Category: MIL-OSI

The ACT Government has launched the Commercial Kitchen Trial to help businesses transition their commercial kitchens from gas to all-electric.

The Australian-first trial offers ACT restaurants and cafes financial support as well as expert advice to ease the changeover.

All-electric kitchens are safer, cheaper to run and better for the environment. And with the ACT Government committed to phasing out fossil fuel gas by 2045, the trial is a great way of showcasing the possibilities of a gas-free future.

Pilot in Ainslie is one business eager to participate and demonstrate the benefits of all-electric cooking.

According to head chef Mal Hanslow and Co-owner Dash Rumble, there are clear benefits to cooking with electric.

“It is more efficient, easy to clean, creates less mess and more comfortable. A Salamander switches on/off and is not on the whole time, taking eight seconds to heat up whereas the gas version takes 15 minutes to heat up,” they said.

The pair list pan-fried fish as one dish they would find easier to cook with electric.

“There is little to no oil flying out of the pan and catching alight as would be the case with gas cooking and flames,” they said.

Mal and Dash are passionate about reducing Pilot’s environmental footprint. However, they recognise transitioning kitchens can be expensive up front, so welcome the trial’s financial support.

To other businesses considering being part of the trial, they said: “If you can afford it, do it. It’s easier, there’s less set-up, it’s more efficient, much easier cleaning, more precision, more organised, less hot and more comfortable.”

The Commercial Kitchen Trial is just one step on the path towards electrifying Canberra, powering homes, businesses and transport in a cleaner, cheaper and healthier way.

Expressions of interest in the trial are currently open until 30 June 2024 or until fully subscribed.

To find out more on the Commercial Kitchen Trial, visit the Everyday Climate Choices website.

Canberrans can attend an induction cooking demonstration with Pilot’s Mal Hanslow at the Sustainable Canberra Expo on 13–14 October at Thoroughbred Park.

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Transitioning to a zero-emissions bus fleet in the ACT involves much more than just purchasing electric buses. New vehicles provide opportunities for industry, local jobs, and skills both in workforce and the local economy.

The Zero-Emission Transition Plan for Transport Canberra supports a transition to new skills for public transport workers, including diesel mechanics and other operational staff. Through training courses and on-the job learning, Transport Canberra is making sure staff have the skills they need to maintain and operate a zero-emissions bus fleet.

Stuart ‘Stu’ Shiell has been a mechanic for more than 40 years, spending half of this time as part of Transport Canberra’s servicing team. With 12 new electric buses on the road and another 94 on the way, mechanics like Stu are also transitioning to ensure each new electric bus on the road continues to run smoothly.

“So far there’s a lot less work involved with them. As they get serviced there is very minor things to be changed,” Stu said.

“On an internal combustion engine there is a lot more moving parts, which means there is a lot more adjustments to be made. On an electric bus there is far less.

“In a type of trade if you just stay stagnant you won’t go anywhere, so you have to keep ahead of technology if you want to make yourself viable in the industry.”

Transport Canberra is working closely with staff to ensure they have the training they need to safely and efficiently operate new technology vehicles.

Training has been well received by staff. So far:

• 89 staff have completed Connect and Disconnect Training
• 29 staff have undertaken Skillset training
• 468 staff (Trainers, Drivers, Refuelers, Field Officers Communication Centre) have undertaken Bus Familiarisation training
• Certificate III in Automotive Electric Vehicle Technology for apprentices and trades staff is scheduled to commence in term 4, 2023.

Work is also underway on building charging infrastructure for the new electric fleet.

Six charging units are in use at Tuggeranong bus depot for the 12 battery electric buses already on the road.

Construction of the new Woden bus depot is progressing and once completed it is expected that depot will have the ability to charge up to 100 battery electric buses.

Planning has also started for the development of a new zero-emission bus depot in Canberra’s north.

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The ACT Government’s annual road resurfacing program has returned to ensure major arterial roads and suburban streets remain safe.

In 2022 the ACT Government announced a significant increase in road maintenance of $153 million over four years to repair and preserve Canberra’s roads.

This is a 52 per cent increase in expenditure for road maintenance and a 150 per cent increase for asphalting.

The program follows research by the Australian Road Research Board and focuses on road rehabilitation as well as preventative resealing.

In 2022-23, ACT road maintenance teams repaired more than 12,000 potholes across the territory.

Road rehabilitation projects will begin in coming months on David Walsh Avenue in Forde.

There is also design work underway for further works on sections of the Monaro Highway, Kings Highway and Sulwood Drive.

Road resurfacing works are generally undertaken each year during warmer weather conditions.

The service life of a highly trafficked road is over 10 years whilst residential streets often deliver 25 to 30 years of service.

Road resurfacing treatments include road resealing, asphalt resurfacing and microsurfacing which helps to waterproof the road, improve skid resistance and fill cracks in the pavement.

Overnight asphalt resurfacing work was completed this week on sections of the Tuggeranong Parkway at Weston Creek over the Molonglo River.

This follows asphalt patching work that was undertaken in the area earlier in 2023 after Fix My Street requests were received from the community.

Major roads to receive road resurfacing treatment over coming months will include:

• Deakin – Adelaide Avenue, between State Circle and Kent Street
• Molonglo Valley – Tuggeranong Parkway, southbound between Lady Denman Drive and Cotter Road
• Belconnen – Gungahlin Drive, several sections in both directions between the Barton Highway and Glenloch Interchange
• Hall – Barton Highway, from Kuringa Drive towards the ACT/NSW border
• Watson – Federal Highway, from Antill Street towards the ACT/NSW border
• Belconnen – William Hovell Drive, both directions between Bindubi Street and Coulter Drive
• City – Akuna Street
• Tuggeranong – Anketell Street, several sections
• Woden Valley – Various intersections along Hindmarsh Drive.

For more information on road resurfacing, including a map of the full program and daily updates on roads receiving treatment, visit cityservices.act.gov.au

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An extension of the ACT Government Rent Relief Fund will provide targeted, short-term emergency support for private renters in low-income households in the ACT.

This extension brings to $2.51 million the total allocated for grants under the fund since it opened in April 2023.

The fund provides support to the most vulnerable households.

It is aimed at preventing evictions, improve their wellbeing and connect them to services that may assist them to improve their financial position over the longer term.

It offers grants for up to four weeks rent capped at $2,500 to help tenants and occupants maintain safe, secure and stable accommodation.

Eoghan Clwyde and his partner never expected to find themselves in need of such support. However, in the lead-up to their first child’s birth, they experienced financial pressures.

They knew baby Flynn would be born prematurely, and so had a great deal of specialist newborn items on the shopping list.

As their costs increased, they found assistance through the Rent Relief Fund – a process Eoghan said was “very straightforward”.

“This program came at terrific timing, and we were able to acquire those extra items that we needed,” Eoghan said.

They were also relieved to avoid asking family for support at a time of widespread cost of living pressure.

To be eligible for a grant, households must be experiencing either rental stress or severe financial hardship.

Applicants also need to meet income limits which vary depending on the number of people in the household.

CARE Inc. will continue to administer the Fund on behalf of the ACT Government.

“We know how valuable this assistance is to people experiencing rental stress,” Carmel Franklin, CARE Chief Executive Officer, said.

“As part of administering the Rent Relief Fund, CARE will continue to provide wrap around support from our range of programs – financial counselling, financial capability, consumer law, community loans and community education, as well as referring people to other local support services as needed,” she said.

In addition to the fund’s extension, the ACT Government continues to work with the Commonwealth Government to improve housing affordability.

It is also investing in a range of measures to increase the supply of affordable rentals in Canberra, with the goal of delivering 600 additional rental dwellings by 2025-26.

Further information is available on the Justice and Community Safety website.

View more information about the ACT Government’s cost-of-living support.

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The development application for the new Watson health precinct is now open for public feedback.

New specialist facilities will be built for Marymead CatholicCare’s youth mental health residential service and Ted Noffs Foundation’s alcohol and other drugs youth rehabilitation services.

A new Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander residential rehabilitation service facility will also be developed in partnership with Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal Health and Community Services.

Alcohol and other drug addiction causes significant harm to individuals, families, and communities, with a disproportionate impact on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

The establishment of a 24-bed residential facility for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Canberrans will promote rehabilitation and recovery in a culturally safe and inclusive environment.

New facilities operated by Ted Noffs Foundation and Marymead CatholicCare will offer a modern welcoming environment to encourage positive outcomes for young Canberrans. Planning for the new precinct has accommodated for the future growth of the facilities.

“Detoxing and undergoing a rehabilitation episode at such a young age requires a very specific treatment intervention, and these new facilities will strengthen the current treatment programs on offer,” Ted Noffs Foundation’s National Programs Manager Lachlan Dean said.

“Being able to continue to work on the site we have been on for the last 23 years allows us to stay connected to this community.”

The development application for the precinct is available to view and comment on until 9 October 2023 on the Planning ACT website.

More information about the project is available on the Built for CBR website: builtforcbr.act.gov.au

^{Artist’s impression of the new facility.}

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A park in Campbell has been named after Violet McKenzie, or ‘Mrs Mac’ – the woman who trained thousands in Morse code, visual signalling and international code during World War II.

The park is located behind the Campbell shops, between White Crescent and Blamey Place.

Violet McKenzie was a pioneer in Australian radio and electrical engineering.

She was committed to technical education and training, especially for women.

McKenzie also established a wireless shop in the Royal Arcade, Sydney.

In the 1930s, she began the Electrical Association for Women and wrote the first ‘all-electric cookbook’.

In addition, she established the Women’s Emergency Signalling Corps in 1939, and campaigned to have her female trainees accepted into the Navy, which was all male at the time.

Her voluntary work led to the establishment of the Women’s Royal Australian Naval Service, (WRANS).

The name Violet McKenzie Park was selected following community consultation held last year.

An information sign was unveiled this week by with representatives from the Royal Australian Navy and WRANS ACT in attendance.

The ACT Government would like to thank the local community that has adopted the park and helps maintain it.

^{Violet McKenzie’s voluntary work led to the establishment of the Women’s Royal Australian Naval Service, (WRANS).}

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A Canberra business success story that developed a product now used in gyms around the world has been recognised as the ACT Exporter of the Year.

Each year the ACT Chief Minister’s Export Awards celebrate the best and brightest in Canberra’s export industry and showcase the success of local businesses in global markets.

Kinetic Performance Technology (GymAware) was awarded the 2023 ACT Exporter of the Year for their work as a global leader in velocity-based training solutions. A staggering 89 per cent of its sales are exports, with 80 per cent of these to the USA, 10 per cent to the United Kingdom and 6 per cent to France and China.

The company’s RS and FLEX products are designed to help coaches and athletes of all levels measure and track strength training activities in the weight room. This technology has been a part of weight training for professional athletes across a range of sports, helping hundreds of teams and individuals prepare for their career-defining moments on the field.

The company’s systems are used in weight rooms across 65 per cent of all professional sporting teams in the USA, all teams in elite Australian leagues like the NRL and Super Rugby, as well as respected international teams, such as the New Zealand All Blacks.

“I am honoured that GymAware has been recognised as the 2023 ACT Exporter of the Year at the ACT Chief Minister’s Export Awards,”  GymAware founder Evan Lawton said.

“GymAware has been a labour of love, and it’s rewarding to see our commitment to excellence being acknowledged in such a meaningful way by our own community in Canberra.”

The ACT Exporter of the Year awards showcased several of emerging and established exporting companies. Category winners included:

• Emerging Exporter – Infinity Avionics Pty Ltd
• Resources and Energy – Ardexa Pty Limited
• Sustainability and Green Economy – The Mullion Group (FLINTpro)
• Advanced Technologies – Kinetic Performance Technology Pty Ltd (GymAware)
• Small Business – BixeLab
• Professional Services – Teron Labs Pty Ltd
• ACT Promising Exporter – Catch the Sun Communications
• ACT Promising Exporter – Science Skincare International Pty Ltd

“It was inspiring to see so many businesses with a clear plan for identifying and pursuing valuable export markets – ultimately all Canberrans benefit when local businesses achieve export success,” CEA Technology and ACT Export Awards judge Michael Burton said.

Businesses who are ready to export have access to support through the TradeStart program. Learn more about exporting and the assistance available on the ACT Business website: act.gov.au/business

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Canberra’s renowned National Multicultural Festival won the Best Community Event category at the Australian Event Awards last night.

The festival also contributed to an overall win for the ACT in the State or Territory Award.

The win is testament to the hard work of many. From the organisers to the hundreds of performers, stallholders, performers, volunteers and community leaders who together create the festival’s joyous and celebratory atmosphere.

The festival was also a finalist in the Best Cultural, Arts or Music Event category.

All records were broken in February 2023 as the 25^th anniversary marked the biggest and best National Multicultural Festival yet, bringing together 170 cultures and affirming Canberra as a proudly welcoming and inclusive city.

Australia’s largest celebration of cultural diversity attracted 380,000 people in 2023 and made a total economic benefit of $20.8 million to the local economy.

The 2024 National Multicultural Festival will be held on 16-18 February 2024.

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Ms Mary-Therese Daniel, a current presidential member of the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (ACAT), will be the Tribunal’s next President.

Ms Daniel’s appointment follows a competitive selection process.

She brings a depth of experience to the role, having been appointed in 2012 as ACAT’s first full-time non-presidential member. She was promoted in 2015 to presidential member. Ms Daniel also served as Temporary President for an extended period in 2021.

An Australian National University graduate who has lived in Canberra during her working life, Ms Daniel joined ACAT with more than 15 years of diverse legal experience in government and private practice.

This included roles with the Family Court of Australia, national firm MinterEllison, Legal Aid ACT, the ACT Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the ACT Government Solicitor, where she finished as a Principal Solicitor.

Ms Daniel’s seven-year appointment as President will begin on September 18, 2023, giving her responsibility for the orderly and prompt discharge of all ACAT business, and ensuring that its decisions are made according to law.

She succeeds the late Graeme Neate AM, who had served as ACAT President from January 2017 until his death in June 2023.

Presidential member Mr Geoffrey McCarthy has served as Temporary President in the interim.

“I’m honoured and it’s a privilege to be given the responsibility of serving the Canberra community in this role after the incredible leadership demonstrated by Graeme Neate AM, and prior to him, Linda Crebbin, the first ACAT president,” Ms Daniel said.

“I welcome the opportunity to lead the Tribunal over the next seven years, providing access to justice in an increasingly digital world.”

“I’m committed to promoting public trust and confidence in the Tribunal and its conduct of proceedings by ensuring we provide simple, inexpensive, accessible and fair resolution of disputes,” she said.

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The suburb of Spence is now officially co-named to honour a trailblazing political reformer, journalist, feminist and novelist, Catherine Helen Spence (1825–1910).

The co-naming was made official this week by the unveiling of a new information sign at the Spence shops.

The sign explains the co-commemoration of Catherine Helen Spence, alongside trade unionist and politician William Guthrie Spence, after whom the suburb was first named in 1972.

Catherine Helen Spence’s first novel, Clara Morison: A Tale of South Australia during the gold fever was published anonymously in 1854.

She was Australia’s first female political candidate and a lifelong campaigner for electoral reform.

Her influence as a crusading journalist on cultural, political, and economic issues – including suffrage – contributed to South Australia being the first Australian colony to grant the vote to women.

Spence is the first Canberra suburb to be co-named retrospectively.

^{Catherine Helen Spence (1825–1910)}

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