Tell your politician that Energy Efficiency Matters!
If you’re a renter and have been struggling not only with rent increases but with living in a home that is poorly maintained and gets excruciatingly hot in summer and then feels like living a tent in winter, we would like you tell the politicians all about it. The more our politicians (from all of the parties) know this is something that we care about, the more likely they are to change policies and legislation to ensure we can all live in an affordable, healthy, safe and comfortable home. Check out some of the political party platforms to improve conditions for renters, here.
Tell the political candidates and their reps that we not only need some limits to the amount that rents can be raised each year, but we also need minimum standards for energy efficiency (like they already have in Victoria and the ACT!). 33.1% of Queenslanders rent their homes (that’s almost a third of the population).
Both housing and energy are essential services.
Everybody deserves an affordable, healthy and safe home, regardless of whether you rent or own, what your income level is, where you live, how big your family, what your nationality or culture is, or if you live with a disability.
Just because you rent shouldn’t mean you miss out on living in a healthy and affordable home, with a good energy efficiency standard. Queensland is lagging behind other states (and indeed the world) in action on energy efficiency and that’s why Energetic Communities is leading a Queensland specific campaign.
Energy Efficiency Minimum Standards – why are they important?
Energy efficiency affects your home being cool in summer and warm in
winter. Minimum standards could include features like insulation, shading, draught management and effective cooling appliances if need be. Energy efficiency not only helps you save on your power bills, but has been shown to positively impact your mental and physical health.
We already have standards for new homes of 7-star Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) rating, but the average rating for existing homes is only 1.7 stars, meaning for many people, it’s actually dangerous to stay at home during a heatwave. We need the Government to introduce policies to help improve the energy efficiency of existing homes.
Ways you can support:
- If you rent and have a story to share about how your home has been thermally unbearable or another energy related issue then we can feed that into our advocacy (anonymously or it’s always good to get people who are okay to talk publicly) then we have a survey where you can leave the details here.
- Sign the letter petition calling on the Queensland Government to introduce Energy Efficiency Minimum Standards for Renters.
- If you would like to be part of a theatre project about this issue – then email deanna @(this website url)
- If you don’t rent and want to still support – you can still sign the petition and sign up to our mailing list to stay in touch!
