Energy and climate change policy remain one of the most contested and important areas of Australian public policy in 2017. The Finkel Review will report by on what needs to be done to ensure the security and affordability of the national electricity market in the transition to a low-emissions future. The Federal Government will undertake its long-anticipated review of our domestic climate change policies against the emissions reduction targets to which Australia committed in Paris in December 2015.
In the first Capital Ideas public forum hosted through our partnership with the National Library, Helen Wilson who will lead the Government’s review, Frank Jotzo a leading climate economist from ANU and Grattan Institute’s Tony Wood discussed the review and what it is intended to achieve.
Speakers
Helen Wilson is the First Assistant Secretary of the Emissions Reduction Fund Division of the Department of the Environment. Helen’s experience spans both the private and public sectors. She has worked as an economist in the financial sector and run a small business. She has spent 10 years working in the Australian Public Service, including in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, and has worked on climate change, infrastructure and monetary and fiscal policy.
Frank Jotzo is Professor at the ANU Crawford School of Public Policy, where he directs the Centre for Climate Economics and Policy. His research focuses on policy relevant aspects of climate change, energy, and broader issues of environment, development and economic reform. Frank is a frequent contributor to Australian and international policy debates. He is joint editor-in-chief of the journal Climate Policy and was a Lead Author of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 5th Assessment Report. He has been involved in a number of policy research and advisory exercises, including as senior advisor to Australia’s Garnaut Climate Change Review, advisor to Indonesia‘s Minister of Finance, and to the World Bank. He leads a collaborative research program on market mechanisms for China’s climate and energy policy, supported by the Australian government. He is a member of the Australian Capital Territory’s Climate Change Council and has formally and informally advised other State governments.
Tony Wood has been Energy Program Director at Grattan since 2011 after 14 years working at Origin Energy in senior executive roles. From 2009 to 2014 he was also Program Director of Clean Energy Projects at the Clinton Foundation, advising governments in the Asia-Pacific region on effective deployment of large-scale, low-emission energy technologies. In 2008, he was seconded to provide an industry perspective to the first Garnaut climate change review.
