What an incredible evening we shared with so many wonderful supporters of community energy a few weeks ago. Our 10th Anniversary on the 16th November was an evening of reflection and celebration, with many contributions from people within TRY and the wider Yack community.
Acknowledgement of Country & welcome
We were especially honoured and thrilled for local musicians Sal Kimber and Sarah Wallis to present a very special musical Acknowledgment of Country, performed by Sal, Sarah, Aaron Silver and students from the Yack Primary School. For both locals and those from further afield, it was a beautiful and joyous musical celebration of the First Peoples and original custodians of our small valley.
It struck a chord (excuse the pun) with Sheena Watt MP, the indigenous Victorian Parliamentary Secretary for Climate Action, who spoke straight afterwards, and was visibly moved. The lovely welcome by Sheena and then Dr Helen Haines MP, emphasised the enormous support we have had, and continue to have, from both state and federal governments and how important the actions of a small community can be in the larger picture.
“… because you’re not just here about yourselves and making a 100% renewable Yackandandah. So many of you are so giving with your knowledge to your neighbours, [and] folks you’ve never met, right around the country.”
– Sheena Watt MP
“We actually want social legacy. We want community benefit. And when I look around this room and I see the incredible connection and community benefit that happens here in Yack, I want that for the whole nation.”
– Dr Helen Haines MP
Yaks and a little TRY History
Throughout the evening, MCs, Trevor Matthews and Cr Di Shepheard, expertly guided the proceedings and judged the unusual (but enthusiastically received) task for attendees to sculpt their best TRY Yak from the yellow and blue playdough on each table.
Former president, Matt Grogan, and current president, Matthew Charles-Jones, reflected on TRY’s beginnings, the thinking behind it, and how far we’ve come. TRY Coordinator and past President, Clare Bishop, gave a new and younger committee member’s perspective on the acceptance and inclusiveness she has found in working with TRY on something that means a lot to her, her partner and newborn daughter.
MC’s Trevor Matthews and Cr Di Shepheard steered the evening, former TRY President Matt Grogan talked about TRY’s early years, and current President Matthew Charles-Jones filled in some recent history.
The power of community
Guest speaker Tim Hollo gave a riveting talk about democracy, the power of community efforts to create transformative change, and the need to investigate whether our system is working for us – and if not, how we dismantle it and put it back together so that it supports us. It was a serious topic, but lightened with humour, and it created diverse responses, testimony to his aim to provoke thought and reflection!
To end formal proceedings, Juliette Milbank thanked the many local contributors that made the evening possible, including the WAW Bank and the NED Foundation, and asked the question: why does TRY do what we do?
The answer was provided with Yackandandah teenager Charlie Pinard invited to cut the TRY themed cake: for a better future for our young people, as they will inherit this world in whatever state we leave it.
Music, food & community
The inimitable Shane Howard and Band then played out the evening, providing rhythm, release and joy, the music pulling people up to dance, to celebrate efforts past, and efforts yet to come. Past committee member Denis Ginnivan’s collaboration on the song ‘TRY’ was acknowledged with a guest vocal, somewhat to his bemusement. And an encore was requested by the crowd and generously given by the band to end a truly heart-felt evening.
Our stomachs were fed by a very tasty Indonesian buffet from Beechworth-based caterer Voor Ouker, which was served to the tables by the TRY committee, and Callum and his staff from The Lincoln on the Wodonga causeway provided refreshments.
All round, the night was a celebration of community contributions and spirit, with the table flowers also grown in Yack and Baranduda and donated by local families, and some thriftily repurposed from Clare Bishop’s wedding. The TRY bunting was made by local resident Sarah, the playdough was made by former members of the Baranduda Playgroup, the sound production by local resident Craig Ramsay and stage lighting by TRY committee member Blake Edwards.
Local young enthusiasts were employed to help out on the night, including washing the dishes, thus avoiding disposable plates and cups, and Sian Williams supervised the back-of-house functions. A full waste audit and sort was conducted the next day, to further minimise waste and ensure that it went to the right places. The playdough was subsequently donated to the Yack preschool and Yack Health Centre, and equally enthusiastically received the second time around by young and old!
Thanks to long-time supporters
A huge thank you to all of our supporters over the last decade, in particular the Yackandandah Folk Festival for the generous profit-sharing scheme they set up in 2016 to support renewable energy projects in Yack. Thank you also to YCDCo for supporting projects, often providing funding, and most recently contributing to a paid Project Coordinator role that supports our volunteers and pushes projects along.
Lastly, thank you to Mondo, who were instrumental in the delivery of a series of microgrids and provided technical support for our locally focused public Virtual Power Plant (VPP).
And the lesson that we took home at the end of the evening? Community energy takes a community, not just one individual or organisation. What an incredible community we have!
A few photos
A musical Acknowledgement of Country started the evening off … [Photo: MCJ] … with a fantastic performance by local primary school students, led by Sarah Wallis and accompanied by Aaron Silver and Sal Kimber. [Photo: DC] A formal welcome was then given … [Photo: JM] … by Sheena Watt MP, speaking for the Victorian energy minister, Lily d’Ambrosio. [Photo: DC] And Dr Helen Haines MP completed the welcome and acknowledged TRY’s contributions locally and nationally [Photo: JM] The 10th Anniversary crowd … [Photo: JM] … made the event a sell-out with 159 people [Photo: JM] Past president Matt Grogan talked about TRY’s early years [Photo: JM] 
A proud sculptor! [Photo: MCJ] Guest speaker Tim Hollo spoke on the theme of democracy and community power [Photo: JM] Shane Howard & Band were warmly received and generously gave an encore [Photo: DC] 
Shane Howard invited Denis Ginnivan as guest vocalist on the song ‘TRY’. [Photo: JM] Audience members mingling during a break [Photo: DC] 
Attendees at the event [Photo: MCJ] Indigo Power MD and former TRY committee member, Ben McGowan, holds up an original TRY shirt! [Photo: MCJ] 
Denis Ginnivan, Shane Howard and Matthew Charles-Jones after the event [Photo: JM]
Photo credits: Dan Carberry, Juliette Milbank and Matthew Charles-Jones
TRY’s 10 Year Timeline
How far have we come in ten years? It’s a long way, but we’re not at our destination yet!
Osbornes Flat Primary students imagine our energy future
As part of the evening, Osbornes Flat Primary were asked to create some artworks with the theme “What does our energy future look like?” The artworks were displayed to the left of the stage for people to look at in the quieter moments.
The hedgehogs control the drone while sitting on them. All buildings are covered in solar panels. Solar powered drones deliver parcels and letters. The hedgehog in the wheel powers the building at night when the sun has gone down. (Age 11) Solar panels are on all buildings and the power from them will be collected in batteries and used to run the buildings. There will be solar-powered flying cars and drones. (Age 10) Wind blows on the automatic wind generator, making the fan spin and generate electricity. Pulling a lever pushes electricity through a wire and into a battery. The battery can then be hooked to anything to power it. (Age 9) This is a glider of the future. It will have more wings for lift, better aerodynamics for diving and a better tail fin for yaw. (Age 12) Drill a hole in an active volcano and there’s heat underneath it. Put another hole in the volcano for the air intake. Then when air goes into the volcano, the heat will rise up and spin a turbine to create energy. (Age 12) We should have engine powered and electric powered cars and trucks. (Age 10) Giant solar panel square that is perfect for charging cars. Mirror solar panels, the sunlight reflects off the mirror and then goes into a jar filled with water and the steam is used to create energy. A giant hundred story tower, when lightening strikes the top of the tower you can capture the energy in a battery. We trap a small part of the sun and use it to power solar panels. (Age 10) There will be flying animals and everything will be solar powered. The gnome is solar powered and the mice run the world in solar cars. (Age 12) We’re getting wizards from back in time and we’re using their magical spells to power solar panels to cook chicken, because wizards like chicken. (Age 12) There will be flying cars driven by professionals and with parachutes just in case. There will also be flying toy cars. (Age 10) The mouse is powering the whole city. There will be flying cars and dogs with solar panels on their backs. (Age 12) Robot cats and police dogs that run off solar panels. The robot dogs are so that real dogs don’t get injured doing the job. There will be drone cars and basically everything will be solar powered. (Age 12)
Huge thanks to WAW and the NED Foundation for generously supporting this event.
