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Local Government Climate Champions Award
Celebrating the doers, connectors and boundary-pushers driving climate action across Victorian councils This award is inspired by Stuart "Stu" Nesbitt, a true climate champion whose impact across Victorian local government, and on the people he worked with, was huge. Like many champions he was known for being unpretentious, full of energy, always willing to lend a hand, and never afraid to push boundaries to get better climate outcomes. The award celebrates people embodying that same spirit: those who bring drive, enthusiasm, generosity and bold thinking to their climate work. Each year nominees can be right across the experience spectrum from new entrants into the local government sector to old hacks who feel like loved and familiar wallpaper. |
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Our Champions
Our champions exhibit the following qualities:
Our champions exhibit the following qualities:
- Drive, enthusiasm and energy for climate action.
- Commitment to helping others in the climate space – especially in providing guidance, connections, or advice.
- Have shown initiative or innovation in taking climate action, whether it has succeeded or not succeeded – the key is that the person is, and has been, willing to push the boundaries for climate outcomes.
Below are the Climate Champions recognised since the award's inception:
2026
Heidi Marfurt
Travel Choices Officer, Darebin City Council
Heidi Marfurt has spent more than 20 years pioneering sustainable transport behaviour change across Melbourne's local government sector, beginning her career developing the National Ride to Work Day program at Bicycle Network before moving into council roles at Yarra, Port Phillip, and Darebin, where she has built a suite of widely replicated programs, including Ready to Roll, Free Monthly Bike Checks, and the Darebin Loves Bikes campaign, reaching over 14,000 people annually.
She is especially known across the sector for how she regularly shares her programs, research and connections with colleagues at other councils over coffee. Younger transport professionals in particular describe her as one of the sector's "gurus," valuing how freely she mentors newer staff and models a way of working that leads with heart rather than pure technical process.
Her own path into this work began unexpectedly. After a decade as a book editor at Penguin, a single Ride2Work Day experience convinced her that everyday sustainable transport was possible, sparking a full career change and a body of work.
Heidi Marfurt
Travel Choices Officer, Darebin City Council
Heidi Marfurt has spent more than 20 years pioneering sustainable transport behaviour change across Melbourne's local government sector, beginning her career developing the National Ride to Work Day program at Bicycle Network before moving into council roles at Yarra, Port Phillip, and Darebin, where she has built a suite of widely replicated programs, including Ready to Roll, Free Monthly Bike Checks, and the Darebin Loves Bikes campaign, reaching over 14,000 people annually.
She is especially known across the sector for how she regularly shares her programs, research and connections with colleagues at other councils over coffee. Younger transport professionals in particular describe her as one of the sector's "gurus," valuing how freely she mentors newer staff and models a way of working that leads with heart rather than pure technical process.
Her own path into this work began unexpectedly. After a decade as a book editor at Penguin, a single Ride2Work Day experience convinced her that everyday sustainable transport was possible, sparking a full career change and a body of work.
2025
Jay Smith
Energy & Water Innovation Officer, Mildura Rural City Council
Jay Smith has spent over 15 years driving sustainability leadership in local government, leading transformational initiatives for Mildura Rural City Council including Lighting the Regions Stage 2, Charging the Regions (the largest public EV charging network built by an Australian council), and the Victorian Energy Collaboration, the largest renewable energy power purchase agreement by local government in the country.
He is widely sought out by other local government professionals for his expertise, regularly approached by councils all over the country for advice on electric transport. His Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Policy and Guidelines, developed for Mildura, have already been picked up by other local governments across Australia as the basis for their own policies, and he continues to collaborate with the Central Victorian Greenhouse Alliance and a dozen member councils on shared regional charging frameworks and implementation plans.
Jay's own path into the sector began with an unexpected turn: while studying accounting and on exchange in the United States, a trip to West Virginia exposed him to the environmental devastation of mountaintop removal mining, prompting him to pursue postgraduate study in sustainability instead. He now lives what he advocates for, in a solar powered, all electric home since 2020.
Jay Smith
Energy & Water Innovation Officer, Mildura Rural City Council
Jay Smith has spent over 15 years driving sustainability leadership in local government, leading transformational initiatives for Mildura Rural City Council including Lighting the Regions Stage 2, Charging the Regions (the largest public EV charging network built by an Australian council), and the Victorian Energy Collaboration, the largest renewable energy power purchase agreement by local government in the country.
He is widely sought out by other local government professionals for his expertise, regularly approached by councils all over the country for advice on electric transport. His Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Policy and Guidelines, developed for Mildura, have already been picked up by other local governments across Australia as the basis for their own policies, and he continues to collaborate with the Central Victorian Greenhouse Alliance and a dozen member councils on shared regional charging frameworks and implementation plans.
Jay's own path into the sector began with an unexpected turn: while studying accounting and on exchange in the United States, a trip to West Virginia exposed him to the environmental devastation of mountaintop removal mining, prompting him to pursue postgraduate study in sustainability instead. He now lives what he advocates for, in a solar powered, all electric home since 2020.
2025
Donna Luckman
Zero Carbon Campaigns Lead, Merri-bek City Council
Donna Luckman is the Zero Carbon Campaigns Lead at Merri-bek City Council, bringing over 25 years in the sustainability sector, including roles as CEO of Renew and Chair of multiple advisory bodies, to coordinate projects and strategies that drive community emissions reduction and climate resilience.
Donna is renowned across local government for her generosity in sharing knowledge, networks and opportunities, going well beyond her own role to informally mentor colleagues and build capacity across the sector, most notably by convening the Electrify Everything Community of Practice, a forum connecting over 100 councils nationally to accelerate home electrification that would not exist without her.
Beyond this direct mentoring, Donna proactively connects people to emerging programs and policy changes, maintains relationships with peak bodies including ACOSS, Energy Efficiency Council, Energy Consumers Australia, and regularly shares her expertise through conference presentations at events like the Victorian Greenhouse Alliance Conference.
Donna Luckman
Zero Carbon Campaigns Lead, Merri-bek City Council
Donna Luckman is the Zero Carbon Campaigns Lead at Merri-bek City Council, bringing over 25 years in the sustainability sector, including roles as CEO of Renew and Chair of multiple advisory bodies, to coordinate projects and strategies that drive community emissions reduction and climate resilience.
Donna is renowned across local government for her generosity in sharing knowledge, networks and opportunities, going well beyond her own role to informally mentor colleagues and build capacity across the sector, most notably by convening the Electrify Everything Community of Practice, a forum connecting over 100 councils nationally to accelerate home electrification that would not exist without her.
Beyond this direct mentoring, Donna proactively connects people to emerging programs and policy changes, maintains relationships with peak bodies including ACOSS, Energy Efficiency Council, Energy Consumers Australia, and regularly shares her expertise through conference presentations at events like the Victorian Greenhouse Alliance Conference.
2025
Hugh Butcher
Zero Carbon Implementation Lead, Merri-bek, Yarra, Darebin & Brimbank councils
Hugh Butcher led VECO, the Victorian Energy Collaboration, through to successful completion and ACCC authorisation, a project that demanded relentless determination, sharp stakeholder management and deep energy market and legal expertise, including steering the project through difficult procurement challenges with patience and professionalism. Throughout the process, he criss-crossed the state making himself available to any council with questions about VECO, and that generosity has defined his reputation across the sector, as he remains consistently helpful, humble and willing to spend well over the allotted time on a phone call sharing his technical knowledge, policy understanding and practical advice with colleagues, whatever their level of experience.
VECO is the largest emissions reduction project ever undertaken by the local government sector in Australia and saving 260,000 tonnes of carbon emissions from entering the atmosphere, the same as taking 90,000 cars off the road. 61 Victorian Councils have pooled their electricity needs into one long-term contract so that renewable energy will be used to power council-owned infrastructure, like town halls, sports grounds, community venues, leisure centres and streetlights.
Many local government officers have leaned on him for guidance long before and since VECO, and he answers even the most basic questions with patience and without judgement, never seeking credit for the ideas and solutions he freely shares.
Hugh built his expertise over 20 years of practical experience, having started out in land management rather than through formal qualifications, and he continues to think big, now applying the VECO model to energy programs for vulnerable and low income communities and pushing for it to be adopted nationally.
Hugh Butcher
Zero Carbon Implementation Lead, Merri-bek, Yarra, Darebin & Brimbank councils
Hugh Butcher led VECO, the Victorian Energy Collaboration, through to successful completion and ACCC authorisation, a project that demanded relentless determination, sharp stakeholder management and deep energy market and legal expertise, including steering the project through difficult procurement challenges with patience and professionalism. Throughout the process, he criss-crossed the state making himself available to any council with questions about VECO, and that generosity has defined his reputation across the sector, as he remains consistently helpful, humble and willing to spend well over the allotted time on a phone call sharing his technical knowledge, policy understanding and practical advice with colleagues, whatever their level of experience.
VECO is the largest emissions reduction project ever undertaken by the local government sector in Australia and saving 260,000 tonnes of carbon emissions from entering the atmosphere, the same as taking 90,000 cars off the road. 61 Victorian Councils have pooled their electricity needs into one long-term contract so that renewable energy will be used to power council-owned infrastructure, like town halls, sports grounds, community venues, leisure centres and streetlights.
Many local government officers have leaned on him for guidance long before and since VECO, and he answers even the most basic questions with patience and without judgement, never seeking credit for the ideas and solutions he freely shares.
Hugh built his expertise over 20 years of practical experience, having started out in land management rather than through formal qualifications, and he continues to think big, now applying the VECO model to energy programs for vulnerable and low income communities and pushing for it to be adopted nationally.
About Stuart Nesbitt
Stu’s first career was as a motor mechanic with self-proclaimed bogan tendencies. While in hospital recovering from a motor bike accident, he had an epiphany about climate change and the importance of taking action. From that point on he was a dedicated climate champion. He took every opportunity to reduce carbon emissions - whether large or small - and to inspire and help others to do the same.
Stu was unpretentious, indefatigable, and never too busy to lend a hand. He pushed boundaries and broke through barriers and challenged norms, to achieve climate outcomes. This Award is inspired by Stu and recognises him and those other climate champions amongst us.
Stu’s first career was as a motor mechanic with self-proclaimed bogan tendencies. While in hospital recovering from a motor bike accident, he had an epiphany about climate change and the importance of taking action. From that point on he was a dedicated climate champion. He took every opportunity to reduce carbon emissions - whether large or small - and to inspire and help others to do the same.
Stu was unpretentious, indefatigable, and never too busy to lend a hand. He pushed boundaries and broke through barriers and challenged norms, to achieve climate outcomes. This Award is inspired by Stu and recognises him and those other climate champions amongst us.
An initiative of the Victorian Greenhouse Alliances, in partnership with the Council Alliance for a Sustainable Built Environment.