Community Power Agency pioneers new approaches and business models for clean energy that are capable of delivering a more inclusive and equitable energy future.
New practices are essential to ensure that all Australians can benefit from clean energy, no matter where they live or how much they earn. That’s why we work with:
- Renewable developers to ensure communities benefit from new developments
- Governments, businesses and social sector organisations to ensure people who rent and live in apartments can access clean energy, and
- Communities to ensure their clean energy projects deliver maximum local benefit.
Our innovation work is underpinned by rigorous research and evaluation. Our experience in conducting community energy research is broad, covering local and international settings in both urban and regional contexts. Our research spans understanding social outcomes, to financing and business model options, to policy and regulation.
ACHIEVEMENTS
- In 2019 we worked with the Clean Energy Council and ARENA to showcase the diverse practices being taken up by the renewable energy industry in order to share the benefits of renewable energy developments with local communities.
- In 2018, with the support of ARENA and the NSW Government we collaborated with the Institute for Sustainable Futures and 16 other organisations to investigate whether solar gardens are desirable, viable and feasible in Australia.
- In 2018, Nicky Ison and Dr Jarra Hicks explored the diverse forms of community energy in their article An Exploration of the Boundaries of ‘Community’ in Community Renewable Energy Projects: Navigating between motivations and context in the Energy Policy Journal. Please email us if you would like a copy.
- In 2018, Dr Jarra Hicks, co-founder of Community Power Agency, completed her PhD on the social outcomes and impacts from community-owned wind energy projects in small regional communities. Her research analysed the implications of different social enterprise models on generating a range of desired social outcomes.
- In 2017 we collaborated with the Clean Energy Council and the wind energy industry to consolidate learnings on how to build a strong social license for wind energy through better practice community engagement and benefit sharing.
CPA were always professional, knowledgeable and friendly. They took us from a well-intentioned desire to do something about climate change and benefit low income households in our community, to a clear plan on how to achieve this. Thanks to CPA, we are now much more confident in our ability to bring the Repower Coffs project to life.
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