Surprised that no one’s talking about linen, which is one of the most solarpunk materials I can think of.

I am also extremely pale and burn very easily, and my family has a history of skin cancer so that’s fun too! Don’t worry about UPF ratings or special sun shirts or anything like that. Your goals are, 1, keep the sun from touching your skin, and 2, stay cool so you don’t overheat during the heatwave. Linen fabric will do both.

Get yourself a long sleeve linen button-up - mine are from the thrift store to avoid buying new, but if you have to buy new then you have to. You can wear it over your normal tank top or shirt. This will keep the sun off your arms and it’ll keep you cool. Forget polyester anything. Linen fibers are long and moisture wicking due to the properties of the plant its made from and you’ll literally feel a very light cooling effect just by touching it. Even better option is to moisten your shirt with water when you’re outside, if you can, because the water evaporating + the linen fibers will keep you so unbelievably cool it’ll be like upper body air-con.

Skip shorts, even though it’s tempting to expose more skin to keep cool. Go for long linen pants, something loose and flowy if possible. As the fabric moves around while you walk, it’ll cool you even further. Lightweight cotton is also a good option.

Linen blends are okay - I’d skip linen-polyester, personally, because there is nothing that traps heat like polyester fabric (it’s just plastic), but your mileage will vary. My favorite is linen-rayon because it moves and drapes very nicely, and linen-cotton is quite nice too c:

Lastly, get yourself a wide brimmed hat to protect your scalp and face from sun, or you can wrap a lightweight scarf over your head and drape it around your neck and then just wear a lot of sunscreen on your face. Remember to reapply every two hours if you’re out in the sun. Sunscreen on your hands too. Cotton socks and cotton underwear will prevent any fungal issues (if you’re going to be in hot weather, I recommend packing an extra pair of each to switch into partway through the day). And lastly… my best trick, taught to me by my partner: scrap of linen cloth or a linen scarf soaked in water and draped around your neck. Trust me. It feels HEAVENLY. A cotton rag will also work if that’s all you’ve got!

TL;DR: dress in long layers made of linen which will keep the sun from touching your skin and naturally cool you off c:

I love the idea of doing a little local experiment like this! I hope the author publishes the results of their test.

I like the concept of an IOU system. It would also work well for me being disabled - I don’t necessarily have the ability to do work (like with time-banking), but I have resources like my home library and collection of instruments/tools that I could see being valuable in this context. I also often offer friends use of my sewing studio (including all my work spaces, tools, and sewing machines) which is valuable to folks who sometimes need to craft things but not often enough to justify having their own studio. My partner also could offer their skills and expertise in exchange for help that I receive.

Time banks have always sounded cool to me on the surface, maybe as a way to organize volunteering, but when it comes to it being a full replacement for money… I’m extremely disabled and have been since I was a child. I can do work (of any kind) for maybe an hour a day if I’m having some really good days. Where does someone like me fit into the system? Do I just… die?

thanks!! :D

Genius! No need for any glue at all. I’ll give it a try and report back :D thank you!!

Neat!! Good job!

That’s incredible. I wish cities in the US would do stuff like this too - it’s so terrifying to ride a bike where I live even inside the bike lanes because so few cars even acknowledge the bike lanes. I would go for more walks with my dog if there were less cars too, both he and I are sensitive to loud sounds like engines