A popular refrain of the renewable energy transition is it will deliver an energy system that is more democratic, as well as decarbonised. That the political power of generating energy will shift from big power companies to households, as a result of us being able to generate and control electrical power from our rooftop solar, batteries, electric vehicles, etc. But this decentralised, democratic narrative isn’t a foregone conclusion. For many years Dr Bjorn Sturmberg, the Research Leader at the Battery Storage and Grid Integration Program at the ANU, has worked towards energy equity – he implemented Australia’s first solar and storage microgrid for an apartment building, and led a startup that makes solar work for rental properties. But Bjorn now believes trying to address energy equity in our privatised energy market is flawed, and we need to expand our imaginations so we can have energy equity for everyone. He’s proposing a basic energy scheme where every household is provided with free electricity to cover essential, non-discretionary uses of electricity – cooking, heating and cooling – and excess consumption is paid for through existing market mechanisms.

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