Happy New Year friends! To kick off 2026, we bring you a fantastic episode on Indigenous Futurisms, optimism in First Nations storytelling, and 🧡Ochrepunk🧡 with our very special guest, Matthew Ngamurarri Heffernan 🖤💛❤️

Matt is a Luritja man, software developer, board member, creative technologist, playwright, poet, and PhD student at The Australian National University’s School of Cybernetics 💻✍️🎭 He is a developer at Indigemoji – a sticker set of 90 emojis representing life, culture and language of Arrernte Country in Central Australia – and creator of The Robot Dog, an intercultural sci-fi play about identity and technology in the future 🤖🐕

Press play for a yarn about Matt’s work on ‘The Jedda Test’ (inspired by the famous Bechdel Test, and centred around Indigenous representations in media) and ‘Ochrepunk’, his play The Robot Dog, and the interconnections with Solarpunk ☀️

Episode time stamps:

0:00 Introduction

3:28 Introducing our guest, Matthew Ngamurarri Heffernan!

6:08 The Jedda Test and First Nations representation in media

24:42 Ochrepunk - what it is and how it relates to Solarpunk

40:28 The Robot Dog play

48:36 Punk in First Nations music

1:01:42 Is cyberpunk negative?

1:05:28 Good News Stories

1:11:26 Matt’s media recommendations

Watch Matt’s play, The Robot Dog, online (if you’re based in Australia): https://www.mtc.com.au/plays-and-tickets/whats-on/mtc-digital-theatre/the-robot-dog/

Want more? Here are some things that we spoke about in this episode that we recommend:

-Walking the Clouds: An Anthology of Indigenous Science Fiction (2012) by Grace Dillon

-Ambelin Kwaymullina’s Tribe YA book series

-Ellen van Neerven’s Water, from the Heat & Light (2014) book

-Jedda (1955)

-Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002)

-The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978)

-Radiance (1998)

-Crocodile Dundee (1986)

-Music by A.B. Original and Warumpi Band

Good News Stories:

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/learning-another-language-may-slow-brain-aging-huge-new-study-finds/

https://mashable.com/video/mobile-crisis-construction-in-ukraine

Recommended by Matt:

-The Aboriginal Invention of Television in Central Australia 1982-1986: https://sk.sagepub.com/book/edvol/transmission/chpt/aboriginal-invention-television-central-australia

-Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022-present)

-Ghost in the Shell (1995)

Happy silly season! This December we’re exploring what a solarpunk community looks like when the sun goes down, and the delightful subgenre that is ~lunarpunk~ 🌃🌙💜. We touch on human-nature relationships after dark 🦉, solarpunk technologies at nighttime (think bioluminescence, decolonial space travel 🛰️🪼🍄), and also what evening culture and festivals could look like in a solarpunk/lunarpunk future 🪅. Press play to learn more!

Episode time stamps:

0:00 Introduction

7:37 Human-nature relationships at night

21:08 Solarpunk technology at night

41:40 Solarpunk evening culture and spirituality

1:00:41 Good news from our world!

Want more? Here are some things that we spoke about in this episode that we recommend:

- What is lunarpunk? (https://solarpunkmagazine.com/what-is-lunarpunk/)

- The Matrix Resurrection Brings Lunarpunk to the Big Screen (https://solarpunkmagazine.com/the-matrix-resurrection-brings-lunarpunk-to-the-big-screen/)

- Avatar (2009 film)

- Star Trek

- Octavia Butler’s ‘Earthseed’ series

- For too long, colonial language has dominated space exploration. There is a better way (https://theconversation.com/for-too-long-colonial-language-has-dominated-space-exploration-there-is-a-better-way-264886)

- Tender for the night: After-dark cultural complexities in the night-time economy (https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10304312.2011.617875)

- Towards 24 Hour Cities: Reflection on Night-time Economy Policy Accelerator (https://worldcitiescultureforum.com/report/5th-edition/night-time-economy/)

- Danny Bettay on Designing our Future Skies (https://cybernetics.anu.edu.au/news/2024/06/20/Danny-Bettay-on-designing-our-future-skies/)

- Peter Swanton is using Indigenous knowledge to study the stars (https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/our-knowledges-are-significant-peter-swanton-indigenous-astronomy)

Good News Stories:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10-27/labor-rules-out-ai-training-copyright-exceptions/105935740

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2rz08en2po.amp

Just in time for the release of Pokémon Legends: Z-A, we bring you a sequel Pokémon episode - with a twist! This time we ask the question: is the Pokémon universe truly solarpunk??? 👀👀👀

Press play to hear about the solarpunk elements of Pokémon (including sustainability, clean energy, and harmonious human-nature relationships ♻️🌱⚡️), the not so solarpunk elements of Pokémon (including capitalist💰 and colonialist mechanics), and the future potential of the franchise 🔴⚪️👾

Episode time stamps:

0:00 Introduction

3:28 Solarpunk elements of Pokémon

45:19 The not so solarpunk elements of Pokémon

58:43 The future of Pokémon

1:07:48 Good news from our world!

Want more? Here are some things that we spoke about in this episode that we recommend:

• Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of Sea (2006 movie)

• Arceus and the Jewel of Life (2009 movie)

• Pokémon Sun and Moon (2016 games)• Bulbapedia on Sunyshore City (https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Sunyshore_City)

• Interview with Junichi Masuda in Nintendo Power (https://archive.org/details/Nintendo_Power_Issue_240_April_2009/page/n43/mode/2up)

• How Does the POKEMON GOVERNMENT Work? (ft. BirdKeeperToby) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OefUCoIdfUg)

• Pokemon: The First Movie (1997)What is meat made of in the Pokémon games? (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PRiSkGCK0w)

• Why Conservationists Should Heed Pokémon (https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.295.5564.2367b)

• ‘It is a Pokémon world’: The Pokémon franchise and the environment (https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1367877913501240)

• Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire (2002 games)• From the top... | Pokemon Blazeblack Solarpunk Challange (#1) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpa8gQMrmCw)

• Herbelovedghast’s quote from ‘Tonight’s realization: Pokémon is a Solarpunk setting.’ (https://pocketseizure.tumblr.com/post/172519120467)

Good News Stories:https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cevz13xkxprohttps://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10-04/backyard-biobanking-tasmania-alpine-plants-bushfire-threat/105730036

What happens when companies lie about their sustainability or pretend to be solarpunk? 🤥 Enter, the deceptive act of greenwashing 🤢⚠️⚠️ Press play to learn where the phrase comes from, why companies might do it, and how countries and communities are already combatting it to make the world a little more solarpunk! Bring your best selves, it’s not every day that a new Sci_Burst episode also coincides with a Taylor Swift album drop AND Mean Girls Day 😉☀️

Episode time stamps:

0:00 Introduction

3:30 What is Greenwashing?

21:45 Solarpunk washing ... it's a thing

45:42 Moving away from greenwashing to the future of a more circular, sustainable, and solarpunk world

58:47 Good news (clothing/fashion edition)

Want more? Here are some things we spoke about in this episode that we recommend:

• Greenwashing: Do you know what you’re buying? https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2898878/

• Big oil coined ‘carbon footprints’ to blame us for their greed. Keep them on the hook (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/aug/23/big-oil-coined-carbon-footprints-to-blame-us-for-their-greed-keep-them-on-the-hook)

• Concepts and forms of greenwashing: a systematic review (https://enveurope.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s12302-020-0300-3)

• Jay Westerveld (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Westerveld)

• How to spot greenwashing buzzwords Instagram post https://www.instagram.com/p/DIxyiZXtZ46/?img_index=8&igsh=Mmgxc3JvN3Bva2V0

• McDonald’s rolling out green logo in Europe (https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna34111784)

• H&M Case Shows How Greenwashing Breaks Brand Promise (https://www.forbes.com/sites/retailwire/2022/07/13/hm-case-shows-how-greenwashing-breaks-brand-promise/)

• Solarpunk, ESG and Greenwashing: How Firms Appeal to Green Investors (https://corporateinsight.com/solarpunk-esg-and-greenwashing-how-firms-appeal-to-green-investors/)

• ASIC continues action on misleading claims to deter greenwashing misconduct(https://www.asic.gov.au/about-asic/news-centre/find-a-media-release/2024-releases/24-185mr-asic-continues-action-on-misleading-claims-to-deter-greenwashing-misconduct/)

• Greenhushing: What is it, and why do companies do it? (https://lens.monash.edu/@cop/2024/10/29/1387058/greenhushing-what-is-it-and-why-do-companies-do-it)

Good News Stories:

https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/land-use-biodiversity/french-senate-backs-law-curb-ultra-fast-fashion-2025-06-10/

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-05-24/australian-designer-takes-paper-clothing-to-catwalk/105319424

This is a very special episode of Sci_Burst – our first ever live recording!!!

Press play to learn about third places, the science and hope of community, and accessible futures.

Thanks to our live audience, videographer, and Woden Library staff for making this such a cosy and special recording xx

This project is supported by Inspiring Australia ACT and the ACT Government. Our equipment for this live recording was also made possible by YWCA Canberra.

Episode time stamps:

0:00 Episode intro

2:53 What are third places?

14:06 The science of community and third places

34:23 Hopeful community futures

45:27 Good News segment

Want more? Here are some things we spoke about in this episode that we recommend:

- The Great Good Place (1989) by Ray Oldenburg

- Closure of ‘third places’? Exploring potential consequences for collective health and wellbeing (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S135382921930735X)

- Integrating the environmental and genetic architectures of aging and mortality (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-024-03483-9)

- What are Third Places and Why Do They Matter? (https://www.shankerinstitute.org/blog/what-are-third-places-and-why-do-they-matter)

- 'Third places' are good for your wellbeing and wallet. Here is how to find yours (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-03-14/third-spaces-benefits-wellbeing-and-wallet/103577022)

- Libraries are becoming 'community living rooms' keeping regional Australians connected (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-05-31/libraries-offer-safe-space-and-inclusion-in-regional-communities/105312932)

Good News Stories:

https://www.theguardian.com/wellness/2024/feb/02/prioritize-friend-relationships-loneliness-health

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/mar/13/playing-thriving-reef-sounds-underwater-speakers-save-damaged-corals

#scicomm #community #thirdplaces #hopefulfutures #solarpunk #libraries #walkablecommunities #accessibility

Loved the Superman (2025) movie and looking for more #punk hope? 👩‍🎤 You've come to the right place! Listen to this episode to learn all about the punk of #solarpunk, where it came from, and how it differs (in a very good way!) from other -punk genres like #cyberpunk and #steampunk 😎🤙 Kindness and optimism, with a dash of #sustainability, are officially IN!☀️🫶💛

Episode Time Stamps:

0:00 Episode intro1:36 What even is 'punk'? Definitions

14:52 Punk in Solarpunk vs punk adjacent genres

35:00 Towards a punk-i-fied future

41:14 Good news segment

Want More? Here are some of the things we spoke about in this episode that we recommend:

- Punk Identities, Punk Utopias: Global Punk and Media edited by Matt Grimes

- “Solarpunk” & the Pedagogical Value of Utopia" by Isaijah Johnson (https://www.susted.com/wordpress/content/solarpunk-the-pedagogical-value-of-utopia_2020_05/)

- Where is the Punk in Solarpunk? Questioning Tradition and Innovation in an Eco-optimist Digital Aesthetic? by Théo Maligeay (https://hal.science/hal-04295131v2/document)

- Global cyberpunk: Reclaiming utopia in Japanese cyberpunk film by Sasha Myerson (https://www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/sfftv.2020.21)

- Planting Seeds of Hope: A Survey of Solarpunk Futures by Dilan Guner

- Solarpunk: Notes toward a manifesto by Adam Flynn (https://hieroglyph.asu.edu/2014/09/solarpunk-notes-toward-a-manifesto/)

Good News Stories:

https://www.euronews.com/green/2025/04/17/clean-energy-from-rain-scientists-generate-electricity-from-falling-droplets

https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/infant-rare-incurable-disease-first-successfully-receive-personalized-gene-therapy-treatment

#scicomm #popculture #radicaloptimism #kindness

What are solarpunk systems and can they help us toward a more positive future?

Join Ella and Isabel in the first episode of this Solarpunk season of Sci_Burst!

This episode is for you if:

- you're new to Solarpunk

- you like Solarpunk and want to explore it more

- you're interested in positive stories

- you want to imagine a sustainable and attainable future

- you see wider connections in the world around you

- you LOVE fiction (particularly sci-fi and speculative fiction)

Episode Time Stamps:

0:00 Episode Intro

1:57 Solarpunk Recap

6:22 What are Solarpunk systems?

8:03 Fictional Solarpunk systems

29:58 Current Solarpunk systems

56:54 Future Solarpunk systems

1:11:31 Good News segment!

Want More? Here are some of the things we spoke about in this episode that we recommend reading/listening/watching/loving :

- Solar Power (discless music box) by Lorde

- Ecotopia by Ernest Callenbach

- Monk and Robot series by Becky Chambers

- Rewilding the Urban Soul by Claire Dunn

- Feral by George Monbiot

- Economics of rewilding by Emmanuel Faure et al.

- An Exploration of Environmental Values in Outer Space by Michael Aaron Lindquist

- Mad Max by George Miller

- Furiosa by George Miller

- Strange World by Don Hall

- Wikipedia by YOU (seriously we love contributing to wikipedia and thank all the amazing contributors)

Welcome to a teaser for our upcoming third season of Sci_Burst! Here we introduce your Sci_Burst podcast hosts, tease our next season's theme, hint towards some of our upcoming episodes, and even drop a big exciting piece of news. It's Season 3 and we're trying something completely different: video! Whether you like to listen, watch, or somewhere in-between - we've got the podcast for you and this time we're going SolarPunk. Join us as we start this sustainable, punk, and community podcast with a teaser of all that's to come.

Sci_Burst is a science in pop culture podcast hosted by Isabel and Ella, two next gen science communicators based at the Australian National University. Our episodes cover everything from science in film and video games to comics, music, toys and beyond! Sci_Burst can be enjoyed by anyone and everyone, no matter your level of expertise. We’re here to make science accessible in a fun way, spark further discussions about all things STEM, and grow a community of people happy to be nerdy about science in pop culture. Learn more about us here: https://popsicule.weblogs.anu.edu.au/

Follow us on our socials for more science in pop culture content!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sci_burst/

LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/company/sci-burst

Mastodon: https://mastodon.social/@sci_burst

Want to get in touch? Email us at [email protected]

On this sunny Sunday morning we bring you our final episode for Season 2! Join us, and special guest Isaac Martin, as we talk all things renewable energy ☀️, technologies of the desert 🐪, and the future of Australian car culture 🚗✨

We explore Australia’s #potential as a sustainability hub & clean energy superpower 💚💛, the impacts & innovation of initiatives like the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge & ANU Solar Racing 🏎️, and all this alongside #popculture like Max Max and Summernats 😎

…and if you listen till the end, you’ll discover our theme for Season 3 😉😉

To kick off 2025, we bring you a fascinating episode on archaeology and pop culture, featuring special guest and budding archaeologist Phoebe Barnes!🏺⛏️🦴

Do you love Tomb Raider? 🪦🧩 Indiana Jones? 🤠🛕 Jurassic Park? 🦖🦕 Then this episode is for you.

We touch on archaeogaming 👾, representations of archaeologists on screen vs archaeologists irl 🗿📜, and the mix and bleed of scientific thinking and the humanities.

We hope you enjoy it!