Inside the Climate Council Webinar: Chris Bowen on Decarbonising Australia
By Alexi Freeman
Article Summary
- Thirty years after the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) confirmed human-driven warming, Australia faces stark climate risks - heatwaves, rising seas and infrastructure strain - while unveiling a 2035 target of 62–70% emissions reduction.
- Climate and Energy Minister Chris Bowen framed the target as economically and environmentally necessary, but critics argue leadership demands stronger policies and fewer new fossil fuel approvals to close the gap between intent and action.
- The next decade will test whether Australia can decarbonise at scale and become a renewable superpower or remain mired in contradictions, as global momentum and public pressure for climate action intensify.
It has been 30 years since the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change confirmed that human activity is heating the planet.
Carbon dioxide concentrations are now 50% higher than pre-industrial levels – their highest in two million years – while climate action moves at a glacial pace.
Climate scientists keep warning that polar ice is melting beneath our feet, yet denial polarises the debate.
Climate conversations, however, are heating up – and not only because the mercury is rising.
In mid-September 2025, the Australian Government’s first National Climate Risk Assessment painted a picture bleak enough for even the most carbon-drunk industries to find sobering.
The report forecasts more frequent heatwaves, rising sea levels, biodiversity collapse and public infrastructure under mounting strain.
In response, the Government unveiled Australia’s 2035 climate target, shaping policy and investment for the next decade.
Climate Council CEO Amanda McKenzie hosted a webinar, In Conversation with Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen, to unpack the implications.
More than a thousand engaged people tuned in, submitting hundreds of questions – evidence that climate is no longer a fringe issue but fast becoming a national preoccupation.
The discussion cut to the heart of the matter: Is Australia finally matching its climate rhetoric with real-world action?
And if so, will our targets be enough to decarbonise before critical tipping points reshape the planet?
Where Australia Stands
Australia produces 1% of global emissions, but per capita, our carbon footprint ranks among the world’s heaviest. That makes our actions disproportionately important – ecologically and economically.
Bowen was blunt about the cost-benefit equation: “Renewables are the cheapest form of energy, not just now, but ever known to humankind. Nobody’s ever been able to make energy as cheaply as we can now.”
He rejected the notion that targets would be missed due to investment in stranded assets: “We need to shake things up a bit and make more of an economic argument for action… Climate change is an obligation to future generations and an obligation to the rest of the world. But even if it wasn't, we should do it anyway because it's in our economic best interest. ”
Australia’s 62–70% reduction target by 2035 aligns with Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement.
McKenzie articulated that alignment isn’t the same as leadership: “The Climate Council and many other organisations campaigned for a higher target to protect Australians from the climate crisis… A number of groups released data on their view that you could go beyond 75%... arguing that a higher target was doable.”
New targets must be paired with policies that close the gap between intent and impact, as they’re only meaningful if they translate to what gets funded and built.
By comparison, the EU has legislated a 66-72% cut, while the UK is pursuing 78%, whereas India and Russia are doubling down on fossil fuels.
Australia is perched awkwardly on the fence: no longer a laggard, but hardly setting the pace in terms of delivery of these targets.
The Next Decade
Reaching these 2035 targets requires more than fidgeting around the peripheries – it demands wholesale decarbonisation.
Bowen called the new goal balanced: “You’ve got to have a target which stretches behaviour, drives investment… but it is achievable and that’s important too, not only for credibility with the people but also with investors.”
The Government’s plan includes sectoral roadmaps, a $2 billion recapitalisation of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, and $1 billion for low-carbon liquid fuels. There’s also a renewed push for energy efficiency: “The easiest emission to avoid is an emission you don’t have because you haven’t used electricity.”
Yet contradictions remain. The Albanese Government’s approval of 31 new coal, oil and gas developments cuts against the grain of climate science – but you can’t drill through a problem while claiming to smooth it over.
Bowen attempted pragmatism: “Fossil fuels will stop being used when demand falls. And demand will fall when we build renewable energy here and around the world.”
But the time for waiting is a luxury our climate can no longer afford. Can Australia reimagine itself as a renewable superpower whilst simultaneously lining its coffers with fossil fuel exports?
Global Perspectives and Next Steps
Australia’s path to net-zero doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Bowen has proposed that Australia – alongside Pacific nations – host COP31, arguing: “There’s no better opportunity for the Pacific to get the attention of the world on their existence.”
Pacific leaders are longstanding advocates for climate justice, as nations least responsible for emissions face the harshest impacts from rising seas and extreme weather.
Bowen acknowledged Australia’s duplicity: “Yes, we’re a fossil fuel exporter. We don’t deny it. But here’s our massive transition that’s underway, and we can all do it.”
Meanwhile, other nations are powering ahead.
Denmark leads the world in deployment of renewables, Germany is doubling wind and quadrupling solar capacity, and the EU is embedding circular economy policies across industries.
The US surged under the Biden-Harris Inflation Reduction Act, funnelling billions into clean energy – only for Trump to backflip, scrapping $8 billion in climate-related projects.
China, meanwhile, has more renewable capacity under construction than the rest of the world combined.
Bowen conceded Australia’s journey won’t be smooth sailing: “There are headwinds. Of course there are. And there are political debates. But actually, the economics are showing that the world is getting on with it.”
For McKenzie, community groundswell is the counterforce to those headwinds: “It often feels like a David and Goliath battle with the fossil fuel lobby being pretty powerful and very well funded. Recently, we had 20,000 people in our community sign our petition calling for the strongest possible 2035 target.”
Bowen echoed that sentiment: “Groups like the Climate Council play a very valuable role in raising issues… Whether we agree or disagree, you’ve got to have a credible argument… Respectful dialogue is very important… Conversations like this can change things.”
Australia’s 2035 target is a milestone and a mirror – a reflection of progress and the contradictions still hardwired into our political landscape.
For Bowen, the challenge is to navigate through headwinds into calmer waters, communicating that climate action is an environmental duty and an economic opportunity. For McKenzie, it’s about keeping ambition honest, determined, and focused in the face of mounting fossil fuel pressure.
Overshooting the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C threshold could flip the delicately poised scales, accentuating extreme weather events, coral bleaching and permafrost thaw.
Our choices are more transparent than the thin ice we’re skating on: accelerate transition strategies now, or leave future generations to flounder in the rising tides of climate apathy.
The next decade will reveal whether Australia delivers on decarbonisation. Fulfil the promise, and we’ll secure a more climate-resilient future. Fall short, and we’ll be counting the losses in lives, livelihoods and landscapes. Or, in Greta Thunberg’s prophetic warning, “our hopes and ambitions will drown in their empty promises.”