When I Think Of Solar Punk, I Think Of My Grandparents. I Think There Are Many Approaches And Solutions

When I think of solar punk, I think of my grandparents. I think there are many approaches and solutions to solar punk depending on where you live, the climate, rural or urban, land availability, budget and so on.

But for me, I remember my grandparents and I think it is crucial to gather the knowledge of our elders and let it feed into the new we create. Both were farmers and extremely resourceful. Long before my mother was born, and while our country was still under British rule, they had tried to live in the city as labourers. It was the modern thing to do in a colony, leave what was called the primitive life of huts, farming, animal herding and hunting behind and instead contributing to the colonial project. It goes without saying that this project was extremely racist that they were destined to be labourers for the rest of their lives. They both hated it.

In the city, my grandfather had done several manual jobs including working in an industrial bakery and working in a sausage factory, which lead to him never eating sausage again. My grandmother worked as a cook and housemaid for an Indian family (above Africans in the colonial construct) and found it demeaning. She had two miscarriages during this time.

It was then that they decided to turn their backs on the city and return to the village. For many this would have symbolized a step back, a step away from civilization, and it also meant a lot more hard work. But instead of living in a crowded, dirty slum (Africans were not permitted to live outside these slums), they got to build their own homes in an ancient tradition. Instead of breaking their backs for a demeaning overseer and paid pennies, they got to do whatever they wanted with the fruit of their labour. My grandfather immediately set up gardens which he cultivated with vegetables for sale back in the city. My grandmother followed suit and always made sure to make some money of her own. It was after this return that my mother was born.

The work was hard, but not any more or less than it would have been back in the city. In the village they were their own lords and weren‘t dependent on anyone else but themselves. It‘s where they were human and among those who saw them as such.

I think about this a lot and I think about how I could perhaps improve on their project. Find a way to build on what they left us. This is where I would love to continue, adding solar punk to the mix. Some people hate rural Africa, want to hide it and I get why, it‘s not nice to be reduced to it. But I love it, I see it as a chance, as something that can be cultivated and grown.

If we want to reduce the heat we need to plant way more trees.

They provide shade, food, and effectively cool down the environment because they don’t hold heat like asphalt, pavement, bricks, traditional roofs, etc.

Trees provide habitat for birds which eat immense amounts of insects including caterpillars, mosquitos and flies, while also fertilizing the soil with their exctrements.

Some trees fix nitrogen into the ground making the soil more fertile in a natural and effortless and free way, just by standing there.

More trees also means more wood.

Trees can be used to create food forests, which in turn reduce the chances of forest fires because with well-managed living crops growing in the soil under the trees they hold more moisture and don’t catch on fire so easily.

Add a small amount of chickens per large area and you have extra fertilization and excellent pest control as they eat the insects that also like to eat vegetables.

Tree roots also hold the soil together, preventing soil erosion while providing excellent drainage so that when it rains, the water can penetrate the soil faster, preventing floods as well.