Resilience: Building it and relying on it in the face of disaster

Disaster Resilience Playbook

Resilience is the capacity to withstand or recover quickly from difficulties – it is essentially a measure of toughness. And unfortunately, it’s become the buzz word of the 2020’s, with a global pandemic and cumulative, compounding natural disasters testing individuals and communities around the world.

Here in Australia, the Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements, established that regrettably, that these events will be more frequent and more severe placing increased stress on existing emergency management arrangements.

Meanwhile, changing technology is resulting in growing cross dependencies for many key services, especially in the area of communication. 

So where does this leave us? How can we help our customers to be more resilient and put plans in place before a disaster event?

Following the launch of the Thriving Communities Partnership (TCP) Disaster Planning and Recovery Collaborative Research in November 2021, Energy Charter signatories created the #BetterTogether Resilience initiative to look at ways to practically implement the TCP recommendations across the energy supply chain.

Together, they identified an opportunity to work together to better support customers before, during and after a disaster event by co-designing a Disaster Response Playbook (playbook) for the energy sector.

The playbook offers guidance around the roles, processes, and use of emergency response agency information to enable a more coordinated and process driven approach to customer support during this time. 

Recently Ciara Stirling, TCP CEO joined us for the panel discussion to launch the playbook. She opened the session noting that natural disasters have both a “layered impact” and “long-tail”. 

 “Twelve months after a disaster, many people remain in difficult circumstances, including navigating a financial maze and the mental health impacts of trauma and stress,” she said.

From community awareness of what a disaster is, to inadequate infrastructure in disaster prone areas and under- insurance, Ciara called out that our biggest opportunity to build resilience is to better coordinate before, during and after an event.

When asked “How do we better collaborate and co-design solutions?”, panelist Michael Dart, Executive General Manager – Customer at Energy Queensland said, “You can never ever collaborate too much – it’s not possible, because you’ll always learn something new from a diversity of views.”

He also called out the importance of building and maintaining trust, “Trust meanders into town on a tricycle and it leaves in a Formula 1 Ferrari.

“It’s built up over a long period of time, it requires you to know your customers, deliver value and make it easy for them in everything thing everything you do.”

He adds, “In a disaster it’s important to ensure your communication is in lockstep with other providers and utilities and that your response is above and beyond what you’d usually provide.”

During the discussion, panelist Rob-Amphlett Lewis, Chief Customer Officer at Ausgrid noted that enabling coordination comes down to being more prepared.

He says, “We must never waste a crisis – if we take advantage of what we learn and work together as a result of these crisis events, we can do things better for our community in the future.”

He shared that Ausgrid had invested in modelling research to assess how climate change is likely to impact Ausgrid’s electricity network and which areas are most prone to weather related disasters. With this information, Ausgrid are now proactively working with targeted Local Councils and community groups to increase readiness for a coordinated disaster response.  

He says, “Resilience and disaster response isn’t the responsibility of just the network, it the responsibility of a community. We’re constantly asking, ‘Who else needs to be involved?'”

He also pointed out that an essential part of preparedness is listening, “You can’t really understand what as a business you need to do, if you don’t understand what your customers want”, he explained.

From trust to preparedness all panelists agreed that, building disaster resilience comes down to the following: 

1. Communication & Education – where do we get information, how is it delivered and who needs to know. Education around safety and processes, resilience, and operations

2. Coordination & Collaboration – work together within the sector and across the ecosystem

3. Planning & Preparedness – playing a role in collectively building community and individual planning and preparedness

4.  Learning Loops & Better Practice – sharing back for continuous improvement and action. There is ample research showing that individual level resources contribute to the positive adaptation after disasters.

 

The Disaster Response Playbook includes key recommendation on each of these focus areas, to enable organisations to flexibly respond to their own customers and community’s needs.

 

Want to keep the conversation going?

Join our Resilience Community of Practice! Please contact Amy Abraham, Director of Innovation for more information.

 

Foresighting the future for Customers + Communities

The future of the energy system - ECA Forum

Energising Australians Foresighting Forum 2023

Energy Consumers Australia’s flagship Foresighting Forum brought together the energy sector to discuss key issues affecting consumers with the theme of “Energising Australians”. Leaders, decision makers, advocates and thinkers from across and beyond the energy sector explored the future of the energy system, the role of consumers in it, and the challenges and opportunities it brings.

Our Executive Director, Sabiene Heindl and Director Innovation, Amy Abraham attended the Forum in Sydney on 15 and 16 February. These are their reflections.

The Challenge

Energy Consumers Australia states that the challenge is “The energy system is moving towards a smarter, low-carbon future energy system. We’re seeing a shift from a system primarily powered by a small number of large generators to one with many smaller ones, distributed across our communities. In addition, the uptake of renewable generation means there will be times when energy is abundant and times when it is scarce.

These changes are creating challenges for the grid, and there has been a clear focus on ensuring the power system continues to deliver reliable energy supplies.”

Reflections on the challenge

While there are fundamental challenges to the traditional Tesla Edison model of the energy system, there are also many opportunities for consumers, particularly around Consumer Energy Resources (CER): electric vehicles, batteries and solar, microgrids and community batteries. Speakers from the United Kingdom and United States shared on developments in their jurisdictions including energy as a service, Living Labs, the platform economy and ways to ensure a fairer future through collaboration with the health sector.

The Focus

Energy Consumers Australia set the focus on What is less clear is the role that consumers will have in this future. Our current regulatory frameworks are not fit for purpose to support the active and constructive role we are counting on consumers to play to manage their energy use and generation to benefit themselves and the system.

We need to change our approach in two ways. First, by flipping how we view system problems and framing them from a consumer’s perspective, considering the barriers and constraints that they face. And second, by understanding the ways the system is, and isn’t, working for consumers.”

The future of the energy system

Increasingly, genuine consumer and community engagement is guiding the future of the energy sector because, “What got us here, isn’t going to get us there” (Marshall Goldsmith). The use of strategic conversation to listen to “voices for everyone” across First Nations, customers in vulnerable circumstances, small business and the agricultural sector is essential to the redesign of the sector to align with community expectations.

So, there is much to do and at the Energy Charter we are committed to doing it #BetterTogether. Only through collaborating within the sector and with other sectors will allow us to put humans at the centre of our energy system.

Energy Charter announces cost-of-living support for customers and new CEO Council Chair 2023

Chair of the CEO Council for 2023.

Welcome to Guy Chalkley, Chair of the CEO Council for 2023

Energy Charter signatories today welcomed Guy Chalkley, CEO of NSW electricity distributor Endeavour Energy, as the new Chair of the CEO Council for 2023.

“The Energy Charter is a voluntary, CEO led group of like-minded Australian energy organisations with a shared purpose and passion for customers and communities,” Guy said.  

“We collaborate across all parts of the energy supply chain to deliver better energy outcomes for our customers and communities”

“By working together, we are capable of so much more. We can be bold and resolve system wide issues so that all Australians benefit from a brighter energy future. I am delighted to Chair the Energy Charter CEO Council in its fifth year of operation.”

“I also welcome the CEO Council’s recent decision to publish a joint Statement of Support (SoS) that sets out how Energy Charter signatories are responding to cost-of-living pressures experienced by their customers and communities across Australia.”

The SoS (available here) is a commitment to align action on key relief, support and prevention measures that assist customers and communities facing vulnerable circumstances.

In addition to existing programs in each businesses, the SoS features new collaboration commitments including:

  • A nationally coordinated concessions’ awareness and engagement campaign
  • Expanding the successful NSW based energy literacy program for culturally and linguistically diverse communities into Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory to support communities facing cost-of-living vulnerability.

The SoS marks the Council’s first collaborative commitment under the Priority #BetterTogether (#BT) on Cost of Living and complements work already underway through the Landholder and Community Social Licence and Knock to Stay Connected Priority #BTs.

“The Energy Charter’s big opportunity is to keep humans at the centre of the design and delivery of energy solutions; to understand and navigate the changing needs of customers and communities as we transform to a cleaner energy future.

“There is no other collaboration like the Energy Charter; and the work we do, together, has never been more important than it is today,” said Guy.  

The Energy Charter CEO Council acknowledged and thanked out going Chair, Rebecca Kardos, the previous Aurora Energy CEO, for her outstanding leadership during 2022 and for expertly guiding the 3-Year Strategic Review of the Energy Charter.

Background

Guy was appointed Endeavour Energy CEO in December 2019 and took up the position in April 2020. He is a highly regarded energy industry leader and influencer, and a board member of Energy Networks Australia, the peak national body representing gas distribution and electricity transmission & distribution businesses throughout Australia.

Guy has a wealth of international, financial and operational experience gained across a diverse range of sectors operating and residing in Australia, Asia, Africa, Europe, and North and South America.

Guy was appointed CEO of Western Power in 2016, a Western Australian State Government-owned transmission and distribution network corporation, after earlier roles including Chief Financial Officer. Prior to joining Western Power, he worked for a decade at Veolia Water and Thames Water in senior finance and regulatory director roles.

The Energy Charter turns 4!

Focus on energy transition as the Energy Charter turn 4

4 years of the Energy Charter

Four years ago the Energy Charter was launched in Sydney. Since that time the sector has changed considerably, with an accelerating focus on energy transition and ensuring that customers in vulnerable circumstances, particularly those impacted by COVID-19 and cost-of-living pressures, are better supported.

We have tracked ongoing signatory maturity over time through our annual disclosure process, and improvements are now evident across each of the five principles of the Energy Charter. While the commitment of each individual signatory has been essential, the Energy Charter has also played a key role inspiring customer centric culture change across the sector.

Why the Energy Charter exists

Our reason for existing is simple: we believe that energy customers rely on all of us. We all use energy every day. It lights our homes and powers our businesses. We’re all part of the same ecosystem, so working #BetterTogether is vital now and into the future.

The Energy Charter is a unique coalition of like-minded energy organisations with a shared purpose and passion for our customers and communities. 

Key takeaways from the Energy Charter journey

As we turn 4, here are four key takeaways from the Energy Charter journey so far.

1. Slow and steady culture change sticks

Rome wasn’t built in a day, and if it were, it probably wouldn’t be around today. Similarly, authentic culture change focused on customer centricity takes time and patience. By focusing on deepening insights, strengthening networks and bigger impact for customers and communities, the Energy Charter has created a unique platform for change across signatories. Of course, with so many different companies across different parts of the supply chain, there are bound to be different levels of maturity. We’re proud of the progress of signatories (as showcased in our annual Energy Charter disclosures) and the increasing stickiness of the sectors’ customer-centric focus.

2. Lead with lighthouses

Lighthouse examples inspire innovation. Rather than using sticks, we like to focus on carrots – and lean-in to what already works, is socialised and can be expanded across the energy sector. A good illustration is the pioneering Voices for Power #BetterTogether initiative led by the Sydney Alliance & Sydney Community Forum in collaboration with Energy Charter signatories (Ausgrid, Jemena and Endeavour Energy) which focuses on Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) community empowerment and engagement. Its 2023 expansion to South Australia, Western Australia, Northern Territory and Tasmania encompasses training and mentoring a cohort of “Community Energy Trainers” who will deliver culturally appropriate energy literacy workshops to diverse communities.

3. It’s about the humans (always)

Whether it’s ideating, incubating or accelerating #BetterTogether outcomes for customers and communities in the social licence, vulnerability or customer experience space, the humans matter. We are lucky enough to be led by CEO leaders with a strong and growing community of Energy Charter champions across Australia who are passionate about human-centred co-design and social outcomes. We also celebrate the fantastic partnerships we have with many consumer and community organisations through our Community and Consumer Outcomes Groups and End-User Consultative Group and our Collaborative Memorandums of Understanding with the Water Services Association of Australia, Thriving Communities Partnership and RE Alliance.

4. There’s always more to be done

Four years in, we are proud of what we have collectively achieved together to create a better energy future for all Australians. For us, the opportunity is to keep humans at the centre of the design and delivery of energy solutions and to navigate the changing needs of customers and communities as we transform to a cleaner energy future. There really is no other collaboration like the Energy Charter; and the work we do, together, has never been more important than it is today. And… there’s always more work to be done #BetterTogether!

Thank you to everyone who has been part of the Energy Charter journey so far.