Australian farmers, disaster survivors, parents and community respond to dismal climate target
Climate Media Centre
The Federal Government has announced Australia’s 2035 climate target of 62-70% reduction in emissions. It comes following the first ever government climate report that outlined major climate risks facing Australians. The only science aligned target to keep Australians safer is net-zero by 2035, the further away from this the more risks Australians face.
Farmers, bushfire survivors, parents, athletes, climate experts and Alpine residents are available for interviews responding to the target announcement.
To arrange interviews, please contact:
Gabrielle Platt, 0493 442 307 or [email protected]
Sean Kennedy, 0447 121 378 or [email protected]
VICTORIA:
Natalie Collard, CEO of Farmers for Climate Action
As CEO of Farmers for Climate Action Natalie can speak to the impact of climate change on Australian farmers and the need to set a strong 2035 climate target to protect farming forever. Natalie is an advocate for regional Australia, agriculture and renewable energy.
Location: Melbourne
Nicola Barr, St Kilda AFLW player
Nicola Barr was the inaugural AFLW number one draft pick and is a current AFLW player for St Kilda FC. Nicola is a Director at Footy for Climate and on the board of the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Trust. Nicola works at the intersection of sport and climate, working with sporting organisations and codes to decarbonise sport.
Location: Melbourne
NEW SOUTH WALES:
Nic Seton, CEO of Parents for Climate said:
‘’Families across Australia are already living with disrupted routines, rising costs, and growing anxiety. The government had a choice but they failed to set strong science aligned 2035 climate targets, which is a failure of all our children. We demand the Government act with courage now, we can protect our kids from cascading risks and build a safer, more stable future.''
Location: Sydney
Josh Gilbert, Worimi man and cattle farmer
Josh Gilbert is a Worimi man, award-winning author and climate advocate, whose work bridges Indigenous knowledge, agriculture and environmental truth-telling. Josh can speak to climate impacts over the past six years that have been challenging for his family farm. The worst drought ever witnessed on Worimi Country on the Mid North Coast of NSW was soon met by bushfires, then followed by the floods- the worst two on record just years apart, with minor flooding in between.
Location: Nabiac, NSW
Sophie Nichols, grazier
Sophie is a fourth generation farmer on a cattle farm on the outskirts of Singleton who has spoken about how years of drought, a bushfire and flooding rains left her family's farm with significant debt, poor groundcover, and substantial erosion. In response, Sophie decided they needed to change farming practices and be innovative, installing solar power and batteries to power her farm and reduce energy bills and using sustainable farming techniques.
Location: Singleton, NSW
Karin Stark, Director at Farm Renewables Consulting and Founder of the National Renewables in Agriculture conference
Karin Stark can speak to the impact of droughts and floods and how renewables help farmers weather those storms, like farmers using income from hosting wind turbines to pay for feed during long droughts, or how integrating renewables is lowering energy bills, or how hosting solar farms can improve the productivity of grazing pastures.
Location: Central West NSW
Peter Lake, beef farmer said:
"As a farmer on the front lines of a changing climate, I think it’s just wrong to say we shouldn't act because others aren’t. That kind of thinking wouldn’t hold up in any other part of life—why should it here, where the stakes are the highest? Globally we all should be doing more and it starts with a strong target. This is not the time to sit on our hands. Leadership means doing the right thing, not waiting for someone else to go first." *Not available for interview but audio grabs available for radio run here.
Location: Clarence Valley, NSW
Tim Buckley, Founder and Director of Climate Energy Finance
Tim Buckley is director of independent public interest think tank Climate Energy Finance and a former MD of global investment bank Citigroup. He can provide expert commentary on the federal government's new 2035 emissions reduction target and its sector decarbonisation plans, as well as the need for rapid deployment of public and private green capital to drive economy wide decarbonisation and ambitious emissions cuts – critical in light of the National Climate Risk Assessment report this week. Tim's commentary on the above can be seen here.
Location: Sydney, NSW
David Morris, CEO, FrontRunners
David joined FrontRunners as CEO after over a decade with the Environmental Defenders Office (EDO). Frontrunners has helped support the formation of player-led climate movements like Footy for Climate, Cricket for Climate and the Sport for 75 open letter to the Federal Government. Under David’s leadership, EDO delivered landmark litigation and advanced the law on climate change, ecosystem protection, and cultural heritage. David has deep experience advising governments on environmental reforms.
Location: Newcastle, NSW
ALPINE REGION:
Dr Lily O’Neill, Protect Our Winters Director, mother and alpine local:
"The Government’s climate target falls woefully short. When you see it beside their recent decisions to approve new coal and gas they are giving the middle finger to all the communities that depend on the Alpine area.
"Australia's 2035 target is a crucially important policy for the Australian Alps. The follow-on effects will shape what our snowy mountains look like in 10 years, and whether they are still able to support a thriving and nationally significant ecosystem, community and tourism area for Australia. The target is woefully inadequate and many will be asking existential questions like, who will we be as a community without the snow?"
Location: Bright, Vic
Sam Beaver, passionate lifelong skier and policy lead and campaigner at Protect Our Winters, said:
"The National Climate Risk Assessment released on Monday spelt out exactly what is at stake for Australia's mountain regions if we don't get a handle on climate pollution caused by the burning of coal, oil and gas. Increased bushfires, major changes to the economics of these tourism-reliant regions, less water flowing from the Alps and a hotter, less snowy and significantly altered mountain environment. Now we have the target, the Government must show leadership and stop approving major polluting coal and gas projects. We can choose to save our Alps."
Location: Canberra, ACT
QUEENSLAND
Professor John Quiggin, economist, University of Queensland
Prof Quiggin is prominent both as a research economist and as a commentator on national and state economic policy. He can offer expert analysis on the economic implications of climate targets, and how this may affect certain sectors and our trade relationships. He can also give economic analysis of renewable energy markets and the impacts a lower target will have on investment in the energy industry.
Location: Brisbane
ACT
Emeritus Professor Mark Howden, Climate Scientist, Australian National University
Prof Howden is the Director of the Institute for Climate, Energy & Disaster Solutions at The Australian National University, an Honorary Professor at Melbourne University, a Vice Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and is the Chair of the ACT Climate Change Council. He was also the Chair of the National Climate Risk Assessment Expert Advisory Board.
Location: Canberra.
WESTERN AUSTRALIA:
Verity Morgan-Schmidt, CEO of AgZero
Verity is the CEO of AgZero and former CEO of Farmers for Climate Action. AgZero equips farmers and rural Western Australians to rise to the challenges of climate change and seize the opportunities of clean energy and climate solutions.
Location: Western Australia
Dale Park, beef farmer
Dale is a WA beef producer in Badgingarra and on the board of AgZero. He is a former President of WA Farmers Federation, he was on the National Farmers Federation (NFF) Environment Committee, and is a previous director of Farmers for Climate Action.
Location: Badgingarra, Western Australia
Simon Wallwark - Grain farmer
Simon is a farmer from the wheatbelt of WA, and has first hand experience of the pressures being placed on agricultural communities as temperatures continue to rise, and heatwaves and droughts become more frequent and intense.
Location: Corrigon, Western Australia
BUSHFIRE SURVIVORS ALSO AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEW ON REQUEST
Contact details:
Gabrielle Platt, 0493 442 307 or [email protected]
Sean Kennedy, 0447 121 378 or [email protected]