The City of Melbourne has endorsed a plan to facilitate a collaborative approach to Australia’s zero-carbon economy, and to encourage a network between stakeholders in the business and university sectors.
At the recent Future Melbourne Committee meeting held Tuesday July 12 councillors endorsed the establishment of a Zero-Carbon Industry Cluster to create jobs, support innovation and deliver a range of social and environmental benefits.
The Cluster will be the first of its kind in Australia, with a focus on sharing ideas and creating practical projects to build capacity in the sector and strengthen its global competitiveness.
“Melbourne is a zero-carbon powerhouse. We’re proud to be putting the Cluster on our agenda, and to be leading the way for clean energy and climate adaptation in Australia,” City of Melbourne Acting Lord Mayor, Nicholas Reece, said.
“We’re drawing on examples of best-practice from across the globe, like Copenhagen’s State of Green, to build our ambition for the future of Australia’s zero-carbon economy.”
Council will host a Zero-Carbon Jobs Summit in November to set the agenda for the Cluster, ahead of its establishment in 2023.
Finance, Governance and Risk portfolio lead, Councillor Philip Le Liu, said the Cluster would encourage communication and collaboration between stakeholders.
“It’s great to be starting a conversation with key players in the clean industry sector about new ways we can work together to lead change, create jobs, support innovation and boost the local economy,” Mr Liu said.
“The Summit will take us another step towards building an economy of the future – not just for Melbourne, but across Australia.”
The City of Melbourne continues to advocate to the Federal Government to support projects that support the growth of Australia’s zero-carbon economy, including upgrades to the electricity grid, the installation of community batteries like Power Melbourne and the rollout of solar banks.
