Hobart City Council Climate Assembly creates solutions to tackle climate change

A Hobart City Council Climate Assembly led by the community has come up with solutions to help tackle climate change. Read their recommendations >>

Hobart Climate Assembly members Chloe Holley and Rahat with Hobart City Council Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds. Picture: Chris Kidd

Fixing public transport and creating more accessible footpaths and cycleways could be the key to addressing Hobart’s climate issues, a community assembly found.

The Hobart City Council hosted a climate assembly involving 33 diverse representatives to develop and create new ideas to tackle climate change.

The Assembly recommended 10 top priorities for the council, including creating green corridors, a network of safe walkways and cycleways, phasing out fossil fuels, fire management programs and accessible spaces for climate-related events.

Assembly representative Chloe Holley, who is a university student living in North Hobart, said there was a lot of focus around transport.

“People want to see more public transport, more cycleways, more walkways and less cars on the road,” she said.

“There are a lot of benefits associated with fixing up our transportation systems.

“We can have healthier people, happier people in green spaces especially, and it’s much cheaper for the community to rely on public transport rather than fuelling up their cars every week.”

While Ms Holley was living in Brisbane, she said the bus would come every 10 minutes.

“I’ve been left behind to wait an hour for a bus here in Hobart. It’s very difficult,” she said.

Hobart Climate Assembly member Rahat at Hobart. Picture: Chris Kidd

Lenah Valley father and business owner Rahat, said the Assembly tried to put forward an agenda that matched the beliefs of Hobartians.

“I come from Dhaka, Bangladesh, one of the most polluted cities in the world. Being a migrant coming as an international student – when I first walked down from the plane, the air hit my nostrils and it was beautiful,” he said.

Rahat put forward an idea to use a rating system based on sustainability to inform consumers when shopping.

“It would encourage people to think more about climate change regularly, and at the same time businesses to adopt policies so that they can be more climate sustainable,” he said.

Hobart City Council Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds said climate change is the biggest issue of our generation.

“It will impact all of us, it will impact our city, our communities, our economy. Cities are actually responsible for 70 per cent of global emissions so that means that all cities including Hobart, need to have a plan of action,” she said.

“The climate assembly was the Hobart Council’s commitment to involve the community not just in providing feedback on our ideas, but actually giving us ideas and so that’s why this process has been so amazing.”

Top 10 priorities

* Develop a network of connected and safe walkways, cycleways

* Develop a network of green corridors throughout the city

* Stop selling offsets and permission to pollute

* Phase out fossil fuels from council operations

* Develop a network of waterways, wetlands and blue corridors

* Implement fire management programs to improve biodiversity and bushland health

* Advocate to develop zero emissions public transport system

* Provide safe and inclusive publicly accessible spaces for extreme climate-related events

* Use planning, legislation and regulatory controls to reduce risk

* Provide support and financial incentive for households, businesses and neighbourhood to electrify and retrofit