NATIONAL DIRECTOR

Andrew came on board in 2013 after working on the 100% Renewable Campaign, building skills and leadership in local communities supporting renewable energy. Based in one of New South Wales' prime wind districts, the Southern Tablelands, Andrew is passionate about the contribution renewable energy can make to rural and regional economies while helping Australia transition to a cleaner future.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT MANAGER

Karin Stark’s international and professional history combines 18 years of engagement with communities around contemporary environmental issues. She’s Director of Farm Renewables Consulting, convenes the National Renewables in Agriculture Conference, sits on the Haystacks Solar Garden Board and is involved in a federally funded microgrids in agriculture study. Her previous roles included working for Transport for London, helping launch the London Cycle Hire scheme in 2010 and in stakeholder engagement for the London 2012 Games. Karin now lives on a cotton farm that installed a 500kW solar-diesel hybrid pumping system in 2018, the biggest in the country.

COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER

Lu is an accomplished social change campaigner and communicator. She has driven grassroots human rights campaigns to end childhood immigration detention, managed election campaigns at a state and federal level, and developed reform strategies at a tax and economics policy institute. Growing up in regional Victoria, Lu has a passion for helping groups of people find a common purpose and fight for shared goals. Lu holds a Master’s in Development and an undergraduate degree in psychology.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT OFFICER

Alana is passionate about our energy future. Having grown up in the coal-mining region of the Hunter Valley, NSW she understands the profound social impacts energy policy and practice can have on regional communities. Over the past decade, she has honed this passion into skills and knowledge in community engagement and organising, policy analysis, political campaigning, and qualitative research. Alana is currently completing a PhD with the University of Technology, Sydney’s Climate Justice Research Centre that explores how local communities are engaging with transitions to renewable energy in regional NSW.

TRANSMISSION ADVOCATE

Kate has over a decade’s experience working in climate and energy policy for the NSW Government, the Australian Government, and the private sector. For several years she was Director, Regulation for Energy Networks Australia (ENA), where she was responsible for developing, negotiating, and communicating policy positions throughout the ENA membership and with external stakeholders to support the efficient delivery of electricity and gas network services to Australian customers. Kate is based in Mudgee in Central Western NSW.

VICTORIAN COMMUNITY ORGANISER

Tony comes from Ballarat, Victoria where he lives with his young family. Tony has extensive experience in advocacy, community education and engagement experience throughout Australia and is passionate about action on climate change and championing wind energy. He is currently conducting research at University of Melbourne and has previously obtained a Bachelor of Natural Environment and Wilderness Studies with Honours in Sociology from University of Tasmania. His side passion is beekeeping which saw him spend time in the Northern Territory, assisting the Thamarrurr Rangers experiment with Australian stingless beekeeping.

Taryn is the Manager at Hepburn Wind, Australia’s first community-owned wind farm and a director of the Coalition for Community Energy. She also undertakes research, policy development and advisory work for industry. She has extensive local and international community development experience.

Susan Findlay Tickner is based in Horsham in regional Western Victoria, and has worked in Communications and Stakeholder Engagement for 25 years across the agricultural and renewable energy sectors. With a background in Agricultural Research and Development, she has also worked in Agricultural Policy with the Victorian State Government and is a former member of the Grains Research and Development Corporation Southern Panel. Susan works with renewable energy developer, RES, in communications and engagement.

Dimity is a Physio, farmer and mother, who just happens to live very contentedly next door to a wind farm.  She sleeps well and finds the turbines an aesthetic bonus to her landscape.  Dimity is passionate about supporting other people in wind communities to navigate the fear-mongering around wind farms so they too can enjoy co-locating with these magnificent structures.  Dimity has experienced the benefits a wind farm has brought to her community and would like others to be able to enjoy similar benefits.

Richard is one of the most experienced people in the Australian wind industry, having worked in the industry since 1994 as a project and business development manager. Richard agreed to give his time to be Treasurer of AWA because he believes Australia is missing out on great benefits in regional areas. Richard has a Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and an engineering Masters degree and an eMBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management. He is currently the Managing Director of Advanced Energy Consulting.

Luke has been a leading voice in the wind energy industry for over a decade. He entered the industry as a landholder and subsequently played a leading role in the growth of wind energy company Windlab. He advocates strongly for improved wind energy development models and more inclusivity of neighbouring landholders in wind farm development.

Luke now works at Reposit, seeking to employ home batteries en masse in the wholesale energy markets. This technology allows wind and solar to work in a complementary fashion to deliver affordable and reliable power.

Jonathan is a senior manager with over 14 years experience in the renewable energy industry. He has worked in a variety of roles, including Project Development, Government Affairs and Energy Markets.

Peter is a corporate and projects Partner at HWL Ebsworth Lawyers and leads the firm's National Renewable Energy Group.

Peter has been a lawyer in the renewables sector since 1999 and has advised in over 50 renewable energy projects in Australia, New Zealand and Thailand. Most of these projects were in wind energy. His expertise is in corporate, commercial and construction and electricity law.

Trini is a Coatings Inspector with Keppel Prince Engineering, an Australian Manufacturer of Wind Tower Sections, managing the quality requirements of Surface Treatment to completion. She has a strong belief that wind towers play an essential role in a cleaner future.

Linda is a local grazier and host of the prospective Rye Park Wind Farm. She has worked hard to rally supporters and encourage them to speak up in support of the project and is excited about the boost to the local economy. Linda is passionate about renewable energy and can’t wait for the turbines to spin at Rye Park to progress the region as a stable clean energy contributor in NSW.

Troy is the General Manager and a second-generation operator of Eureka Concrete. Eureka has experience in the production of quality concrete to wind turbine projects for over five years. Each project creates work directly and indirectly to over 1000 people while construction build is in process.