The Hon. Lily D’Ambrosio, the Victorian Minister for Climate Action, Energy and Resources and the State Electricity Commission (SEC) has announced today that she is retiring from politics.

Friends of the Earth acknowledges her vision, her remarkable commitment to her portfolios and her achievements in transforming energy supply in the state. Her achievements have ensured that the Victorian government has been a national leader in energy policy and climate action.

“Victoria had an old and dirty energy system when Lily was appointed to her role as minister. When Labor came to power in 2014, Victoria was largely reliant on brown coal for energy generation. With D’Ambrosio as Minister, successive Victorian Labor governments have helped the state reach more than 40% renewable energy.

Across north western Victoria, massive critical minerals developments threaten farming, landscapes, local economies and ground and water supplies. 

There are five main projects currently planned. More than 42,000 hectares of farm land are currently under retention licences. There are also legacy issues from older projects, which have not been properly rehabilitated. 

You can find out more about these projects here.

And in Gippsland, Gippsland Critical Minerals is developing the Fingerboards Project, which will have an enormous impact on an important food bowl of Victoria, right next to the Mitchell River.

Each of these projects are subject to an assessment and approvals process. However, local farming communities feel that the assessment system is broken, ignores their concerns and allows approval of destructive projects. And there has been no attempt by the regulator or the state government to understand the cumulative impacts of these projects combined across an important food production area.

We ask you to support the call for the state government to announce an immediate halt on any further assessment or approval of any aspect of critical minerals projects until there has been an independent and comprehensive analysis done of the cumulative impacts of these projects.

On Friday 5th June 2026 - World Environment Day - long term and well known peace and environmental activist will perform at 12 noon in the Melbourne Arts precinct outside the NGV in Swanston street.

You are welcome to join him.

We need positive climate solutions that improve people’s lives

We need to lock in cheaper, cleaner energy for Victoria’s future

Electrifying everything will create energy independence & protect against cost of living pressures

This is a critical election for Victoria if we are to secure the clean energy future our communities have fought hard for. With the energy transition now well underway and an ongoing fuel crisis, it is essential that we maintain momentum in the shift to renewable energy, storage and efficiency. Maintaining the transition will reduce our contribution to global heating and also deliver economic benefits to households and businesses.

After a shocking summer of bushfires we know that many impacts of global heating are already locked in. That' s why we need to ensure that all parties and candidates are focused on the need to support climate resilience in communities across the state.

As most people struggle with cost of living pressures, it is wise to remember that the energy transition is already delivering benefits. We cannot afford to waste 4 years on culture wars and climate change denial. 

The backcountry film festival is a pre winter institution in Melbourne. We have been screening the festival each year since 2011. The program is put together by Winter Wildlands Alliance, and celebrates the power and spirit of humans in winter.

Now in it's 21st year, the festival will screen again in Naarm / Melbourne, Tuesday evening May 5 at RMIT in the city. 

The event will run from 6pm, with films starting at 6.30pm.

We will have speakers from a range of backcountry groups, info and merchandise stalls, the Winter Wildlands program (2 hours of films).

Co-hosted by RMIT Outdoors Club and Friends of the Earth.

This is a big week for Treaty in Victoria, with the state-wide Treaty being debated in the Victorian Parliament from Tuesday morning.

This a key time for ally organisations to activate in support of Treaty.

The following information comes from the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria (FPAV) and explains how you can show your active support for the Treaty process. While the ALP, Greens, Animal Justice Party and Legalise Cannabis Victoria all support Treaty it is important that we pressure the Coalition to also show support for the process in parliament.

MEDIA RELEASE

Victorian environment groups have written a joint letter to Victoria’s Premier Jacinta Allan and leading government ministers welcoming Australia’s first ever Treaty with Indigenous people, and committed to standing alongside First Peoples on the journey to Treaty in Victoria.

‘As organisations that are committed to a healthy environment and a fair, sustainable society, we must play our part in righting the wrongs of the past and creating a better future together,’ says the joint letter, signed by 22 leading climate and environment groups.

On the 31st August at approximately 5 pm, a group of males wearing masks and identifying as neo Nazi’s attacked Camp Sovereignty with the intention of causing harm to the people who gather at the space, which is a place of ongoing indigenous resistance, a place to pay respects, meet mob and share stories.

Seven men involved in the attack have been arrested by police so far (as at September 5) - details here.

Senator Lidia Thorpe has called for the neo-Nazi protesters to be investigated for hate crimes.

This is an important moment that calls for all allies to step up and show active solidarity.

We know that angry voices (those opposing new national parks and environmental protection and the development of renewables and action on climate change) are often the most vocal, especially on social media. Angry voices often shut down other views because people don’t want to be personally attacked or be involved in a shouting match, so they avoid the debate entirely. This dominance of angry and anti voices can give the impression that they are the majority.

But being noisy doesn’t mean they are the majority.

Polling consistently shows that people want to see better protection for the environment and creation of new national parks (for instance, polling conducted in 2024 showed that 80% of Victorians support the creation of new national parks, while just 8% oppose them). And the vast majority of people understand that human induced climate change poses a dramatic threat to ecosystems, people and the economy. For instance, according to the State of Sustainability Report 2024, most Victorians (67%) are concerned about climate change, with 35% indicating that their concern had increased in the past twelve months. Surveys conducted by Griffith University in 2022 show that only about 2% of the survey population were climate change deniers, 5% sceptics, 16% as unconvinced about climate change, while the vast majority (77%) were firm believers in the reality of climate change.

As expected, cost-of-living measures dominated today’s state budget. Priorities included health, education, transport and housing, and ‘law and order’ issues. Climate action and environment were not headline items this year - but transport was. And transport is a climate issue.

With the budget back in surplus this year and debt forecast to drop in the next few years, Victoria is moving beyond the years of post-pandemic austerity.  The government needs to be planning to do more to protect and revitalise the environment and speed up the energy transition in the next budget - the last one before the state election.