Australias First-ever symposium on women and climate change held

On March 9, 2023, the Australian Parliament House in Canberra played host to a Women in Energy and Climate Symposium in honour of International Women's Day.

Women from a variety of fields related to energy and climate spoke on how diversity and gender equality can support Australia's efforts to meet its energy and climate goals.

Embracing variety in the areas of gender, culture, age, ethnicity, and life experiences would help the industry find better solutions, according to Equality Initiative Ambassador and Chair of the Australian Energy Market Commission Anna Collyer.

For us to reach net zero by 2050, Ms. Anna added, "all skills available and every sort of viewpoint must be devoted to the fundamental restructuring of the energy sector.

"Removing the obstacles that prevent women from obtaining STEM degrees and professions is a key objective, and it remains a priority for all of us."

According to Karrina Nolan, Executive Director of Original Power and a member of the First Nations Clean Energy Network, different viewpoints in the energy and climate sectors will assist to guarantee that every home has access to safe and cheap electricity.

Every single First Nations home throughout the country will be able to access solar, batteries, and clean, cheap electricity during the transition to renewable energy, according to Ms. Karrina.

We at the First Nations Clean Energy Network think we can raise the ambitions of the entire sector if we can get ahead of it and engage with a business.

According to Ms. Anna, we must remove the obstacles that prevent various industries from luring talent and a variety of viewpoints into their workplaces.

"We need to analyze our hurdles to harness that talent in our organizations. Next, we need to learn from others how we may do things differently to overcome those barriers.