Three years after Australian Story first followed his mission to electrify communities, inventor Saul Griffith is back facing a very different political landscape.
As climate policies come under pressure in the United States and momentum builds at home, the latest update examines whether Griffith’s optimism can withstand the changing winds.
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When Australian Story first met inventor Saul Griffith in 2023, he was on a mission to electrify the world, one suburb at a time.
He’d had success in the US, where his bold ideas on energy caught the eye of President Biden, leading to the passage of ground-breaking climate legislation.
At the same time, Saul was bringing his electrification dream to Australia, inspiring local communities to drive the push to renewables.
Now with President Trump in power and climate action measures being dismantled, Saul’s optimism is being tested.
We catch up with him in the US, as he rallies climate campaigners, and back home, where his own community is forging ahead with its ambitious Electrify 2515 project and inspiring others.
“It felt like we’ve changed the national conversation to showing that households matter,” says Kristen McDonald from Rewiring Australia.
“There’s over a hundred groups across Australia now doing similar sorts of work.”
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Saul’s message to people is to stay hopeful and keep up the pressure.
“If you’re not maintaining optimism, you’re giving up,” he tells Australian Story.
“You just have to keep saying, we can do this.”
This new episode of Australian Story airs tonight, Monday June 8, at 8.00pm on ABC and ABC iview.
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