On the 16th March people across Queensland will be turning out for snags and a vote. We get to have a say in how our local governments are taking action on climate, and that’s important: Local governments are a driving force of climate action and that’s what we all need more of!
There’s a huge range of ways local governments support action on climate change.
One of these is the Queensland Climate Resilient Councils program. Of the 77 local government authorities (LGAs) in Queensland, 54 are members of the program. If your council is not one of them, send them some feedback and let them know they should join.
Some Queensland LGAs are also members of the ICLEI (Local Governments for Sustainability) network, including Mackay Regional Council, Brisbane City Council and Cairns Regional Council. This network aims to help local governments prioritise sustainable urban development and reduce carbon emissions. You could contact your local mayor or council candidates to ask whether they intend to join the network - let them know that making a commitment to do so would help win your vote!
You might also have heard of the Climate Emergency Declaration movement. So far Noosa and the Sunshine Coast Councils are the only Queensland ones to declare a climate emergency, with then Noosa Mayor Tony Wellington saying that “This declaration sends a strong message to all levels of government that the time to take urgent action on climate change is right now.” The Sunshine Coast Council also recognised that the Earth is in a state of climate emergency, and is now progressing zero-net emission planning, community readiness and the Regional Climate Action Roadmap Project.
Just asking prospective Mayor and Council candidates for their stance on climate action can be a powerful way to demonstrate community demand for action. But how do you find out who your candidates are? Two easy ways are:
Visit the Qld Electoral Commission easy to search tool
Check out the ABC candidate index.
Once you’ve found your local candidates find out how to contact them and get cracking!
There is also a bunch of sites that provide tips on what sort of questions to ask candidates. These include:
Ten questions for local government candidates compiled by Common Ground in Aotearoa/New Zealand
The UK Local Government Association also has some concise and simple tips to follow when thinking of questions
The Climate Council has a comprehensive guide to talking to Australian candidates and representatives at all levels of government.
Our state needs more pro-climate representations at the local level. Not only that, we need more candidates in general! This election 15 mayors and 46 councilors have already won, as they are standing unopposed.
And who knows? Maybe it’s a chance for you to step up and make a difference in 2027 :)
What can you do today?
🐝 If you have 5 minutes:
The most popular action in our last edition was the Australian Institute’s petition to increase the Petroleum Resource Rent Tax. Despite the massive increase in gas exports recently, the industry pays less tax per barrel of gas than at any time in the last 35 years. If you haven’t signed the petition yet don’t worry - it’s still going and close to it’s goal of 15,000 signatures. Share with your family and friends to get this important issue on the political agenda.
Action: Share the petition to help them reach their 15,000 signature goal.
Another topical issue at the moment is the Climate Trigger Pledge. Our environmental laws are failing us, and we urgently need to make climate emissions a mandatory consideration for any new developments. Lock the Gate is hoping to get 2,000 signatures for a petition to Prime Minister Albanese.
Action: Sign the Lock the Gate climate trigger pledge asking Prime Minister Albanese to include the climate trigger in the reforms soon to go to Federal Parliament.
While we’re enjoying our petition signing fiesta, here’s another one that needs our help. Parents for Climate are calling on all levels of government to fund solar and batteries for every school and early learning childhood centre in Australia. This is a demand we can all get behind!
Action: Sign the Parents for Climate petition to Federal, State and Territory leaders to commit to funding solar in schools.
🐇 If you have 15 minutes:
The Cities Power Partnership is a program run by the Climate Council that offers free membership for Councils to help them get local climate and energy projects up and running. Program members gain access to top experts, recognition through an annual awards program, and support on achieving 5 key actions across the areas of ‘renewable energy’, ‘efficiency’, ‘transport’ and ‘working in partnership’.
Action: Check out the map (scroll down the page to find this) to see whether your Council is a member. If not, follow the links to encourage your local Council to join, and contact your election candidates to ask for their position on joining.
Cairns Regional Council is already a member, and has produced a cool video all about it: check it out on YouTube or below!
💃🏽 If you have 30 minutes or more:
Our current environment laws are broken and full of holes. (We wrote about this in Issue #37). Australia has one of the worst extinction records on the planet. Iconic and important ecosystems are collapsing before our eyes – against the backdrop of a rapidly warming climate. Come along to a webinar by Environmental Justice Australia to learn more about what needs to change in the new nature laws. Check out their online or pdf guide on writing a submission as well.
Action: Join the webinar on either Friday 15th March 1.30pm Qld time or Monday 18th March 5.30pm Qld time to find out more about these critical reforms of our environmental laws.
Are you in Brisbane? If so, join the Rising Tide Pot Luck and Open Meeting on the 13th March at 6pm to connect with like-minded folks taking bold action on the climate crisis. From 6-6.30 there will be an info session for people new to the action, a shared vegetarian meal from 6.30-6.45, followed by update about their ambitious plans to ramp up the resistance across Brisbane.
Action: RSVP for the Rising Tide Pot Luck and Open Meeting in South Brisbane, 6pm on Weds 13th March.
Recently I got to enjoy an up-close and personal encounter with a rather large penguin. Did you know penguins actually evolved to fly underwater? And that droppings spotted from satellite imagery helped scientists locate a new emperor penguin colony? It's proof that even the most sophisticated satellite technology is no match for the natural world's version of dropping pins on a map :)
That’s all for today, folks 👋🏽 Thanks for taking action. See you in two weeks!
Robyn, plus Malcolm, Ron and Jan - The Climate Club Qld team
We live, work and play on the lands of the Yuggara and Turrbal people in and around Meanjin - Brisbane. We pay respect to their Elders, past and present, and acknowledge that sovereignty was never ceded - always was, always will be Aboriginal land.
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