The general public in Australia tend to see EVs as a niche area with few to be seen on the roads. This is not so in the rest of the world, but we don’t hear so much from (or more particularly get to speak directly with) the movers and shakers of the EV world due to the tyranny of distance and its associated time zone difficulties.
EVs are there if you look off the road and onto the bike paths or all around our CBDs: whilst electric cars have been slow to take off here (unlike in many other parts of the world), electric bicycles, cargo bikes, scooters and many other forms of electric transport abound.
However, whilst Covid-19 may have wrought havoc on most public events – it has opened up a whole new field of opportunities to bring the EV world to the Australian public.
With the move of the 2020 EV Vision e-Conference1 to an online format, the chance to hear direct from the international EV world has in fact been dramatically enhanced.
To run on November 27 this year, the program has been selected and arranged to enable speakers from all over Australia and the world to gather (virtually) in one place – so for the first time we in Australia will get the chance to hear from, and directly question, the widest possible range of EV experts at the one EV event.
The conference is to be opened by the Victorian Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change, Lily D’Ambrosio, who will be making some exciting announcements regarding Victoria’s EV future, and the Keynote Talk will be delivered by former Australian of the Year and world-renounced environmentalist Tim Flannery.
The program itself covers six major EV themes, spread over three streams (as outlined below). The focus of the conference is that EVs are here and now, with all the talks focussing on what is available or currently being done.
The purpose of the conference is to inform the Public, Business and Government on how to make the transition to EVs in all their forms in as quick and cost-effective a way as possible, and where to go for support throughout that transition.
2020 EV Vision e-Conference themes:
Industry: what is being done by Australian Governments, industry and universities to model and prepare for the EV transition;
2020 EV Vision: In the air, on the water, under the ground or moving freight: where are the various other forms of EV transport at?
Leaders and Followers: Round-table discussion of Electric Vehicle Associations from around the world talking about what they and their governments are doing to support the EV transition, followed by grass-roots Australian examples of what is being done here and now;
EV Charging: explanations and presentations on both AC and DC charging;
EV Hacker: the DIY EV stream covering grey-importing EVs, maintaining EVs and building your own;
On 2 Wheels: the world of EV bikes, scooters, cargo bikes and more…
The final session will be a round-table with representatives from the worlds of the media (Giles Parkinson (the editor of TheDriven.io; Robert Llewellyn (FullyCharged Show), industry (Behyad Jafari (Electric Vehicle Council) and Electric Vehicle Associations (NZ and Australia) gathered together to discuss the future path for the Australian EV transition and what we can learn from overseas transition experiences.
Event website and registration details: https://aeva.delegateconnect.co/
Notes:
1: Run by AEVA – the Australian Electric Vehicle Association.
2: If you’ve been wondering why Bryce hasn’t been written much for TheDriven lately – this is the reason: he is the coordinator of AEVA’s 2020 EV Vision events organising committee!
Bryce Gaton is an expert on electric vehicles and contributor for The Driven and Renew Economy. He has been working in the EV sector since 2008 and is currently working as EV electrical safety trainer/supervisor for the University of Melbourne. He also provides support for the EV Transition to business, government and the public through his EV Transition consultancy EVchoice.