Charles Sturt Council hands $5000 to Climate Emergency Australia to become a ‘founding member’
Charles Sturt Council has signed up to a national climate change group that will create “advocacy campaigns” – and given them $5000 to get started.
West & Beaches
Don't miss out on the headlines from West & Beaches. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- Adelaide City Council declares a climate emergency
- How to get the most out of your Advertiser digital subscription
An Adelaide council has given $5000 to a national climate change advocacy group, securing its spot on the advisory committee.
Charles Sturt has signed up as a founding member of Climate Emergency Australia, a national local government group established to lobby on climate change issues.
Part of the Charles Sturt’s $5000 will help fund the employment of a manager to run the group, as well as securing the council a spot on the development committee.
Cr Paul Alexandrides – who supported joining the organisation – said Charles Sturt Council included some of the hottest parts of metropolitan Adelaide, such as Bowden and Brompton.
He said Charles Sturt’s membership would allow it to shape the response of councils nationwide to climate-change issues.
“It would be good to have some residents’ viewpoints on what the expect from us and we can bring that to the conversation,” Cr Alexandrides said.
“This will be in place whether we’re a part of it or not, so we may as well be a part of it.”
The formation of the group – which was first discussed at a February workshop of the National Climate Emergency Summit in Melbourne – has been spearheaded by Victorian council-led activist group Northern Alliance for Greenhouse Action.
It was born out of the desire of councils that had declared “climate emergencies” to share information and work out what such an emergency meant to their operations.
The manager would create a “climate emergency delivery framework” and co-ordinate joint advocacy campaigns for councils.
A network development group was created with representation from all states, including Charles Sturt.
That group was creating a “framework and supporting tools for what it means to declare (a climate emergency) and governance around this”.
Climate Emergency Australia would first run for 12 months under the control of an advisory committee made up of councils that had pitched in money, before considering its success and future governance.
Charles Sturt Mayor Angela Evans would be the council’s representative on the advisory committee.
A report to councillors by Charles Sturt’s environmental management officer Nelly Belperio said the outfit would allow councils to “share information and pool knowledge on their climate emergency responses, encouraging other levels of government to do the same”.