Renew Magazine

Fact-based and human-interest stories about building climate and energy resilience in your home and community. All the latest in sustainable issues and technology, as well as useful how-tos for reducing your footprint and contributing to a more resilient future.

Renew Magazine

ISSUE 168

Dear Renew community

Quarterly round-up

Tradies and the transition • Do we need as many tradies for electrification as many think? Not if we are innovative, writes Alan Pears.

PRODUCTS

Better than landfill • The waste plastic problem just keeps on growing, but some companies, like CRDC Global, are tackling it in interesting ways.

Virtual power plants • Virtual power plants are on the rise as a vital source of more renewable power for the people. Myke Bartlett explores the challenges and the opportunities.

Energy efficiency for renters • Rental houses on average are significantly less energy efficient than owner- occupied homes, and renters have historically had few options to improve either. Energy advisor Dean Lombard highlights the most effective ways renters can keep their homes at a comfortable temperature, and discusses opportunities for tenants in different states to act.

This off-grid life • Kate Nottingham is the creator and director of the massively popular OffGrid Living Festival, which sees more than ten thousand people travel to Yorta Yorta country in north-east Victoria every year. Renew’s sustainability researcher Dr Rachel Goldlust chats with Kate about all things off-grid.

Going off-grid: An historical look

30 years at Renew • Renew has existed for over 40 years, and one person has worked there for 30 of those. Lance Turner looks at the past, present and future of the organisation.

The Great Acceleration • Sustainability consultant Rob McCann asks, is the world getting more sustainable?

Power to Country • A new film, Power to Country, seeks to highlight the impacts of energy insecurity in remote Australia and the potential of community-driven solutions. Monique Duggan and Genevieve Grieves tell us about the story that has sparked a large-scale movement.

Crunch time on emissions • 2024 is shaping up as a critical year for Australia’s response to climate change. Rob McLeod unpacks the months ahead.

"I promise to help end homelessness." • The Griffiths family, Mornington, Victoria

Preparing homes and towns for floods • For those in flood-prone areas, preparing your home for a flood isn’t just smart; it’s essential. Without it, recovering from flood damage can be slow and difficult. But with the right retrofits, and an understanding of flood policy and insurance in Australia, damage can be minimised, and life can return to normal more quickly. Jacinta Cleary and Rachel Goldlust report.

Working with experts to make your home more flood-resilient means you can return home sooner after a flood.

Resources, funding – where to for more information

Leading by example: a flood-resilient retrofit

Back within days after the Brisbane floods

Beating the damp: a dehumidifier buyers guide • Is your house hot and humid? Or maybe cold and damp? A dehumidifier can help make it a more comfortable and healthy place to live.

Sustainability field guide: metals • Alasdair Taylor brings us the second sustainability field guide on common building materials.

A gas-to-all-electric (and EV) retrospective • Peter Hormann’s household completed the conversion of their 1908 Edwardian Melbourne home from gas-electric to all-electric a few years ago. Now, they have lived experience of an all-electric home with an electric vehicle, but no home battery. Peter shares what has worked well, what they’d do differently, and what’s next.

Electric watercrafts •...