Groundswell in 2025: Turning a Climate Breakthrough Into Action

The 2025 federal election delivered the strongest climate mandate in our history and after a seismic political shift, we’re standing at a rare and powerful climate turning point. The question is: how do we rise to meet it?

Join us for an exclusive post-election briefing where we’ll unpack what this moment really means, what’s coming next, and how we turn this climate breakthrough into lasting change.

What you’ll hear:

A behind-the-scenes look at the post-election landscape with leading voices in climate action.

• Anna Rose, one of Australia’s sharpest climate strategists, will break down what the election result signals for climate policy, politics and power

• Heidi Lee Douglas, CEO of Solar Citizens, will lift the lid on how their campaign helped shift the political landscape and build unstoppable public pressure

• Arielle Gamble, CEO of Groundswell, will reveal how we’re shifting gears—fast—to draw a firm line against new coal and gas, and lock in a clean energy future

We’ll take you inside the strategy driving Groundswell’s next grant round, and how we’re mobilising rapid, coordinated action to:

• Hold the Labor government to account in its first 100 days

• Counter the fossil fuel lobby’s influence behind closed doors

• Supercharge the transition to clean, affordable energy across the country

Join us as we talk about the role each of us has to play in seizing the most important climate moment in a generation. And bring a friend!

Date: Thursday 12 June
Time: 12–1pm

Anna Rose, Groundswell Co-founder & CEO Environmental Leadership Australia

Anna is an author and campaigner who has worked for over two decades to help Australia make progress on climate change. She is a Board member for Farmers for Climate Action, a Governor of WWF-Australia, author of the book Madlands: A Journey to Change the Mind of a Climate Sceptic and co-star of the ABC documentary I Can Change Your Mind on Climate Change.

Anna is a Churchill Fellow, a former Myer Foundation Innovation Fellow, an Associate at Melbourne University Sustainable Society Institute and a Visiting Fellow at the ANU Climate Change Centre. She is an advisory board member of the University of Queensland’s Global Change Institute and The Australian Geographic Society, and a former Director of Solar Citizens, Green Music Australia and the Aussie Farmers Foundation. 

She is a former Australian Geographic Society Conservationist of the Year, was a finalist in the Australian of the Year Awards, and is the recipient of the Sierra Club’s Earthcare Award for International Environmental Protection. Anna co-founded the Australian Youth Climate Coalition and was head of Earth Hour for WWF-Australia.

Heidi Lee Douglas, CEO Solar Citizens

Heidi resides with her family on the edge of Kamay (Botany Bay) on reclaimed swamp land that was once the trading route for clans north and south of Goolay'yari (the Cooks River).

Heidi has more than twenty years of experience working in the intersection between politics, narrative, and social change. She specialises in empowering the voices of others to move the dial and using story medicine to help fix social issues. Heidi has a deep passion for community organising and advocacy and strives to enable others to fulfill their dreams.

Heidi knows that to create outstanding results a leader must nurture a strong and positive team. Her management style is informed by radical candour, creating “a yes and” environment, empowering others to lead while also providing clear directives.

Living in one of the most diverse areas of Sydney, Heidi is constantly reminded of the challenges and opportunities of finding common ground to build bridges and create a better tomorrow. She is deeply values aligned with Solar Citizens' focus on helping to fix climate issues by unifying the community to embrace and demand the cost of living benefits that clean energy can provide. Heidi is also a local government councillor for Bayside (NSW).

Arielle Gamble, CEO & Co-founder, Groundswell

Under Arielle's leadership, Groundswell has become a key player in mobilising resources and fostering collaboration across the Australian climate movement. Through its bold, collaborative approach, Groundswell has connected philanthropists, changemakers, and grassroots campaigns to supercharge climate action across Australia since 2020.

Arielle is passionate about collaboration and creating space for new voices in the climate conversation. She has championed programs like Groundswell’s acclaimed climate fellowship, which has inspired bold climate action across philanthropy, business, and the arts.

Arielle is a Fellow of Australian Progress, a TEDxSydney 2023 speaker, and a member of the Arise Leadership Circle, an initiative by ActionAid supporting women-led emergency preparedness and response across the Pacific. Her work reflects a commitment to meaningful, transformative change for communities and the planet.

About Groundswell

Groundswell was co-founded in 2020 by three friends – Clare, Anna and Arielle – to accelerate climate action in Australia. We started Groundswell because while we could see no shortage of people deeply concerned about the climate crisis and wanting to be part of change, many were unsure about how to make the biggest impact. We could also see there was no shortage of brilliant climate action out there, ready to scale up and deliver important change, but that most organisations were restricted by a critical lack of funding. So, we created Groundswell to join the dots.

Since our launch, Groundswell has grown into a powerful community committed to funding and accelerating strategic climate action in Australia. In addition to grant making, Groundswell runs a renowned climate fellowship program for philanthropic, business and cultural leaders working to change the game on climate this decade.

www.groundswellgiving.org