How we get to a Solarpunk Future by 2036
Meet the builder behind #Hopamine, Mawuli.xyz and join in the Hackathon
I’ve been talking about 300 movements to an economy that works for all of us for a while now and how all that’s missing is connection?
Every time someone does a deep dive on them, they come back saying the same thing.
“Hope for humanity.”
And I agree. We genuinely have the solutions, already built, already running, already proven.
We just haven’t connected them yet.
And they aren’t on the news.
But I just met someone who’s changing that.
Last night I jumped on Instagram Live with Mawuli.xyz, the Montreal-based creator and behind #Hopamine, and within five minutes he said something that I think we can all resonate with.
“We have enough cars. We have enough food. We have enough housing. We have enough infrastructure. We have enough of everything. We just need to distribute it properly and connect the entities that are already doing that.”
And he’s not just talking, he’s building real infrastructure.
Who is Mawuli.xyz
Mawuli.xyz started in startups in 2021, deep in crypto and Web3, the decentralised everything era. Then transitioned into marketing and filmmaking. A year ago he decided to use that storytelling background to build brands that are a net positive for the world and start an Instagram.
December of last year, the word hopamine came to him. A portmanteau of hope and dopamine. The feeling you get when you encounter real evidence that the future can be better.
He started sharing it publicly in February, documenting how he’s building a future he wants his children to grow up in by 2036.
He’s reached 55k followers on Instagram alone and the Discord, where we’re all gathering to build real infrastructure, already has a thousand members.
So I kinda think he’s onto something with this hopamine thing.
And from here?
He’s running a hackathon this week with 200 sign-ups and counting.
Don’t know what a hackathon is? Keep reading.
You deffo need to know this one because it’s a core component of building that better future we all want.
“Think globally, build locally “
The mission is simple: a solarpunk future by 2036.
People laugh when I say we can turn this economy around in five to ten years. Mawuli.xyz gets it immediately. He sees the same thing I see, which is that the infrastructure for that future is already here. It’s just fragmented, underfunded, and criminally under-marketed.
What he’s building with Hopamine is a place where builders, founders, students, researchers, and community organisers can find each other, upskill, and get to work on real problems.
He described to me a platform in development with a global heat map and matching system that’s being developed. I can’t say a lot more than that right now, but I’ve asked for the beta invite and I’ll keep you informed as things develop.
What even is a hackathon?
If you’re new to the word: a hackathon is a time-boxed sprint where builders from different backgrounds team up to build a working solution to a real problem. Usually 24 to 48 hours. You come in with a challenge, you leave with something that actually functions. It’s problem-solving as a team sport.
Traditionally they’ve been used by companies to get engineers to solve their problems for free. Mawuli.xyz’s version flips that entirely. The Hopamine Green Hackathon is fully online, free to enter, and built around one question: what software can you build this weekend to solve a real environmental problem?
The winning team doesn’t just get a trophy. Hopamine campaigns their build to its first 10,000 users. Because ideas that solve real problems deserve to get the support they need to help real people.
This weekend’s hackathon
The problem statements drop Thursday June 12. Kickoff is Friday June 13 at 7pm EST. Build day is all day Saturday. Submissions close Sunday June 14 at 11pm EST. Winners announced Monday noon.
Judges are Kristy Drutman (founder of Green Jobs Board), nuancedaiman (AI safety advocate and software developer), and the Coffee Jesus (founder of Johnny Autoseed, working on robotics for regenerative agriculture).
Come solo or form teams of up to four. Completely free to join in.
Sign up: hopamine.xyz/hackathon
Why I’m sending you there
Among these hundreds of movements, we have everything we need to put the infrastructure in place. We just need to connect it.
Connectioning doesn’t need to build hackathon infrastructure. Hopamine’s already got that. What I see here is a space where people of all backgrounds and levels can show up, find others who are oriented toward the same future, and actually build something that matters.
Most of you reading this probably haven’t come at this from the tech side so you might be hesitant. But even if you’re not a developer, Hopamine’s pairing algorithm deliberately pairs technical and non-technical people.
Marketers. Agriculture people. Social entrepreneurs. Community builders. Like an ecosystem needs diversity to thrive, so do we.
I asked if we could do hackathons for community projects like Antidote highlights on their Screw This… Let’s Try Something Else Podcast.
And of course the answer was yes.
We can do this for everything.
It’s as simple as creating the spaces to get together and make it happen.
So check out the Hopamine space. It’s just getting started so I can’t wait to see how much of the future the community has built in a year.
Missed this event? Mawuli.xyz hinted that there just might be more to come.
If I were you I’d keep an eye out here during Climate Week, there’ll be a lot going on. ;)
What’s next?
Join the Hopamine Discord and find out more: hopamine.xyz
Follow Mawuli: instagram.com/mawuli.xyz
Sign up for the hackathon: hopamine.xyz/hackathon
Did you know?
150,000 people follow this work across the internet.
A tiny fraction pay for it.
We need 400 paid members make it sustainable so we can make the WEconomy the new normal.
That’s 1 in 14 of you reading this right now.
Ready to join us to make a fair economy that works for all by 2036?
Become a member today.
For more detailed company information, see our website connectioning.io.
See Connectioning on Open Collective.
Ready to get started in the WEconomy now?
Read this first 👇
About Jess
Jessica Friday is a wellbeing economist and culture strategist. With a community wealth building story that’s been cited in Scottish Parliament and millions of views on her content worldwide, she coordinates hundreds of movements helping us transition to a fair economy and better future for all.
To follow her journey, find her on the socials here.
The wellbeing economy isn’t coming.
It’s happening right now around the world in and your neighborhoods.
Hopamine! Love it.
Can you drop me the discord link in PM please. Would love to join.
Thank you so much for sharing this, it is one of the most hopeful things I've seen in a long time!
"Connectioning doesn’t need to build hackathon infrastructure. Hopamine’s already got that."
I Love what's happening this weekend and love that you asked about hackathons for community projects like Antidote highlights!
I would love to have a hackathon hosted by Connectioning that is less about building software and more about solving the most pressing problems that Im dealing with, as I'm sure the solutions will help others too. Please dm me if you'd be interested in collaborating.
Btw, the link wouldn't load, gave me an error code
"For more detailed company information, see our website connectioning.io."
I love everything I've read from you, thank you for sharing