We need your help to make a colourful, memorable impact on Federal Education Minister Alan Tudge to get him on board our Solar Our Schools campaign — to install solar panels and batteries at every school and preschool in Australia. Australian Parents for Climate Action lodged a Pre-Budget Submission to the Federal government to include funding for Solar Our Schools in the May 2021 budget, and many of our supporters wrote a personal submission in support of Solar Our Schools — thank you, legends! But so far our requests for Federal funding for Solar Our Schools, and our request for a meeting with Minister Tudge, have fallen on deaf ears, so we need to make sure he can hear the voices of the 11,000-plus parents and children across Australia who support Solar Our Schools! Insiders tell us that letters and artwork from children make it to the top of the pile of Ministers’ correspondence — so your kids artwork will get noticed in a way that letters from us adults won’t! Here’s how you can help:
1. Make a Time to Shine artwork with your child (check out our inspiration board below)
Create a sun artwork with a “sun clock” theme to convey the message to Minister Tudge that the clock is ticking on the need to reduce our carbon emissions, and we need him to advocate for funding Solar Our Schools!
Older kids can write a letter — or make a TikTok video! — explaining why Solar Our Schools is a no-brainer. Here are some points they could mention:
• Solar and batteries on every school and preschool in Australia will lower school energy costs, create local jobs and lower carbon emissions!
• The Federal Government has fallen behind the states on renewable energy infrastructure investment. It’s time for the Federal Government to come to the party and shine on our schools!
• With a Federal election and the Glasgow COP26 conference both looming, now is the time for our Federal government to invest in renewable energy infrastructure that reduces our carbon emissions and creates green jobs across Australia!
2. Send your Time to Shine creations to Federal Education Minister Alan Tudge
Hon Alan Tudge MP
Minister for Education and Youth
PO Box 6022
House of Representatives
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
(02) 6277 7350
[email protected]
NB: If you are sending Minister Tudge your Time to Shine artwork or letters in the mail, take a photo of them before you send them off.
3. Share your Time to Shine creations with us
Share photos of your artwork and letters and/or your videos on social media with the hashtags #SolarOurSchools and #TimetoShine, and our handle @ap4ca. If you want to tag Minister Tudge, his handles are: @tudgeMP (Facebook), @alan_tudge (Instagram) and @AlanTudgeMP (Twitter). Also, please email them to [email protected] for us to share with our supporters so we can encourage others to send a message to Minister Tudge!