Solaris: preparing for hard times
Solaris is “the idea of a powerful, concentrated energy that radiates” [1] – that of solidarity. In a way, “recreating the village square” [2], as the coordinator of a Brussels cell, who asked to remain anonymous, explains to us. An idea that is striking a chord, judging by how quickly it is spreading from country to country. No doubt because, as our interviewee points out, the need for solidarity is all the more pressing “since there is a fear that we are heading for hard times socio-economically”.
Through local cells, the inhabitants of a neighbourhood, a village, a municipality or a small locality organise meetings and (re)create social ties close to home, with the aim of mutual aid and creating abundance by pooling resources and skills.
Two years ago, Fréderic Vidal, the initiator of the project, who lives in the Haute Vallée de l’Aude (France), came to the conclusion that “this world is crazy and we need to move on to something else”[3], to turn towards “more kindness and solidarity”. Quite a programme! But beyond the abstract ideal, the man has a very concrete idea anchored in his local environment: “to create a human mesh” made up “of cells that know their neighbouring cells”. Each cell is invited to create a paper directory of people who undertake, if need be, to share various skills and resources. This is how Frédérique Vidal set up his project, modestly, where he lives, without suspecting at the time how big it would become.
An idea spreading across Europe and beyond
Undoubtedly, the concept is a real success and is making its way across borders. Currently, in addition to a presence in almost every French département, the Solaris ideal is carried by groups in more than twenty countries. These include Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Canada, Brazil, Peru, Morocco, Tunisia, etc. Belgium is not to be outdone, with already some sixty cells in Wallonia, some thirty in Flanders, and, very recently, a lightning start in the Brussels Region [4].
Building a different world
For the coordinator we met, the aim is to build “resilience”, the ability to bounce back in the event of “hard knocks such as a worsening energy crisis, risks of food shortages and so on…”. For him, aiming for local self-sufficiency (in food, energy…) is even harder for “city cells” than for “country cells”. But setting up solidarity close to home, and also thinking about possible solutions, helps to build resilience within municipalities. And perhaps, as the idealist Frédéric Vidal puts it, to lay the first bricks for building a different world.
Each cell is unique but they all share the same values
The coordinator explains that even though they are interconnected (“we can rely on the neighbouring cells”), the cells enjoy complete autonomy. They can decide on their own directions (choice of activities, workshops, projects) but must adhere to a core of values that constitutes “the Solaris spirit” [5]. Namely, among other things, the absence of any notion of commercial transaction, barter or any agreement of direct exchange – “what you give to someone, you will receive from elsewhere”, but also the absence of any affiliation with or reference to a political, religious or other structure. Nor is there any idea of hierarchy; the Solaris spirit invites people to “leave their egos in the cloakroom and unite in a higher common purpose”. As the Brussels coordinator confirms: “There are no leaders in the cells, but you need ‘inspirers’ who can bring people together.”
Sharing skills
In practical terms, once they have been formed, the cells organise practical workshops to share skills: collecting, filtering and purifying water, using energy (lighting, cooking, heating, transport), telecommunications (when there are no networks left, there is still CB), food production and management, etc. But also workshops much more geared towards resilience in the face of crises: first aid, evacuation, food stock management, natural medicine, survival, etc. The aim is to pass on knowledge that could prove decisive in the event of shocks.
A great call for a “mesh”
On 15 June, a “great call” to the French population (and even to French speakers around the world) was launched in most of the French-speaking alternative media [6]. It calls on citizens who question the merits of current government action in public health, or even beyond, to join the very many citizens’ collectives that have been set up over the last two years. It also calls on current members of these collectives to connect with one another without federating, so that “each keeps its specific features”, according to Solaris founder Frédéric Vidal, who is behind this “great call” [7]. For him, the population has reached a choice: “to refuse or to continue to submit”. But “head-on resistance does not work”, he adds, “we are going to continue building this world much more strongly and much faster on other values”.
By Marley R., citizen journalist at BAM!
[1] Remarks by Fréderic Vidal, initiator of Solaris, in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlEmQ98sB-4
[2] Remarks gathered by BAM! from a coordinator of a Brussels cell
[3] Remarks by Frédéric Vidal in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlEmQ98sB-4
[4] Information gathered by BAM from a coordinator of a Brussels cell
[5] “L’Esprit Solaris” description on https://solaris-france.org
[6] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuLdyFYG474
[7] Remarks by Frédéric Vidal in https://www.kairospresse.be/interview-de-frederic-vidal-fondateur-de-solaris/
Photo source:
Image resized from an original photo by ABCDstock on Adobe Stock
To find out more about the Solaris network:
https://solaris-france.org
https://t.me/solaris_belgique
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G42ATaG6gyU: Solarthon, 60 coordinateurs Solaris partagent leur vision du nouveau monde
