Community benefits in renewables: How regional Australia can share the gains

Community benefits in renewables: How regional Australia can share the gains

From SwitchedOn Australia by RenewEconomy

March 17, 2026 · 45 min

About this episode

The episode discusses how regional Australia can share the economic gains from renewable energy projects through community-led initiatives.

As renewable energy projects expand across regional Australia, the question of who benefits is becoming increasingly important. Governments are introducing community benefit guidelines to ensure host regions share in the economic gains – WA is the latest - but results so far have been mixed. Kim Mallee, a co-director at the Community Power Agency, argues that community benefits can’t be treated as an add-on – they must be shaped by communities themselves. Drawing on international examples from countries like Denmark, Scotland and Ireland, she explores how ownership, co-investment and community-led models can deliver deeper, longer-term value. CPA’s new report, Power in Partnership, outlines how these approaches could work in Australia and we can move beyond compensation towards genuine partnership in the energy transition.

People in this episode

Guest: Kim Mallee

Topics covered

  • community benefits
  • renewable energy
  • regional Australia
  • economic gains
  • energy transition
  • co-investment
  • community-led models

Keywords

  • renewable energy
  • community benefits
  • regional Australia
  • economic gains
  • energy transition
  • co-investment
  • partnership

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Community Power Agency

Places: Australia, WA, Denmark, Scotland, Ireland

More episodes of SwitchedOn Australia

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the SwitchedOn Australia podcast page.