How are you feeling about the state of the planet?
In the last few years I’ve experienced plenty of moments of uncertainty, anxiety and sadness about the consequences of climate change, and I thought these feelings were pretty out there compared with most people. But when I looked at the research, I discovered that millions of Australians are just as freaked out as I am. So many of us are feeling overwhelmed by the news of devastating fires, floods and droughts, and we’re trying to work out what we can do about it.
I have a pretty unusual job – I work in climate advocacy, focussing on a faster and fairer transformation of our energy sector, which takes up most of my waking hours (and sometimes my sleeping hours too). In 2021 I decided to take a closer look at who’s taking action on climate change and what we can learn.
The astonishing truth is that people across Australia are at the forefront of many climate solutions, big and small: we just don’t see what’s happening underneath the political argy-bargy that we see in our newsfeed.
The insights and expertise from scores of Australians come together in my new book, Together We Can. The book has inspiring stories of climate action and sustainability from all over the country, from Kingaroy to Kangaroo Island; Gloucester to Gadigal Country; from Hobart to the Hunter and right here in the Illawarra too. People are building community connections, learning from First Nations leaders, inventing new technologies and starting transformational enterprises too.
My family and I have lived in the Illawarra for 16 years, in Stanwell Tops and Austinmer on Dharawal Country. We love it here, and, like you, want to make sure future generations can benefit from its pristine environment with renewable-powered jobs and connected communities coming up with the solutions we need.
My hope is that you will read Together We Can and get more inspired to create a better world.
Together We Can is published by Allen & Unwin and can be found at Collins Thirroul or at your local bookstore. Come along to the Coledale launch event on Sunday, 14 August. Tickets are free via Humanitix.
