Climate & Energy Justice
Time for a national Just Transition Authority
Australia has traditionally relied on coal fired power stations to meet its energy needs. This is now rapidly changing, as renewable energy and storage becomes cheaper and older coal fired power stations become ever more expensive to run and less reliable.
Friends of the Earth has long argued for the need for a national Just Transition Authority
Now, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) has issued a call for the Albanese government to establish an independent and properly resourced national Energy Transition Authority to manage an orderly and fair transition process for affected workers – including support for redeployment, skills and training, and secure job opportunities.
Climate & Energy Justice
The Workers on the Frontline of Climate Impacts
The Climate Impacts at Work report details that workers are already heavily impacted by climate change - from poorly ventilated kitchens, to accessible housing in heated-surburbia. Anna Langford writes for Chain Reaction #142.
Climate & Energy Justice
Climate Change and Natural Disasters
We know that climate change is already making natural disasters worse. And, we know that action now means less pain later. Cam Walker presents some of the impacts climate change is currently having on natural disasters, in Chain Reaction #142.
Climate & Energy Justice
Climate bill passed in House of Representatives, sent to Senate
August 4, 2022. The House of Representatives has passed the Climate Change 2022 bill. After nine years of delay and denial by the Coalition government, Friends of the Earth Australia welcomes the rapid action by the Albanese government to enact it’s signature climate commitment.
The Labor government, the Greens, community independents and Liberal MP Bridget Archer all voted to support the bill. Sadly, the Coalition opted to remain on the wrong side of both the science and history and voted against the bill.
Climate & Energy Justice
Federal Climate & Environment Policy Platform 2022
Friends of the Earth Australia welcomes the rapid movement of the new federal government on key election commitments, including those covering environment, climate and energy.
We note that the government has already acted to update Australia’s emission reduction targets from the 26-28% target of the Coalition to a new commitment of 43% reduction by 2030.
The federal ALP has a resounding mandate to meet and then exceed its commitments on climate, energy and environment. There has never been a more supportive federal parliament, with strong representation from the Greens and climate independents, who will back more ambitious action. We believe that continued rapid implementation of the existing platform will create many opportunities for deeper emissions cuts and deeper reform of environmental laws.
Climate & Energy Justice
Landscape, Soundscape, Immersion
"Artists as eco-social change makers" – Lila Meleisea shares how her artistic practice weaves together her Samoan heritage and passion for activism. Published in Chain Reaction #141.
Climate & Energy Justice
We Need Renewables in the Right Place
"Can you imagine 239 turbines abutting the Tasmanian World Heritage Area, or Kakadu World Heritage Area, or the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area? The Wet Tropics deserves better!"
Climate & Energy Justice
The ‘climate election’ we need to have
As pre polling opens for the 2022 federal election, climate change and the environment have been largely missing from the mainstream debate.
Yet what happens at this election will impact climate and environment, in a time where science makes it abundantly clear that we don’t have time to waste if we want to avoid catastrophic climate change.
Climate & Energy Justice
Alarm that IPCC WGIII report on climate mitigation accepts overshoot of 1.5°C and relies on unproven technofixes that won’t curb runaway climate change
Once again, the IPCC’s findings have become a political battleground. Climate justice campaigners fear that climate scientists’ core message – that we must make an urgent just transition away from fossil fuels to limit the risk of runaway warming – is being undermined by the legitimisation of a 1.5 degree overshoot in modelled scenarios, and pathways that include unproven and speculative technologies to supposedly cool the planet later down the line.
Activists and experts from Friends of the Earth International, the world’s largest grassroots environmental federation, gave their responses.
Climate & Energy Justice
Climate to drive agenda of new government
This was the climate election we really needed. Although the mainstream media debate largely focused on issues like the cost of living, there was clearly a deep desire in the community to see the parties commit to meaningful action on climate change.
Poll after poll showed the depth of community concern for climate action. Poll after poll showed that this concern cut across party lines. But the conservatives in the federal government continued to ignore these calls, while stoking the culture war. And now they have paid the price of this refusal to listen to the community.