Let there Be Light (Or, In Defense of Darkness)

Abstract

Drawing links between solar philanthrocapitalism and the concept of light as knowledge, this article cautions against the regressive epistemics we might unintentionally reinforce through the fetishization of rationality as a measure of the success of a solar intervention. In its place, it suggests solarities that delink the expectation of development from the commitment to improve energy access—that is, an epistemics through which we might let access to light be an end in itself. The article concludes by outlining “endarkenment” as an alternative register for theorizing solar as an energy form.