Send PIA's Young Planner of the Year to COP27

This November, the United Nations COP27 , the world’s most influential climate summit will take place in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. This conference sees Ministers, state delegates and members of civil society from around the world join together in an effort to commit all countries to fight climate change.

The Planning Institute of Australia's Young Planner of the Year, Nicholas Kamols, has been invited to attend the conference to represent PIA and Australian Young Planners. He has been given this opportunity as part of an Australian Delegation for Young People.

The world is now opening back up to travel and Australia is ready to join the conversation on global climate solutions. This is an extremely important time on a number of fronts. We are at the precipice of a climate catastrophe, global power struggles, and major socio-economic upheaval. All of which is amplified by recklessness regarding technological advances. Planners are well suited to helping shape the global discourse around these and should be further involved in geopolitical and geospatial matters of significance, particularly as they relate to the built and natural environment. The opportunity to send a PIA representative to COP gives us the chance to advocate for PIA’s climate priorities on a global scale.

Nick and the group’s travel expenses will be out of pocket, so we are asking for your help to raise the money needed for Nick to attend and for PIA to contribute to the group. Due to the remoteness of Sharm El-Sheikh, the accommodation and flights are costly. Your donation will directly fund necessities such as flights, accommodation for two weeks, food and transfers.

PIA and Arup Australasia are jointly contributing AUD $8,000. We now need to raise $12,000 to send Nick to COP27 and contribute to the delegation of young Australians. This trip will only happen with support from the community of Planners and other Built and Natural Environment Professions.

We encourage you to spread the word and share this cause on your social media or with your networks. Let’s send Australia’s Young Planner to Egypt!

Please note: When donating, please click 'Pay Now' only once to avoid being charged twice.

PIA’s Young Planner of the Year

Nick is an innovative, passionate, highly motivated young planner, who is re-defining what it means to be a part of our profession. He co-founded a social enterprise, PowerWells, who repurpose used lithium-ion batteries, paired with solar panels, to give renewable energy to off-grid communities in Indonesia. Nick and his team have already given 270 homes renewable electricity and saved 7,000 battery cells from landfill – simultaneously inspiring other young planners to pursue entrepreneurial ventures and contribute to addressing climate issues in alternative ways.

Nick has been given the opportunity to attend COP27 because he is an inspiration to all planners, young and old. Nick is not just an excellent professional by “Young Planner” standards - he is an excellent planner by any standard. Nick has already achieved so much in his career and will continue to forge new paths, defy archetypes, push boundaries, innovate and inspire those around him for a long time to come.

A Message from Nick

The opportunity for a Young Planner to attend COP27 is quite a special thing. Though, I hope my attendance will help bring forth similar opportunities for other Young Planners.

Representing PIA as the current National Young Planner of the Year is an enormous privilege and responsibility. This is particularly humbling considering the calibre of previous recipients of the award, and the many amazing current Young Planners throughout Australia. Further, while the recognition is appreciated, I am most appreciative of being afforded the platform for advocacy through opportunities such as this.

The 2022 ‘Conference of the Parties’ is convened to assess progress on combating climate change. This is undertaken with a view to building on previous successes and paving the way for future ambition to effectively tackle the global challenge of climate change. Young Planners are well suited to contribute to shaping the discourse around these. Further, I strongly believe that thinking about—and planning for—the future is one of the most important things we can do. My foremost intention is to be a fitting representative of the broad spectrum of Young Planners—and the issues that are important to us—while demonstrating that when given opportunities like this, we step up and make great use of them.

I endeavour to contribute to COP27 in meaningful ways and be a representative that everyone can be proud of. I greatly appreciate all the support.