What it is
Sunvault is the first major solarpunk fiction anthology, published in 2017 and edited by Phoebe Wagner and Bronte Christopher Wieland. The collection gathers short stories, poems, and essays from diverse voices imagining sustainable, technology-integrated, equitable futures. Contributors include established science fiction writers alongside emerging voices from underrepresented communities. The anthology deliberately centers joy, cooperation, and practical problem-solving rather than dystopian warning.
Why we picked this
Sunvault defined what solarpunk fiction could be. Before this anthology, solarpunk was primarily an aesthetic movement (think art of green cities). Sunvault gave it a literary tradition: stories where technology serves community, where ecological restoration is an act of love, and where diverse communities build futures worth wanting. It remains the essential starting point for anyone exploring solarpunk as a genre.
Key takeaways
- The anthology deliberately centers voices from the Global South, Indigenous communities, and BIPOC writers, reflecting solarpunk's commitment to equitable futures.
- Stories range from near-future urban farming cooperatives to far-future post-scarcity societies, showing the genre's breadth.
- Several stories in the collection have been cited in academic papers on climate fiction and speculative design as examples of how fiction can model sustainable systems.