Groundswell Christmas Party Ft: Grant winner, Community Power Agency

Join us for the next Meet the Changemaker event, this time with a festive spin. It’s the Groundswell Christmas Party!

Let’s celebrate a big year with our members, grant recipients, and friends both old and new. Raise a glass, meet inspiring people, and hear from one of the changemakers transforming climate advocacy in Australia.

We’re thrilled to welcome Jarra Hicks, Co-founder and Director of the Community Power Agency (CPA), as our guest speaker. Jarra will share her story, what fuels her passion, and how her team is placing communities at the heart of Australia’s renewable energy transition. With the support of a Groundswell grant awarded in May 2024, Jarra’s work with CPA is building vital community support for the shift to renewables and making decarbonisation a reality for all.

So come on down The Trocadero Room for a good time! 💃🪩🕺

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Drinks and pizza available at the bar (yep, there's GF and vegan options 🙌).  

This event for everyone. Whether you're climate curious, a weekend warrior, or working in the thick of it, we'd love to see you there! 

Please note that capacity is limited. If you can no longer make it, kindly email xanthe@groundswellgiving.org to free up a spot.

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What does the Community Power Agency do?

The Community Power Agency empowers communities to take an active role in Australia’s renewable energy future. Their work centres on ensuring that communities can participate in and benefit from renewable projects, which is crucial to building social support and reducing opposition to renewables. This work is key to decarbonising the energy system and reaching net-zero by 2050.

Why is this work important?

As a trusted community advocate for renewable energy, the Community Power Agency bridges the gap between technical energy solutions and public support. With growing resistance to renewable projects posing a threat to net-zero goals, the agency works to foster local involvement and ownership, which are essential for building trust in the energy shift. By enabling communities to actively participate in the renewable transition, they create resilient, locally supported pathways to a sustainable energy future.

Jarra’s work in renewable energy bridges a diverse array of stakeholders to ensure that the shift to renewable energy also brings positive social outcomes. Her contributions, including research, publications, guides, and policy work, have set industry benchmarks and led to improvements in community engagement and benefit-sharing practices. She has influenced renewable energy developers and communities to work together in ways that meet community expectations, garner community support, and drive regional development. 

Who is Jarra Hicks?

Jarra is a visionary in Australia’s community renewable energy sector. With a deep commitment to social and environmental justice, she co-founded the Community Power Agency to advocate for community-led renewable projects. Her work ensures that rural and urban communities alike can benefit from and contribute to the clean energy transition.

With a PhD in social enterprise and community energy, she brings expertise in promoting social and environmental justice within the energy sector. Growing up in regional NSW, the Philippines, and Thailand, she has a broad worldview and a passion for community building. Jarra also enjoys cycling, gardening, ceramics, and dancing, and has advised internationally on renewable energy initiatives.

How is Groundswell supporting CPA's work?

Groundswell awarded a grant to the Community Power Agency in 2024 to help bolster local support for the energy transition. Through this partnership, they’re equipping communities to embrace renewables and play an essential role in Australia’s path to a sustainable energy future.

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.

learn more: www.groundswellgiving.org