After 600 people packed into Anita's Theatre for Electrify 2515's Community Pilot launch on Sunday, November 10. After the offical speeches and an audience Q&A, local residents shared their thoughts.

Courtney Stancourt, builder

“What interested me most is probably about getting off gas. That's most relevant to our household. We'll definitely apply because we need to move away from gas. We're a bit of a gas-reliant household so we need to push to get the push to get off gas. We've got two gas heaters to chuck out. That's it. End of winter.”

Madeleine MacMahon, leadership and mindset coach

“The power of community is amazing and it gives me great hope to know that I'm with a community that's prepared to work together. And, secondly, it’s just a local contribution to the biggest crisis I think the world has ever faced together. It's just super to be a part of.”

Rowena Ivors, general practitioner

“It's great to see after two years that it's all taking off, and that the whole community is behind it. We're really excited that this is a pilot for the whole of Australia. It's about providing a model so that other communities can look at what we've done here in 2515 and see that it's manageable, that the grid's stable and that there's no blackouts, and see that we're saving money and helping the environment.”

Phil O’Brien, solar and energy efficiency specialist

“One of the key things that I heard today, which was fantastic, was that individuals will be able to share power generated peer to peer. It is actually possible now, so it's just going to get easier and better.

It was great to hear about the amount of cooperation that we're getting with the likes of Endeavor who are on for the ride. They're not judging or anything, they're participating.”

Martin Fox, filmmaker

“The community aspect of it and the energy that's coming from all of these people involved who feel they can participate in doing something about the change that we have to make.

“I'm already doing things [at home] but I do want to be part of a community doing it because I think we can share experiences and knowledge and make the transition even better. I've done the hot-water system, the cooktop, and I'm thinking about the next stages. I came along to find out about what's going on and, of course, I was in 2515.” [He now lives in Woonona, 2516]

Read more: Electrify 2515: A postcard from the future by Dr Saul Griffith and see more photos from the Community Pilot Launch in the Flame's report