They pay for themselves. The more clean energy being generated, the cheaper power is for everyone.

With heatwaves, bush fires and other natural disasters more and more frequent, schools need to be kept cool in the summer, and stay powered during disasters. Teachers can’t be thinking about the cost when they need to turn the temperature down for students to focus on an exam.

Solar and batteries on schools and early childhood centres are affordable and achievable when Government policies lock in a plan for the State, or the country. Private business plays a role, but Government needs to lock it in.

Rolling out solar and batteries on every school and early child hood centre will create jobs across the country. The more clean energy generated, the cheaper energy is for everyone.

Solar and batteries on schools and early childhood centres are cheaper when we can buy panels and batteries in bulk, installers can count on reliable work over time, and energy stored in batteries can be managed together for the best returns. Energy companies can manage batteries together across schools in their state like a ’virtual power plant’ for the best prices.

See the Beyond Zero Emissions Million Jobs Plan for the case for solar on schools.

See our report into solar for early childhood education here.