Community Power Agency

"Similar to artificial reefs in aquatic ecosystems, solar farms can serve as hubs for biodiversity enhancement, introducing structural complexity into the environment and providing crucial shelter and habitat for various species" - Eric Nordberg 🐞 🌞 Great to see more coverage of the Building Better Biodiversity on Solar Farms Guide, authored by our Regional Coordinator Heidi McElnea, and Stringybark Ecological founder David Carr - with input from Dr Eric Nordberg. We know from projects being developed in Asia, Europe, the US and now emerging in Australia, that conservation and agriculture don’t need to come off second best to renewable energy. Our guide sets out how new solar farm projects can improve biodiversity on the same sites. Read the Guide here: https://lnkd.in/g8hzCCEj News article here: https://lnkd.in/ggJBw4Yg #doingrenewablesbetter

🌞 Huge congratulations to Manilla Solar Pty Ltd on reaching two incredible milestones this week! They’ve just launched a community investment opportunity and will officially open the doors to the Manilla Community Hub on Saturday. Manilla Solar is not just about generating power locally - they’re also creating a movement that keeps economic and community benefits close to home. Learn more about this project here: https://lnkd.in/gNMY2wCY

🎉 Haystacks Solar Garden has been named a finalist in the Banksia Foundation Sustainability Awards under the Marketing and Communications for Impact category! Communicating with a geographically dispersed membership base across six Australian States and Territories, amidst the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the uncertainty of multiple energy crises, was no small task. The participatory and democratic structure of the Haystacks Co-operative brought further complexity, but was an extremely worthwhile approach to empower participants to take control of their energy future. Our team’s adaptable and innovative approach, alongside fearless and transparent community engagement practices, allowed us to foster more inclusive, fairer participation in the solar revolution. Not to mention the countless media and engagement efforts, with highlights including: 🗞️ ABC feature https://lnkd.in/gt3kVJyw 🗞️ SMH feature https://lnkd.in/g4jApaK4 💡 Knowledge sharing report https://lnkd.in/gMg4GPWj A huge congratulations to the entire team, including our partners at Komo Energy Pty Ltd, Pingala, Kristy Walters and all 175 dedicated solar gardeners 🌞

With up to 34,000 new jobs expected to be created by the Hunter Renewable Energy Zone, workforce preparedness is key! ⚡️ It's great to see TAFE NSW and the Regional Industry Education Partnership leading the way, giving Hunter students a clear pathway to explore exciting career opportunities in the growing renewables sector. https://lnkd.in/gKW3CZUi

There’s a lot of buzz in the headlines this week about nature and energy developments. Our Regional Coordinator, Heidi McElnea, is putting talk into action ⬇️ Heidi has been working closely with local communities in New England to enhance biodiversity outcomes for solar projects, seeing firsthand the benefits of place-based solutions. 🖊️ https://lnkd.in/g8hzCCEj

So great to see the Energy Ready Toolkit being celebrated with this award! 🎊 The toolkit is the result of a year-long process of research and consultation. We travelled around the east coast of Australia to consult with communities who had experienced climate-related disasters and then met with communities that are at risk of being impacted by disasters. This enabled the team to pass learnings from experienced communities to those likely to be hit in the future. By communities, for communities 🤝 Well done team! Energy Consumers Australia, Parallel Lines, UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures 👏

🌞 Exciting update from Haystacks Solar Garden! After four years of hard work, we're thrilled to announce that in just a few weeks, 175 solar gardeners will start receiving credits on their electricity bills! Together, we’ve weathered COVID, an energy crisis and all the highs and lows of delivering Australia's FIRST large-scale solar garden - and now, the rewards are finally flowing. Haystacks Solar Garden is an innovative model that allows renters, apartment dwellers and anyone locked out of rooftop solar to access the benefits. As our Director Kim Mallee says, "It's a proof of concept, proof it can be done, and we have a pathway to doing it." If you want to dive into the details of this project, check out our knowledge sharing report ✍️ https://lnkd.in/gMg4GPWj #doingrenewablesbetter #solargarden #communityenergy Komo Energy Pty Ltd Kristy Walters https://lnkd.in/ganqV5Px

“We know from projects being developed in Europe, the US and now emerging in Australia, that conservation and agriculture don’t need to come off second best to renewable energy.” Wise words from our Regional Coordinator, Heidi McElnea, who, along with David Carr (Principal Ecologist at Stringybark Ecological), co-authored the Building Better Biodiversity on Solar Farms Guide. This guide offers strategies to restore nature, support regenerative farming and produce solar energy. The guide proves win-win-wins are possible, but they key is in collaboration and planning. Check out this great feature article in Energy Source & Distribution by Nadia Howland, which also shines a light on the pioneering work of Dr. Eric Nordberg, who is exploring the concept of 'conservoltaics' (conservation + photovoltaics), along with the important contributions of The Energy Charter and RE-Alliance in advancing better practice of nature and renewables. ✍️ Our guide: https://lnkd.in/g8hzCCEj 🗞️ Read the article below: https://lnkd.in/ggsyEGjc #natureandrenewables #biodiversityandsolar #conservoltaics

This week, we presented the Energy Ready Toolkit at the Australian Disaster Resilience Conference. The toolkit supports communities coming together to learn and develop their energy resilience plans. It was funded by an Energy Consumers Australia grant and created in partnership with the UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures, Community Power Agency and Parallel Lines. 🛠️ Find out more + download the Energy Ready Toolkit via the UTS website: https://loom.ly/mwBv9Ps

Support is brewing for Local Energy Hubs! ⚡️ Last week we hosted an event at the Parliament of Victoria, calling for the federal government to fund and resource Local Energy Hubs – a network of outreach centres across Australia, staffed by local people who are dedicated to helping their local community to understand, participate in and benefit from the shift to renewable energy. Our lineup of wonderful speakers on the night included our very own Jarra Hicks, PhD; Victorian Minister for Climate Action, Energy & Resources and the State Electricity Commission, Lily D’Ambrosio MP; President of the Municipal Association of Victoria, David Clark; Beon Energy Solutions’ Community Engagement and Sustainability Specialist, Justin Coburn; and President of Voices of the Valley and Organiser at Friends of the Earth Australia, Wendy Farmer. Jarra Hicks, PhD highlighted that: “As more and more [renewable energy] projects pop up, the more important it is to have people based in regional areas who can see the whole picture, connect the dots, help to amplify the opportunities and reduce the engagement fatigue.” You can read more about why Federal, State and Local MPs want Local Energy Hubs for regional communities below. Show your support for Local Energy Hubs by visiting the website and signing onto our Open Letter to the Federal Government ➡️ https://lnkd.in/gziiGU4b https://lnkd.in/dsZpAj6k RE-Alliance Friends of the Earth Australia