Over coming weeks we'll have a series of mini interviews ("minterviews" if you will) with some of the awesome writers in our forthcoming Ecopunk! (order it at http://bookshop.ticonderogapublications.com/product/ecopunk/)
Next up is Jane Rawson. Jane writes novels, novellas, stories and non-fiction, mostly about the environment. Her latest novel is From the Wreck.
1. Tell us a little about your Ecopunk! story, and the inspiration behind it.
"The right side of history" is set in a future Australia, where the world has decided to concentrate human habitat to leave a bit more space for other species. Humans can choose between moving to a super-high-density, well-designed urban area, or having their mind transferred into the body of a native species. This story is about a long-married couple who come to realise they have very different ideas about how best to help the planet. I was inspired to write it by a recent WWF report showing how the expansion of human habitat has killed off half of all wild animals in the world (80% of the Earth's landmass is now human habitat to a greater or lesser extent). That led me to the information that if you weighed all the vertebrate land animals (including us), only 3% of that total weight is wild animals. Wild animals are almost gone, and in his book Half Earth, EO Wilson suggests that the only way to remedy this is to dedicate half of the earth's landmass to wild animal habitat.
2. What science fictional technology do you wish we had now?
I wish we had microwaves that would heat soup evenly, and mobile/VOIP phones where you could hear clearly what the person on the other end is saying at all times. But I know that's crazy talk.
3. With all these scary climate events happening at the moment, it's sometimes hard to see some light. What gives you the most hope for humanity and the world?
Honestly, I'm not brimming over with hope. But of course whatever happens, life in some form will continue on. Octopuses are doing well. There's a bright future for algae. Evolution will continue and new lifeforms will take over the planet. It just might take a while.
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Ecopunk! - speculative tales of radical futures contains 19 optimistic tales, selected by two award-winning editors, showing how humanity can survive and flourish, despite the looming uncertainty from climate change. The incredible line-up includes some of Australia's best science fiction writers. Order it at http://bookshop.ticonderogapublications.com/product/ecopunk/
