Welcome to Solarpunk Canuck.
If you’re expecting a grand manifesto on the purpose of this site, you’re about to be disappointed.
In truth, I highly doubt there will be many who read these words. And this is one project, where I’m quite alright with that being the case.
I’m starting this site for myself. It’s not for some nebulous “audience” that I’m hoping will pay for expert knowledge or entertainment. I likely have neither of those. It is a site where I will explore, experiment, and ultimately record how I make my life, and my corner of the world, just a little bit more solarpunk.
So what’s Solarpunk?
See that’s what this site is to be about. Creating a slice of solarpunk in the real. Solarpunk is rebelling against the current direction of the world, and moving, with hope, toward something a little better. It’s a partial opposite of Cyberpunk, which is often described as a high-tech low-life.
Instead, Solarpunk is about growing things and transforming systems to help us all. It’s a high-tech high-life sort of thing, with solar panels, tidal power, backyard gardens, reforestation, and millions of other things. It’s about finding hope for the future and working to bring it into reality. Making it, or at least a small part of it, the present.
Solarpunk is all of these things and more.
And what’s a Canuck?
This part of the site name is much simpler: I’m Canadian. “Canuck” is slang for Canadians.
That’s why I’ve created the logo I’m using. It merges the typical logo for Solarpunk, the sun & gear, with a Canadian maple leaf. It says both where I am, and what I’m working toward in a single image.
What to expect?
I plan to include a lot of thinking, where I’ll likely bat ideas around like cats bat a mouse. I’ll play with them, tease them out, and I may never end up doing anything more with them.
Or, I may end up doing something. Something like:
- switching my security cameras to solar power.
- adding battery backups to my home, allowing me to unplug during high-cost times and recharge during low-cost.
- building or trying out a small hydroponics system in my basement during the winter to grow some vegetables during the off-season.
- building a backyard garden using lumber previously destined for a landfill.
- evaluating the usefulness of rainbarrels and rainwater harvesting, given climate trends in my area.
I’ll also be exploring some charities and community groups, occasionally featuring them & adding quick-donate links for causes that mean something to me. Setting up the link to the Anishinabek Nation 7th Generation Charity was actually the 1st thing I did, and I’ve four or five other charities that I regularly support because of the work they do.
Welcome to Solarpunk Canuck.
I hope you enjoy my exploration & growth.