Clean energy is doing more than powering homes, it is also funding local resilience. Through the Plico Future Fund, community organisations across Western Australia, New South Wales and Victoria are turning shared renewable energy into tangible environmental action.
Established by Australian clean energy company Plico, the fund is designed to reinvest the benefits of a community energy model directly back into the neighbourhoods that support it. The initiative provides grants to grassroots organisations, schools, charities and sports clubs to deliver projects focused on sustainability, community resilience and environmental stewardship.
To date, the fund has distributed more than $100,000 in community grants. It has also provided an additional $15,000 in support to Plico members experiencing personal or financial hardship.
The financial engine behind the fund is a shared community pool. Plico’s model enables households equipped with solar and battery systems to generate and share renewable energy, with contributions flowing into the Future Fund to back local initiatives.
Jamie Ball, Chair of the Plico Community Council, says this structure reflects the organisation’s founding philosophy: that the clean energy transition must benefit everyone.
“Plico was born from the community, so giving back to the communities that support us is central to everything we do,” Ball says. “The Plico Future Fund allows our members to see the benefits of clean energy flow directly back into local projects, from environmental education and conservation initiatives to community facilities and grassroots programs.”
Planting ‘Pocket Forests’
The real-world impact of this funding is highly visible in initiatives like Murdoch University’s Miyawaki “Pocket Forests” program.
Supported by a $20,000 grant from the Plico Future Fund, the program transforms small, unused areas of school grounds across Perth into dense native forests. Led by restorative ecologist Grey Coupland through the Harry Butler Institute, the initiative has already been rolled out across 17 schools.
Students are actively engaged in planting, monitoring, and caring for their own micro-forests. Beyond restoring local biodiversity, the program serves as a hands-on classroom, teaching the next generation of environmental stewards about climate, ecology, and conservation.
It is exactly the type of practical solution the fund was designed to support.
“We’re proud to support community groups that are creating practical solutions for a more sustainable and resilient future,” Ball adds. “These grants are about empowering communities to lead their own sustainability projects. The Plico Future Fund helps turn great local ideas into reality.”
Applications are open through May, with the next round of grant recipients to be announced in June.
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