Zoe Daniel (Goldstein, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Dunkley, my near neighbour in bayside Melbourne, for moving this motion. I'm particularly pleased to speak today about a project that has been launched in Goldstein that seeks to enable community participation in the energy space at a time when both the cost and the environmental impact of energy consumption makes this an urgent conversation.

Village Zero represents action—climate action, community action, local action, personal action—bringing people together to create and implement a shared vision for a reimagined low-carbon village where human needs coexist with those of the planet. This vision that our community has brought to fruition truly represents the values that we all share. It aims to reduce emissions, make homes more efficient, increase our capacity for renewables and reduce waste, and it does all of this while encouraging creativity, celebrating diversity and fostering the feeling of community—of belonging—that we all associate with 'Sandy Village' and Goldstein.

Village Zero came about as a result of discussions before last year's election. When I spoke to groups around the electorate, they wanted to do something, but there was an evident need to facilitate that doing. That effort involved bringing together the Sandringham Traders Association and local philanthropic groups like Uncommon Folk and Regen Melbourne, which are looking at ways to create systems change to get things done to benefit people and the planet. The early phases of Village Zero have also included discussions with the Bayside and Glen Eira councils, and I want to thank everyone involved in that process for their willingness to collaborate and their motivation to serve not only their residents but their land and sea as well. Together, we've created action, we've created optimism, and together we will create change.

My formative years as a reporter were spent in Lismore, and I covered big floods in the Northern Rivers before heading overseas, where I reported on floods, fires and storms across the world. With our already extreme climate and minimal investment from previous governments, we as a nation face huge risks ahead. But the opportunity is vast, and that opportunity, that optimism, is central to Village Zero. We are all part of the solution: a commitment to broader, forward-focused climate policy to reduce emissions and embrace renewable energy. Village Zero sets an example.

Part of this project revolves around community energy. In December, as previously mentioned, the government announced the $200 million Community Batteries for Household Solar Program in order to deliver secure and affordable energy as we ramp up renewable generation. We need more energy storage distributed into the community to achieve this. The battery network will store locally generated solar power and reuse it within the community, helping out in the evening energy peak. In the longer term, the aim is that this will reduce the pressure on the electricity grid, drive down power prices and help us to help the planet.

In conjunction with Village Zero, my team has begun working with Bayside council, the Australian National University battery storage and grid integration team, Acacia Energy and Renew Melbourne. Together, we're now working on a bid to ARENA, the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, and we'll begin the community consultation in coming weeks so that we can involve and obtain feedback from the community to play a part in the energy market and to create a repeatable battery network that could be implemented in communities around the country. Also coming up is our Home Energy Efficiency Expo, in partnership with Bayside council, in March at Brighton Town Hall. This will provide a concrete opportunity for people to explore ways to electrify their homes.

There is a lot happening in this space and a lot to be inspired by. One key to fighting climate change is community action and I'm thankful that we have so much commitment from within our community to reduce both the cost of energy and the damage energy consumption does to our environment.

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