The National Summit 2021 is the Cities Power Partnership’s premier event for local government climate and energy leaders. Held online from in May 2021, the event brought together councils from across Australia for our largest summit yet.
The National Summit hosted over 340 attendees and 23 speakers including Lesley Hughes, Ross Garnaut, Bhiamie Williamson, Charlie Prell and a number of other engaging speakers from councils and other organisations all over the country.
If you missed out, please find the National Summit session recordings below.
Thank you Azility, Ironbark Sustainability, and SunSpot by APVI
DAY 1
Day 1: Opening Plenary | Sponsored by Azility
To view the entire Opening Plenary Session, click here. Otherwise, you can find a breakdown of sessions within the Opening Plenary below:
Opening of the Summit and Introduction of Keynote Presenters
Speakers: Dr Portia Odell, director Cities Power Partnership and Dan Ilic, Master of Ceremonies
Acknowledgement of Country and a First Nations Perspective on Climate
Speaker: Bhiamie Williamson, Research Associate and PhD Candidate at the Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy Research, and Euahlayi man from north-west NSW Australian National University
Bhiamie’s presentation focused on First Nations experiences and perspectives on extreme weather, disaster recovery, climate justice and First Nations-led solutions.
Clean Jobs: Economic Opportunities for Australia
Speaker: Ross Garnaut, Energy expert, economist and author
Ross discussed his vision for Australian’s economic future, driven by clean jobs, and explored in his new book “Reset: Restoring Australia after the Pandemic Recession”.
An Update on Climate Science
Speaker: Lesley Hughes, Professor of Biology and Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research Integrity & Development) at Macquarie University
Hear the latest on climate change science, including a summary of the Climate Council’s most recent report “Aim High: Go Fast” which details the urgency of emissions dropping this decade.
Opportunities for the Regions
Speaker: Charlie Prell, Chairman Farmers for Climate Action
Charlie underscored the benefits that renewable energy projects can bring to small regional communities and the enormous opportunity councils have to lead on an inclusive “benefit sharing” model for project developments, where the whole community enjoys the social and financial returns, not just the few who host the project.
Panel Discussion with all Keynote Speakers
DAY 1: Community and Corporate Emissions Part 1
To view the entire Community and Corporate Emissions Part 1 session, click here. Otherwise, you can find a breakdown of sessions within the Community and Corporate Emissions Part 1 session below:
Science Based Targets for Australian Councils: Taking the confusion out of community emissions reduction target setting
Speaker: Alexi Lynch, Business Manager, Ironbark Sustainability
Case Study | Setting a net zero target for communities and the pathway there
Speaker: Manny Pasqualini, Sustainability Officer, Hepburn Shire Council
Case Study | Towards Zero Emissions: Getting off gas and transitioning to renewables
Speaker: Mayor Gabrielle de Vietri, City of Yarra
DAY 1: Community and Corporate Emissions Part 2
To view the entire Community and Corporate Emissions Part 2 session, click here. Otherwise, you can find a breakdown of sessions within the Community and Corporate Emissions Part 2 session below:
Case Study | Engaging Your Community in Setting Emissions Targets: How the Augusta Margaret River community came together to drive local climate action
Speaker: Katie Biggs, Sustainability Planning Officer, Shire of Augusta-Margaret River
How to track solar PV penetration in your LGA, and how to uncover the solar potential of individual rooftops
Speaker: Alison Potter, Council Engagement Officer, SunSPoT, Australian PV Institute
Panel Q&A with Alexi Lynch, Manny Pasqualini, Gabrielle de Vietri and Katie Biggs
DAY 2
DAY 2: Opening Plenary
To view the entire Opening Plenary Session, click here. Otherwise, you can find a breakdown of sessions within the Opening Plenary below:
Welcome to Day Two and Acknowledgement of Country
Speakers: Dr Portia Odell, director Cities Power Partnership and Dan Ilic, Master of Ceremonies
What’s Happening Outside of Australia: a Perspective from the US
Speaker: Mayor Kate Gallego, Phoenix, Arizona
In this session, Mayor Gallego spoke about getting climate action done at the local government level in the US – both under the previous administration, and now under Biden’s bold climate plan. She also talked about climate action successes and challenges in Phoenix, a city Mayor Gallego sees as being the most sustainable desert city in the world.
Local Government Advocacy in Australia
Speaker: Tracey Roberts JP, Mayor of Wanneroo, Vice President of ALGA and President of WALGA
In this session, Mayor Tracey Roberts, ALGA vice president, spoke about where ALGA’s priorities lie in advocacy this year, and also what key policy asks they are making on behalf of local government.
DAY 2: Communicating on Climate Change and Risk
To view the entire Communicating on Climate Change and Risk session, click here. Otherwise, you can find a breakdown of sessions within the Communicating on Climate Change and Risk session below:
Understanding and Communicating Risks
Speaker: Andrew Gissing, Risk Frontiers, Director Government Business and Enterprise Risk Management
Andrew presented on current approaches to understand and communicate risk with a focus on providing practical insights and tips to inform practice.
Council Operations: Risks Posed by Climate Inaction
Speaker: Tony Brun, CEO, City of Cockburn
Tony walked us through the risks of climate inaction as he sees them. He also talked about how a CEO balances mitigation vs adaptation initiatives and allocates funding accordingly, and what goes into that decision making process.
DAY 2: Communication
DAY 2: How to win battles internally
Speaker: Victoria Fratin, Media Advisor, Cities Power Partnership
Strategies to help you effectively communicate the case for urgent action on climate change to decision makers within your council.
DAY 2: Media 101, Nailing the “Nice” Questions
Speaker: Christine Heard, Senior Media Advisor, Climate Media Centre
Everyone fears the ‘tricky’ questions in media interviews but really, it’s far more important to nail the ‘nice’ questions. In this session you’ll learn a structure for answering ‘nice’ questions in a way that works for you and the journalist.
DAY 2: Collaboration
To view the entire Collaboration Session, click here. Otherwise, you can find a breakdown of sessions within the Collaboration Session below:
Case Study | Collaborating to Reduce Community Emissions: How Noosa is tackling community emissions
Speaker: Anne Nolan, Carbon Reduction Project Officer, Noosa Shire Council and Vivien Griffin, ZEN Inc
Case Study | Scaling Impact Through Regional Collaboration: How all Hunter Region councils are working together on climate
Speaker: Joe James, CEO, Hunter Joint Organisation
Case Study | Group Power Purchase Agreements: How over half of Victorian councils collaborated to form the Victoria Energy Collaboration the largest emissions reduction project undertaken by local government in Australia
Speaker: Michelle Van Gerrevink, Climate Emergency and Environment Strategy Coordinator, Darebin Council
Case Study | Regional Rollout of EV Charging Infrastructure: Hear how rural and regional Victorian councils collaborated on the largest local government Electric Vehicle charging network
Speaker: Rob Law, Executive Officer, Central Victorian Greenhouse Alliance
Case Study | Collaboration and Resilience Projects: How the Resilient South Program has seen councils in South Australia work together for greater impact
Speaker: Nina Keath, Senior Strategic Planner | Strategic Futures, City of Onkaparinga
