Climate Summit for Local Government

Sept 6-8, 2023 | Melbourne

The Partnership Action Pledges

Members select 5 key actions from dozens of partnership pledges.

Renewable Energy
  • Develop supportive planning laws to encourage residents and industry to adopt renewable energy.
  • Use council resources to support the uptake of renewable energy
  • Install renewable energy (solar PV and battery storage) on council buildings.
  • Support community facilities to access renewable energy through incentives, support or grants.
  • Power council operations by renewable energy, and set targets to increase the level of renewable power for council operations over time.
  • Provide incentives and/or remove barriers to encourage local businesses to take up solar power and battery storage.
  • Support local community renewable energy projects, and encourage investment in community energy.
  • Opening up unused council managed land for renewable energy.
  • Facilitate large energy users collectively tendering and purchasing renewable energy at a low cost.
  • Set minimum renewable energy benchmarks for new developments.
  • Electrify public transport systems and fleet vehicles and power these by 100% renewable energy.
  • Lobby electricity providers and state government to address barriers to local renewable energy uptake.
  • Identify opportunites to turn organic waste into electricity.
  • Implement landfill gas methane flaring or capture for electricity generation.
  • Create a revolving green energy fund to finance renewable energy projects.
Energy Efficiency
  • Set minimum energy efficiency benchmarks for all planning applications.
  • Adopt best practice energy efficiency measures across all council buildings, and support community facilities to adopt these measures.
  • Roll out energy efficient lighting across the municipality.
  • Provide incentives for energy efficient developments and upgrades to existing buildings.
  • Incentivise use of energy efficient heating and cooling technologies.
  • Create a green revolving energy fund to finance energy efficiency projects.
Sustainable Transport
  • Ensure Council fleet purchases meet strict greenhouse gas emissions requirements and support the uptake of electric vehicles.
  • Provide fast-charging infrastructure throughout the city at key locations for electric vehicles.
  • Encourage sustainable transport use such as public transport, walking and cycling through council transport planning and design.
  • Ensure that new developments are designed to maximize public and active transport use, and support electric vehicle uptake.
  • Support cycling through provision of adequate cycle lanes, bike parking and end-of-ride facilities. 
  • Reduce or remove minimum car parking requirements for new housing and commercial developments where suitable public transport alternatives exist.
  • Lobby state and federal governments to increase sustainable transport options
  • Create disincentives for driving high emitting vehicles.
  • Convert council waste collection fleet to hydrogen or electric power.
Work Together and Influence
  • Set city-level renewable energy or emissions reduction targets.
  • Lobby state and federal government to address barriers to the take up of renewable energy, energy efficiency and/or sustainable transport.
  • Set up meetings and attend events to work with other cities on tackling climate change.
  • Develop education and behaviour-change programs to support local residents and businesses to tackle climate change through clean energy, energy efficiency and sustainable transport.
  • Lobby for state and federal support for a just transition away from coal-driven industry for local workers and the community.
  • Develop procurement policy to ensure that the practices of contractors and financers align with council’s renewable energy, energy efficiency and sustainable transport goals.
  • Support the local community to develop capacity and skills to tackle climate change.
  • Support local community energy groups with their community energy initiatives.
  • Achieve 100% divestment from fossil fuel aligned investments at the earliest possible date.

Join now and be part of the groundswell of local governments and communities across Australia tackling climate change.