350 Maritimes

05/03/2026

On the lighter side, here's a jolly little singalong to start the week...

It's a political song! But no speeches in this version. Shot by Jordan Lloyd Watkins and Ryan McDonald at a sold-out WISE Hall, at the11th Accordion Noir Fes...

05/02/2026

Can you imagine a better future, in terms of democratic evolution, or the development of community-friendly AI?

Can you articulate that vision in a short story?

If so, you might consider entering the Protopian Prize short fiction competition.

Aaand, the $5000 prize may go some way towards improving your own future!

https://protopianprize.com/

05/02/2026

I'm not the most sciency pencil in the room, generally preferring a mixed metaphor to a bunsen burner (or a mixed drink to both) but this new discovery has me pretty excited. If I'm reading this right, scientists at UCSB have engineered a molecule capable of storing solar energy directly, ie without requiring a battery. The molecule can store the energy for up to three years and can be recharged indefinitely. When released, the energy in the 107 mg of the molecule was able to boil 460 ml of water in half a second.

It sounds too good to be true, but the research has been peer reviewed and published in Science, so maybe it isn't. If so, it has to be a game changer. Maybe we'll have that steampunk future after all?

We tend to think of sunlight as something temporary; here when the sun is up, gone when it moves to the other side of the world. But a new, molecular-scale breakthrough challenges that idea, suggesting a way to capture and store solar energy directly for later use. It could unlock a new path to…

05/02/2026

350 is hosting a Solarpunk/CliFi writing workshop at the New Waterford library on May 13th! What is Solarpunk? It's a new-ish genre of sc-fi focusing - optimistically - on how we might live in a future with a dramatically altered climate. Come out, learn about the genre, and maybe try your hand at a couple of pages! Disimagining dystopias. What might we do to make the future liveable?

04/19/2026

01/01/2026

Bill McKibben is the founder of 350.org, the parent organisation of 350 Maritimes. All of the global 350 groups are independently operated, as it were. There's no party line, except a recognition that climate change is an existential threat to life on earth as we know it. He recently gave an interview to Inside Climate News and, as ever, had some interesting things to say.

https://insideclimatenews.org/news/15122025/bill-mckibben-here-comes-the-sun-climate-hope/

“Here Comes the Sun” author and activist Bill McKibben on his newfound optimism, harnessing energy from heaven vs. energy from hell and how there are no (good) songs written about fracking.

12/31/2025

Part 2 of the video series first posted in October explores how countries and communities are responding to rising sea levels, increased flooding and more frequent droughts. The Netherlands serves as a case study in proactive adaptation, coming up with innovative solutions in the form of sea barriers and climate-resilient infrastructure. This episode also examines the challenges faced by vulnerable communities in Wales, Bangladesh and Florida.

This decisive decade demands unprecedented action to address humanity’s greatest challenge. With global access, this three-part series examines the real cons...

12/26/2025