National Cleantech Conference & Exhibition

18/07/2022

If it goes ahead, SunCable will be the world’s biggest solar and battery storage project, with an ambitious plan to send most of its output 5,000km from its home on a Northern Territory cattle station to Darwin and then Singapore.

https://reneweconomy.com.au/sun-cable-clears-new-hurdle-for-worlds-biggest-solar-and-battery-project/

Massive solar and battery project backed by Australia’s two richest men gets a ringing endorsement of its economic merits from Infrastructure Australia.

15/07/2022

Impact Tech Ventures and Investible have joined forces to accelerate Aussie tech scaleups on a global stage to unite the ecosystem and help contribute to the growth of the homegrown sector.

https://www.pv-magazine-australia.com/press-releases/impact-tech-ventures-and-investible-join-forces-to-accelerate-aussie-tech-scaleups-on-a-global-stage/

Sydney-based late stage accelerator Impact Tech Ventures and Australian early-stage VC Investible have recently joined forces to propel the international growth of Australia’s most innovative emerging tech scaleups.

14/07/2022

The regional powerhouses of Australia’s industrial economy could slash their greenhouse gas emissions by more than 80% and become centres for multibillion-dollar investments in renewable energy, according to a report backed by some of the country’s biggest companies.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/jun/20/heavy-industries-in-australias-regions-could-cut-emissions-by-80-and-create-a-jobs-bonanza-report-says

Business leaders and decarbonisation experts say a high level of collaboration and coordination is needed for transition

12/07/2022

Unless we act, climate change will cause untold suffering. Biology is one of the most powerful technologies available and could play a huge role in the fight. But our ability to work with it falls short. What can we do about it?

https://www.technologynetworks.com/tn/articles/we-need-biology-in-the-fight-against-climate-change-but-are-we-ready-to-use-it-361952

In this opinion piece, Markus Gershater addresses the idea that, while we need biology to help us avoid climate disaster, the truth is, it's nowhere near ready.

06/07/2022

The results of a long-term international study show that tropical trees in Australia’s rainforests have been dying at a rate twice as high as before since the 1980s, presumably due to climate impacts. According to this study, as the drying effect of the environment has increased due to global warming, the mortality rates of tropical trees have doubled over the last 35 years.

https://scitechdaily.com/tropical-trees-are-dying-twice-as-fast-due-to-climate-change/

According to new research, climate change may have caused rainforest trees to die more quickly starting in the 1980s The results of a long-term international study published in Nature on May 18th, 2022 show that tropical trees in Australia's rainforests have been dying at a rate twice as high as be

04/07/2022

Melbourne engineer Yanni Bouras has been trialling ways to turn old coffee cups into something useful including examining different waste materials that can be used as part of a concrete mix.

The cups are ground up and mixed in as a substitute for a proportion of the sand that goes into a typical concrete mix.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-11/disposable-coffee-cups-lids-plastic-recycling-waste-landfill/101138922

Breaking the disposable coffee cup habits of Australians has proven difficult through the pandemic. But a group of Melbourne engineers may have found a new way to tackle the waste generated by our fast coffee culture.

30/06/2022

Are we ready for the Electric Vehicle revolution?

A new report from ENA, The University of Melbourne and Centre for New Energy Technologies (C4NET ) looks at how the grid can best manage EV charging impacts.

https://www.energynetworks.com.au/news/energy-insider/2022-energy-insider/are-we-ready-for-the-ev-revolution/

A recent State of Electric Vehicles report by the Electric Vehicle Council indicated that electric vehicle (EV) sales in Australia have tripled in 2021. This increase represents a two per cent market share of all sales, compared with 0.78 per cent in 2020. The question is, are distribution networks....

29/06/2022

The pressure is on Australian businesses to take a leadership role by significantly reducing the use of plastics, with consumers prepared to vote with their wallet and actively seek out businesses embracing plastics reduction strategies.

Planet Ark confirms that consumers are increasingly vocal about the problem and the need to see solutions being put forward by corporate leaders.

https://www.afr.com/policy/energy-and-climate/what-consumers-want-business-leaders-to-embrace-20220603-p5aqx1

The pressure is on Australian businesses to take a leadership role by significantly reducing the use of plastics.

23/06/2022

‘We cannot allow climate change mitigation and adaptation to become another colonial process of dispossession and disempowerment’

https://theconversation.com/caring-for-country-means-tackling-the-climate-crisis-with-indigenous-leadership-3-things-the-new-government-must-do-183987

We cannot allow climate change mitigation and adaptation to become another colonial process of dispossession and disempowerment.

20/06/2022

Ten ways for Australian states to fast-forward consumer investment in net zero

https://reneweconomy.com.au/ten-ways-for-states-to-fast-forward-consumer-investment-in-net-zero/

Consumer have spent $25 billion on solar, batteries, EVs and efficiency, and will spend much more. We should learn how to make the most out of them.

16/06/2022

G-7 nations aim to end Greenhouse Gas emissions from energy by 2035

Ministers from the G-7 countries also announced a target to have a “highly decarbonized road sector by 2030,” meaning that electric vehicles would dominate new car sales by the end of the decade.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/g-7-nations-aim-to-end-greenhouse-gas-emissions-from-energy-by-2035

Officials from the Group of Seven wealthy nations have announced they will aim to largely end greenhouse gas emissions from their power sectors by 2035.

16/06/2022

MIT Energy Initiative's 'Future of Energy Storage' report indicates energy storage paired with renewable energy is key to achieving decarbonized electricity systems.

Read more here:https://energy.mit.edu/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/The-Future-of-Energy-Storage.pdf

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

13/06/2022

Through a partnership with LanzaTech, Bridgestone is scaling up a closed-looped system that uses bacteria to break down the rubber, capture carbon and create the raw material for new rubber.

https://www.greenbiz.com/article/bridgestones-tires-are-going-circular

Through a partnership with LanzaTech, Bridgestone is scaling up a closed-looped system that uses bacteria to recreate the raw material for new rubber.

08/06/2022

As interest in the circular economy grows, emerging recycling technologies that are complementary with mechanical recycling are accelerating.

Check out this McKinsey & Company article for more detail.

https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/chemicals/our-insights/advanced-recycling-opportunities-for-growth

Demand for circular polymers is rapidly increasing, but capacity announcements are not on pace with demand growth. Advanced recycling offers a potential solution.

05/06/2022

They should have listened to the experts.

https://www.echo.net.au/2022/05/unprecedented-but-not-unpredicted-we-are-now-suffering-from-our-failure-to-listen-to-scientists-predictions-of-the-impacts-of-climate-change-30-years-ago/

As Australians head into another election season just as many parts of the east coast are recovering from ‘unprecedented’ flooding since February, and the national psyche is still reeling from the trauma of the ‘unprecedented’ Black Summer bushfires before that, it is critical now more than ...

02/06/2022

Human wellbeing depends on biodiversity. Scientists in New Zealand have designed a process to identify the important ecosystem services, nature's contributions to people, & wellbeing relationships.

Read more about it here: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2022.782229/full

Human well-being depends on the Earth’s natural system. While there is awareness of the impact of human activities on the environment, the reverse – nature’s role in human well-being – is usually not as clear. For decision makers and people to recognize the role of nature in human well-being...

31/05/2022

A new study led by Australian researchers has shown that they can help protect beaches from the impact of sea-level rise.

For the first time, scientists have looked not just above the water – where the impacts of extreme storms are easy to see – but below the ocean’s surface to study the movement of sand in the wake of these events.

https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/extreme-storms-could-help-protect-coasts/

Extreme storms could help protect coasts from rising sea-levels by mobilising sand from deeper waters or nearby beaches to offset their impacts.

30/05/2022

Professor John Quiggin, of The University of Queensland, says the key message from the latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is that “if the world acts now, we can avoid the worst outcomes of climate change without any significant effect on standards of living”.

But the report said it’s “now or never” to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees. Action means cutting emissions from the use of fossil fuels rapidly and hard. “Global emissions must peak within three years to have any chance of keeping warming below 1.5 degrees,” he says.

If you wanted to pick the worst continent to live on as the climate changes, it would be Australia, according to Quiggin. We are a “poster child” for what the rest of the world will be dealing with. Not that we care.

Read more by Ross Gittins at The Age

https://www.theage.com.au/business/the-economy/in-this-election-one-critical-issue-stands-above-all-others-20220510-p5ajwd.html

A significant majority of the top 50 Australian economists nominate “climate change and the environment” as the most important issue in this election. They’re right.

27/05/2022

Thanks to Australian Water Association and Arup the Future of Water survey is an opportunity for all Australians to have their say on the future of our water.

The survey will take about 15–30 minutes to complete and can be found here. The survey closes on 2 June 2022.

https://www.awa.asn.au/

Join Australia’s leading network of water professionals to share, connect, and inspire a sustainable water future. Ask the AWA.

26/05/2022

Tasmania's amazing story on becoming one of the first carbon negative places in the world shows the impact and influence business can have.

https://www.smh.com.au/environment/climate-change/tasmania-slowed-logging-and-became-one-of-first-carbon-negative-places-in-the-world-20220502-p5ahtt.html

The findings suggest that other states that have old-growth logging industries – such as NSW and Victoria – could slash their emissions by protecting their forests.

23/05/2022

"I think the environment should be put in the category of our national security. Defense of our natural resources is just as important as defense abroad. Otherwise what is there to defend."
Robert Redford

20/05/2022

Australia’s Solar Recovery Corporation Pty Ltd has commenced the collection of used photovoltaic panels, and is utilising new technology to recover valuable materials and establish a circular economy within the solar industry.

https://www.srcorp.com.au/

Solar Recovery Corporation is committed to diverting all end-of-life solar PV panels from landfill streams and to the recovery of all the materials from decommissioned panels for use in new applications to create new local jobs in new industries and delivering positive outcomes for our environment,

16/05/2022

Byron Bay plastics reduction startup Zero Co has turned its attention to what’s under the kitchen sink to what’s in the bathroom vanity, launching the world’s first refillable and single-use plastic (SUP)-free shampoo, conditioner, lotion and other body products.

https://www.startupdaily.net/2022/05/plastics-waste-reduction-startup-zero-co-moves-into-body-products/

The new range expands Zero Co’s line up to 14 personal-care and home-cleaning products, including two new hand and body wash fragrances.

13/05/2022

There has never been a better time to pursue a career in sustainability.

https://www.greenbiz.com/article/sustainability-job-market-booming-what-does-mean-hiring

Just saying you want a job in sustainability isn't enough anymore. Students with the right degrees are still struggling to find jobs in the sector.

09/05/2022

Even implementing multiple solutions, with population growth our net plastic waste production is still set to grow. Unless we stop making plastic.

https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/experts-use-model-to-offer-radical-solution-to-plastic-waste-dont-reduce-just-stop/

Back in the dim dark distant days of 2017, about 4.9 billion tonnes of plastic existed on the planet. Now, the planet has about 8.3 billion tonnes of plastic

06/05/2022

Investors all over Australia are now looking more closely at buying more energy-efficient homes, often with solar panels, batteries and electric vehicle charging to reduce running costs and to attract, and retain, good tenants.

https://www.smh.com.au/property/news/why-you-should-be-investing-in-sustainable-homes-20220422-p5afgk.html

Sustainability and energy efficiency are becoming the new tick-boxes for investors as a way to future-proof their assets.

05/05/2022

Can space-based solar power, an astronomical technology, one day revolutionize the global energy system?

Read more in this article about how looking to the skies for power could help to protect our Earth and enable us to invest in our planet 🌏💫

https://www.azocleantech.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=1449

AZoCleantech speaks to David Homfray about space-based solar power, an astronomical technology that could revolutionize the global energy system.

02/05/2022

A bit of to kick off your week 🌏

29/04/2022

University of Sydney scientists discuss how emerging technologies in the food, transport and energy sectors have great potential to address the climate challenge.

https://www.sydney.edu.au/news-opinion/news/2022/04/11/emerging-tech-can-help-counter-the-effects-of-climate-change.html

The latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) — which one of us (Arunima) contributed to — has emphasised the need for enormous change if we are to keep within the 1.5℃ warming limit.