Zero Emissions Noosa Inc. (ZEN Inc.) Annual Report · Report

PLANNING & ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE MEETING                                             10 JUNE 2025



REPORT
ZEN Inc.’s 2024 annual report highlights the scale and importance of the task that the organisation
has taken on. The report also identifies the reach that ZEN Inc. has in terms of community outreach
and diverse project delivery. It illustrates that ZEN Inc. is delivering on strategic outcomes that
support Council's priorities and that Council is not able to achieve on its own, given budget and
capacity constraints. ZEN Inc. achieves this in two ways:

   1. By engaging with a highly capable and professional pool of volunteers, who provide a high
      return on investment to council through project delivery, advocacy and community
      engagement.
   2. By successfully receiving and delivering on Federal, State and Council grants. In 2024, ZEN
      Inc. received $190,000 in grants.
One of the strategic objectives that ZEN Inc. has set, and that Council has encouraged, is for the
organisation to pursue opportunities to operate with greater financial sustainability. This includes
exploring ways to generate income beyond intermittent grants. A good example of where ZEN Inc.
has achieved in this space is in delivery of the EV & Electrify Everything Expo, where grants make
up only a small portion of the budget required to deliver the program and the rest is generated
through sponsorships and in-kind support.

ZEN Inc delivers on a variety of projects focussed on emissions reduction in the community. Their
reach is wide and adds value to council’s goals and objectives as set out in various Council
plans. The projects described below are a selection of current projects and more details can be
found in Attachment 1.

Noosaville Community Battery
The partnership of ZEN Inc., Yarra Energy Foundation and Noosa Council has undertaken
substantial work to negotiate the planning and progressing of this project in 2024.
ZEN Inc. led the way in advocating with 54 stakeholders across regulators, government (state &
federal level), industry and consumer energy groups for reduced tariffs and connection fees to make
this and other community batteries financially viable. ZEN Inc. was instrumental in persuading
Energy Qld. to make this battery, the only community owned community battery in Qld., a pilot on
the community energy sector, with Energy Qld. agreeing to cover the tariffs for 5 years, while more
work is done to investigate future financial viability for this and other community batteries.

Rewiring Noosa
A major program of ZEN Inc. is their partnership with Rewiring Australia and the work that they have
done in public awareness and education in their Rewiring Noosa project. ZEN Inc., on behalf of the
Noosa Shire community, was chosen to work with Saul Griffiths Rewiring Aust. project as one of the
original community partners.
Mid-year, ZEN Inc. launched the Rewiring Noosa Toolkit developed for us by Rewiring Australia,
followed by making of 7 video testimonials by Noosa Shire community members who have moved
from traditional energy sources to power highly energy efficient appliances, coupled with solar and
monitoring systems. These tools are to ensure all Noosa Shire community members (home owners
and renters alike) can benefit by saving money, AND reducing their carbon footprint.
This project has received grant funding from Noosa Council through the Climate Change Response
Grants program and delivers community forums to educate the community on the benefits of
transitioning to home electrification.

2024 6th Annual Electric Vehicle & Electrify Everything Expo
Council supported the delivery of the EV and Electrify Everything Expo through a memorandum of
understanding with the Transport branch, and logistical and program support from Sustainability and
Climate Change. This MOU has not been renewed however logistical and programming support will