Michelle Rawson, Sustainable North Epping

Michelle Rawson arrived home in 2019 from her travels across Europe, after witnessing France’s alpine glaciers visibly retreating, to the raging Black Summer fires burning across Australia. Feeling helpless, she gathered her neighbours and started a climate action group. Based in Sydney’s North Epping, that initial group has since morphed into a hyper-local climate group Sustainable North Epping, where locals work together to share information and host events aimed at reducing their community’s emissions.

“I just knew in my heart that I couldn't look my kids in the eye and do nothing. To understand what was happening and not do anything would feel like I was really betraying them,” Michelle explained. Although the group remains small, Sustainable North Epping has a powerful presence in the community. This is felt through their practical events that educate and inspire, such as energy audit sessions and electric vehicle expos at the local bowling club car park.

More recently, the group of volunteers organised a ‘sustainability trail’ that featured eight events across six homes with various eco-friendly demonstrations such as solar and home battery information setups, trading electricity with amber electric, to permaculture talks, pollination lessons for kids, and even frog hotel workshops with ecology experts in Michelle’s backyard.

At its core, Sustainable North Epping is dedicated to building community connections. “What we noticed was that one house gets solar, then the next house, then the next house… so it’s neighbours talking to neighbours,” Michelle said. “That’s become a little bit of our guiding philosophy; if you can get neighbours talking to neighbours, you start to see real change.

“It’s really satisfying to see the community coming together, getting involved, sharing information and helping each other out. That kind of thing doesn’t always happen in Sydney.”

For Michelle, taking action in her community and connecting with others through Rewiring Australia’s Electric Communities Network has become “the antidote” to the helplessness she once felt.

“Sometimes I get really tired, and I feel so helpless just reading about the awful stuff in the world, but if I'm doing things, I can focus on the good and be part of the solution. That is a really, a much better headspace to be in.

“One of the best things about Sustainable North Epping is the people in it, and just the positive energy that comes with being with people who are doing stuff and want to create change is really, really important and it makes you want to keep doing it.”

Connect with Michelle and Sustainable North Epping at their Facebook page and help be a part of positive change.