Australia must act urgently to cut emissions and embrace the clean energy transition or risk catastrophic climate and biodiversity losses, the chair of the Climate Change Authority has warned.
Delivering the 2025 Talbot Oration at the Australian Museum, Matt Kean said governments must ignore fossil fuel lobbyists and “act in the national interest” by accelerating the pace of decarbonisation.
“We can’t afford to wait,” Kean said, warning that global temperatures are on track to exceed 1.5°C by the end of the decade and that damage to communities, the economy and the environment is already being felt across Australia.
He cited this year’s floods and cyclone damage, which have already caused more than $2.2 billion in economic losses, and pointed to predictions from the World Meteorological Organization that temperatures will continue to climb.
“The challenge is not just to cut emissions but to cope with the consequences already in train,” he said.
Kean reflected on the legacy of Australian Museum director Frank Talbot and said institutions like the museum are “vital for reminding us that care for Country matters more than ever.”
He spoke of the museum’s “extinction cabinets,” which house the remains of lost species including the Bramble Cay melomys-declared extinct due to climate change-asking, “How much storage space will museums need to set aside for extinctions?”
He said electrification, rooftop solar, batteries and large-scale renewables must be the cornerstone of Australia’s energy future.
Citing the success of Australian researcher Martin Green in bringing down solar costs globally, Kean urged stronger investment in clean technology and said battery uptake must rapidly expand.
He backed plans for 1 million subsidised household batteries, called for rules that make solar access easier for businesses, and said policies that promote distributed energy would deliver “power to the people.”
As chair of the Climate Change Authority, Kean said he is focused on setting a 2035 emissions target that is “ambitious, informed by science, but also achievable.”
He called on political leaders who still shield fossil fuel interests to “get out of the way” and warned that further delays would jeopardise both economic opportunity and natural heritage.
“New engines of prosperity are up for grabs-and we should grab them,” he said.
Kean concluded with a call to collective responsibility: “We will have succeeded because we knew the dangers-and we acted.”