Heather Cummins
Heather has lived in Castlemaine on Jaara Jaara Country since 2013. She teaches music locally and co-directs Resonance String Orchestra, a community music making initiative based in Woodend and Castlemaine. Heather loves exploring the creeks, trees and wildflowers of the region with her two young boys, and is excited to be working with inspiring members of the Mount Alexander Shire community on the 100% Green Energy campaign – one piece of the worldwide puzzle that is climate action work.
Fran Gleeson
Fran has been deeply concerned about climate change for 20 years. When her 6 year old grandson asked her if the world was sick and would it die, she decided to become more active. After helping Environment VIctoria during the 2018 State elections in Frankston, she moved to the Mt Alexander Shire where she discovered the many benefits of living in a country town surrounded by so much beauty. She is now committed to helping to make the transition to 100% renewables in the Shire a reality.
Alex Sanson
Alex has been a resident of the shire for 13 years, is an artist and small business owner and has been concerned about the growing impacts of climate change since he was a teenager. He is really excited about local strategies, innovation and action that can simultaneously grow businesses, strengthen families and community and protect and nurture our environment for the benefit of generations to come.
Deborah Pach
Since 2016, sustainability and clean energy projects are my focus. After volunteering with the Australian Conservation Foundatio and local community and sustainability groups, I became aware of how communities work together, how they thrive on creating the best outcomes, and how powerful they are. Australia has an abundance of natural resource which can contribute to community clean energy modelling. I am passionate about all segments of net zero emissions projects from retrofits to transport to energy justice and independence.
Frances Gall
Frances teaches and plays violin in Castlemaine. For six years she taught at Castlemaine Secondary College, and now teaches at her own studio and publishes music education resources together with Simon Veitch. She moved to Castlemaine ten years ago, and has been passionate about preserving and improving a clean sustainable environment for decades. A long-time member of ACF (Australian Conservation Foundation), she is excited to see the progress that our Mt Alexander community is making towards sustainability.
Terry White
I’m a relative newcomer to Castlemaine having moved here from Maryborough in 2019. I’m supposed to be retired but I still find lots to keep me active and interested. I think this 100% clean energy campaign is very exciting. With the State Governments solar subsidies for business and the federal tax deductions for business purchases there is no reason why the majority of Mount Alexander businesses couldn’t be running on clean energy in just three years… Wouldn’t that be great? It all depends on how effective we are at getting the word out and how many businesses make the move. Last year my household moved to 100% clean energy. Will you come too?
Simon Veitch
I am a publisher and developer of web-based educational material. For decades I’ve been aware of problems we face as a result of thoughtless industrialisation, over-population and human-induced climate change. I believe that the only way out of our predicament is to expand education on these issues and increase the numbers of people directly involved in preventative action. With my fellows in the MANZWG I’m pleased to be making headway, encouraging a rapid transition to a more sustainable Net Zero Emissions future. I’m a member of The Greens and the Australian Conservation Foundation