Podcasts

SwitchedOn podcast: The power of good rules, building trust in the energy transition

Published by

This week’s hearings of the Senate inquiry on information integrity on climate and energy revealed how deeply divided the national conversation about renewables has become. Even as Australia accelerates the rollout of new transmission lines, solar farms and wind projects, many regional communities feel that change is happening to them, not with them.

Professor Sara Bice from the Crawford School of Public Policy at the Australian National University has spent years studying how governments, industry and communities can collaborate to deliver large-scale infrastructure in ways that are fair, transparent and socially sustainable.

Her research shows that while most Australians support the energy transition, they want it to be fair and just — and that the number one driver of public acceptance for new infrastructure isn’t technology or money, but confidence in the regulation that governs it.

Anne Delaney is the host of the SwitchedOn podcast and our Electrification Editor. She has had a successful career in journalism (the ABC and SBS), as a documentary film maker, and as an artist and sculptor.

Anne Delaney

Anne Delaney is the host of the SwitchedOn podcast and our Electrification Editor. She has had a successful career in journalism (the ABC and SBS), as a documentary film maker, and as an artist and sculptor.

Share
Published by

Recent Posts

“Like a fire drill for the grid”: Rooftop solar systems to be switched off to test backstop system

Shutting off rooftop solar is considered a blunt instrument, but a necessary option as household…

22 August 2026

Australia’s first environmental standards promise protection – but raise concerns

Tougher rules to protect Australia's environment have been welcomed by developers, but conservation groups say…

21 August 2026

Energy Insiders Podcast: El Niño is coming

Karl Braganza, head of research at the BoM, explains El Niño and what it means…

21 August 2026

Gas is getting left behind as solar-charged batteries step in to the breach

Freshly minted NEM data shows solar-charged batteries discharging at record levels, helping lower wholesale prices…

21 August 2026

Batteries have flattened the solar duck curve, and their profit margins at the same time

It is now well established that the combination of new renewables and the huge growth…

21 August 2026

New renewables pilot seeks to generate power, and financial returns, for First Nations communities

Remote First Nations renewable energy projects are a complicated sell to investors, but a new…

21 August 2026