Thom Woodroofe in conversation with Annastacia Palaszczuk

ABOUT THE BOOKS

Power, Prosperity & Planet

After nearly two decades of “the climate wars”, arguments for climate action focus on power (we must decarbonise our energy system), prosperity (we must develop our green industries and clean tech) and planet (we must do more to keep global temperature increases within safe limits). But rarely are these arguments framed in terms of the impact on ordinary Australians. How will the transition to renewables keep electricity prices low for households? Given our continued reliance on fossil fuel exports, can Australia avoid falling off an economic cliff in the coming decades, compromising quality of life? What will it cost our nation if large swathes of the country are at risk of climate-related disaster?

In this clear-sighted volume, Woodroofe argues that Australia needs to elevate climate change to our top foreign and economic policy priority. And we need to speak about it in a way that makes sense from the Cabinet Room to every lounge room across the mortgage belts and beyond. Because the ingredients that made us the lucky country reliable power, economic prosperity and the beauty of our part of the planet, are at risk.

The Politics of Being Me

A powerful story of resilience, leadership and staying true to yourself.

Annastacia Palaszczuk made history when she became the first woman to win the premiership of Queensland from opposition. She made history again when she became the first female premier in the nation to secure three consecutive terms. But her journey to the top was anything but easy.

She defied every stereotype of a political leader – her name was hard to pronounce, she came from Brisbane’s hard-scrabble suburbs, she lacked ‘polish’, she wasn’t a man.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Thom Woodroofe is a Senior International Fellow with the Smart Energy Council. He played a key role in securing the Paris Agreement on climate change in 2015, including helping establish the High Ambition Coalition of progressive nations. He has since worked as chief of staff to former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd; for the Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade in Washington, DC; and at the Asia Society in New York, where he forged a backchannel for US–China climate talks. Thom studied diplomacy as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University and grew up off-the-grid on a solar-powered property in regional Victoria.

Annastacia Palaszczuk is a prominent Australian leader who served as Premier of Queensland for three consecutive terms. As Premier, she led a government that oversaw the response to Covid-19 pandemic and championed an ambitious agenda of economic and social reform. A strong advocate for women, First Nations peoples, Veterans, and the Arts, she also drove economic growth and job creation – particularly in rural and regional Queensland. Annastacia is an avid supporter of Queensland and continues to be deeply inspired by the people she met while in office.