Decades before climate change was at the forefront of our collective consciousness, Dr Vanessa Rauland was already on a career trajectory to help save the planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The ClimateClever Founder had an affinity for nature in her early childhood when the threat to its delicate balance was yet to be fully appreciated on a global scale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Vanessa fondly recalls camping in remote Victorian locations with her family as a young child where she developed an innate urge to protect her awe-inspiring surroundings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI remember spending ages trying to catch lizards on rocks and swimming in freezing rivers,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Camping in the bush with no showers, only pit toilets and very few mod cons, provided a total immersion in nature helping her to develop a visceral connection to the intricate ecosystems and their fragility – something that the world\u2019s brightest minds, including her own, are now trying to salvage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think that connection does make you want to protect it. When you see nature being destroyed, it does fire you up,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n
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Knowing she wanted to follow a career centred on her love of the outdoors, Vanessa completed a Bachelor of Arts with a focus on environmental studies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cClimate change wasn’t really a thing back then, it wasn’t talked about in the media as much, but sustainability and the environment were certainly important for me, largely instilled from my parents and my upbringing,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
My mum, although I probably didn\u2019t realise it at the time, was quite an environmentalist. She would always conserve energy and water at home, never wrap anything in plastic and didn\u2019t buy a lot of packaged things, donate to environmental charities – there were a lot of little things that she instilled in me,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By the time climate change became an urgent threat that commanded international headlines, there was no question Vanessa would join the quest to save the planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Taking Action<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
She completed her PhD at Curtin University, which focused broadly on decarbonising cities and specifically on mainstreaming low carbon urban development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From there, she delved into many areas of research, teaching and supervision of students including carbon forestry, low carbon schools, decarbonising the grid, low carbon and regenerative urban development and climate policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But perhaps her biggest contribution to date was founding ClimateClever, a data-driven online program that enables schools, homes, and businesses to measure and reduce their carbon footprint.<\/p>\n\n\n
\nVanessa is the CEO of ClimateClever, a Perth-based tech start-up helping people use data to be more sustainable. Image: ClimateClever.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n \u201cI had been working in the climate change space at Curtin University for over 10 years and was extremely passionate about addressing this issue. I wanted to see more action happen and was trying to do everything I could to spur that action,\u201d Vanessa said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLaunching ClimateClever felt like my next step. I\u2019d amassed all this knowledge and information from the research, and I was keen to turn that knowledge into practice\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\u201cThe inspiration for ClimateClever came to me while I was doing my PhD, and my colleague Dr Samantha Hall and I helped to certify the first carbon neutral school in Australia in 2012,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere was such an amazing and positive outcome from that school\u2019s achievement. They saved hundreds of thousands of dollars on their utility bills, dramatically reduced their carbon footprint and they really engaged the students and their community in the process.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Since its inception in 2018, ClimateClever has managed to save schools across Australia more than $2 million on utility bills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIn 2021, we launched a business version of our platform particularly to help SMEs decarbonise. Late last year we announced a fantastic partnership with Industry Capability Network \u2013 a procurement platform focused largely on infrastructure and the built environment, and mining and resources – so that’s the sector that we’re delving into now to really try and help tackle those large-scale emissions,\u201d Vanessa said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhile we remain passionate about schools and the educational piece, I guess at the end of the day, the emissions profile of some of these businesses is significant and helping them to decarbonise will create a huge amount of impact.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Knowledge is Power<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Crediting Curtin for fostering her entrepreneurial spirit, Vanessa embraced the University\u2019s Ignition<\/a> and Accelerate<\/a> programs on her path to starting her own company. She also won two Curtinnovation awards and a 2022 Business News 40Under40 Award.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was really great how supportive Curtin has been of that transition from research into entrepreneurship and it’s been super helpful having that connection to Curtin,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI feel like it’s added so much credibility to my start-up to say, \u2018I’ve got this PhD and academic background,\u2019 especially in this era with greenwashing becoming more prevalent. I think a lot of people are dubious of all the companies that are popping up and they\u2019re questioning whether they are really doing something legit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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