It's a lot about coping, which is kind of to the point and KSR includes within a list of laudables: orgs around the world that do very real work for the cause. (spoiler) The protagonist struggles, and struggles some more.
But Ministry DOES offer redemption! He said something about it being the most utopian book he could believe in, and it's true, despite his clear-eyed depiction of the horrors too.
Hmm. Maybe don’t start with MftF then, I haven’t been able to get past the first couple of harrowing chapters for this exact reason. You might try the Solarpunk end of the subgenre instead?
