wind and geothermal energy.
• Green roofs, living walls and vertical forests.
• Rain gardens and wetlands that clean water.
• Repair cafes, community gardens and shared tools.
• Walkable, bike-friendly streets and public transit.

Creative prompts for class

• Write a day in the life of a teenager in your town in 2075, solarpunk style.
• Redesign one street near school as a solarpunk street. Label every feature.
• Pick one building from the Green World on this site and write how it could work in a real city.
• Debate: is solarpunk realistic, or just a nice dream? What would it take?

Questions students and teachers ask

Building pages to use with this guide

• Green WorldTree tower homeAn imagined tower wrapped in trees. Real "vertical forests" plant hundreds of trees on the balconies of city apartment blocks.
• Green WorldCanopy marketMarket stalls under giant mushroom-shaped canopies. Real shade structures, and real trees, cool hot city squares.
• Green WorldRepair workshopAn imagined workshop where nothing is thrown away. Real repair cafés and well-managed forests keep materials in use.
• Green WorldWaterfall towerAn imagined tower with a waterfall pouring down it. Real micro-hydro systems turn falling water into electricity for homes and villages.
• Green WorldPalace of the long futureAn imagined palace where leaders must think a hundred years ahead. Real governments have begun to create laws for future generations.