Our Team
Luke Reade
Passionate about climate change action and renewables, Luke is the founding President of Energetic Communities Association and Senior Policy Advocate (Energy and Climate Change). He has 20 years experience as a scientist, activist or adviser and was the Queensland State Manager for ICLEI – Cities for Climate Protection Program. Luke has worked in Australian, European and International consultancy, community, climate and energy research, energy auditing, offshore renewable energy, environmental science and environmental impact assessment. Currently he researches and provides policy advice and analysis on energy and climate change as they relate to vulnerable and disadvantaged communities and households. He has worked in Australian, European and International consultancy, community, climate and energy research, energy auditing, offshore renewable energy, environmental science and environmental impact assessment. He has also twice attended the United Nations Conference of the Parties (COP) on Climate Change with the Irish delegation. Luke also has a background in permaculture and a strong interest business and social models that lead to a fairer world.
Audrey Cetois
Audrey is a self professed “energy nerd”. Audrey has written many submissions on the NEMs, worked for Powerlink and is a PhD candidate researching resilience to climate change.
Nina Collins
Nina has a background in social research and advocacy, with over 10 years of her career focused on the social impacts of mining in the research and not-for-profit sectors. She has worked with mining companies to improve their community engagement and community development practices; with communities impacted by mining through advocacy, education, research and community
development projects; and with governments, contributing to policy frameworks and guidelines. She holds a Master of Applied Anthropology and Participatory Development, a Graduate Certificate in Applied Statistics and Honours in Social Science.
Anthony Broese van Groenou
Anthony might be best known for setting up “Good Car Co” which imported second-hand electric vehicles to Australia before it was mainstream. This connected to Anthony’s PhD work researching socio-technical systems and modelling of uptake for home battery energy systems and Electric Vehicles, identifying opportunities and barriers and equitable transition. He is also a freelance videographer with broadcast credit. He also has a Bachelor of Environmental Management and Sustainable Development with first-class Honors from the University of Queensland and a Diploma in Business Management. His thesis investigated human capacity building in Community Owned Renewable Energy (CORE) projects, specifically looking at Indigenous ownership on Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island, QLD). In 2016 Anthony was Research Assistant for a PhD project focusing on quantifying co-benefits of CORE, visiting and interviewing Australian community owned wind and solar farms in WA, VIC and NSW. In 2014, he went on a research tour of CORE projects across the Netherlands, Scotland and Denmark, including Samsoe 100% renewable energy Island, exploring various ownership, investment and operational models. Anthony’s extensive international work history includes projects in multimedia (film, photography, web design), permaculture, renewable energy systems design, community development work and the arts.
Clare I.
Clare is a community engagement practitioner, and ECAI’s Project Manager (or chief ‘nerd-wrangler’ to some!). Backed by 25 years’ project, research and executive administration experience, she has worked and volunteered in the tertiary education, emergency services, construction, local and state government, and disability service sectors. Most recently, she supported the emergency management sector to build their inclusion of persons with disability in disaster operations, and identify the preparedness of communities in South-East Queensland to respond to the impact of climate change on natural hazards. Clare holds a Bachelor of Arts (Griffith University) and a Certificate of Engagement (International Association for Public Participation (IAP2)).
Wendell Porter
Dr. Porter retired in 2021 as a Senior Lecturer with the Agricultural & Biological Engineering Department of the University of Florida. He started there with the Extension Service and spent more than ten years working on energy efficient home construction in hot-humid climates. Lured back into the classroom, he enrolled in a PhD program in 1999, earning his PhD in 2003. Dr. Porter spent the rest of his career at UF teaching and advising students. He taught energy related courses, such as Global Sustainable Energy, which was delivered online to students everywhere. He was also a faculty Fellow of the Florida Climate Institute.
As a volunteer, Dr. Porter helped to organize the Community Weatherization Coalition, a group that performs free energy audits for low-income families. Dr. Porter was the group’s first President and has helped to train nearly all the volunteers from 2009 through 2021.
Before he arrived at UF he worked in a variety of jobs including analysis of flight and ground hardware for the International Space Station.
The common thread of energy efficiency and renewable energy continues. After retiring he and his wife moved to SEQ to be near family (grandchildren!). During a previous visit to Brisbane in 2018, he was introduced to Luke Reade and the rest is history!
Our Management Committee
Luke Reade (President)
See bio above
Anthony Broese van Groenou (Treasurer)
See bio above
Clare Silcock (Secretary)
Clare is a renewable energy engineer who has worked in electricity market modelling, energy management and policy. She recently worked for the Mayor of London’s zero carbon team and was a director of South East London Community Energy, which operates 330kW of community-owned solar on schools.
Past Contributors we’d like to acknowledge
Deanna (De-ah-na) Borland-Sentinella
Deanna (pronounced De-ah-na) comes to the team with a background in Community Development, group facilitation and stakeholder engagement work. Deanna completed a PhD just prior to starting with Energetic Communities and has been enjoying expanding their policy work, writing submissions to improve the livability of homes with energy efficiency and looking at energy justice access.
Deanna has also been bringing some creative approaches to the team, for example hosting a panel that mixed up conversations about renters and the energy system with Playback Theatre!
Rob Farago
A Solar Power professional with 25 years engineering experience, Rob graduated with a BE in Computer Systems from the University of Qld in 1988. Since then he has worked on writing software, building the internet and installing renewable energy, sometimes simultaneously. Rob co-founded Local Power, installing solar for over 1000 homes, community groups and businesses, using an innovative and community centred business model.
Annie McCabe
Annie is a researcher and public policy professional and has a PhD in the sociology of community energy movements – on how community energy groups fulfil a number of sustainability goals by building on community capital and localising energy system supply chains. She has traveled around Australia talking to community energy groups of all different shapes and sizes. She is passionate about the role that communities can play in shaping a just and fair energy future. She also holds a Bachelor of Environmental Management (honours) from the University of Queensland, and has knowledge and interest around a number of industrial ecology-based methods, including life cycle assessment and systems science applications.