Find out how we're turning good clean fun into good clean energy with our Infinity Swing.
The Infinity Swing brightening up a grey day at Customs House, Sydney.
Did you know that, despite the meteoric rise of renewables, when Australians boiled the kettle to make a cup of tea this morning, almost 90% of the electricity used was generated by burning coal or gas? Or that electricity bills in Australia rose by an average of 38% between 2010 and 2014?
Or how about this one: A typical coal-fired power station loses almost 70% of the energy that goes into it, when converting the energy in coal to electricity, and up to a further 10% is lost during the transmission and distribution stage. An old-fashioned light bulb then loses 98% of this energy to make light, so we only end up using about half a per cent of the total energy that we started off with. The rest is wasted.
Right now you might be thinking “Wow, these guys really know their stuff… but so what?”
Starting a conversation can sometimes be a tricky thing, particularly when it comes to a subject like energy. We’re all well-intentioned towards the environment, but those creature comforts- the warm showers, the cold beer- feel so good. So it can end up feeling a bit, well, awkward.
But you know what they say, “If all else fails when trying to spark an energy conversation, build a 16-metre wide eight-seater swing that uses the kinetic energy generated by swingers to create groovy sound effects and light up letters above the seat to spell the word INFINITY. And plonk it in the middle of Sydney.”
Behold the Infinity Swing!
But don’t just behold it, if you’re in Sydney or Melbourne over the next few weeks, why not come and have a play on it? Today, our Infinity Swing takes pride of place at Sydney’s Customs House Square until Sunday 8th November, before moving on to Fed Square in Melbourne from 16th – 21st November.
What’s it all about?
Well, it’s about energy. The Infinity Swing shows us that energy isn’t easy to generate- you need to swing pretty hard to generate enough just to light up a letter. Imagine how much it takes to power a hair dryer, or a washing machine. Or a country of 23 million people. While protecting the planet.
How can we do it?
Actually, hold that thought for now. Lofty stuff like this that can sometimes take the fun out of being an adult, making you yearn for a time when things were simpler. So if you feel like being a kid again, come and have a play on our swing! You can also connect with us on social using #infinityswing or through our Infinity website.
But if you are interested in the lofty stuff and want to find out how what we’re doing to address Australia’s energy challenge, we’ve got that covered too (you’ll be glad to know that the solutions we’re working on don’t involve cold showers or warm beer). Check out our website.
So there you have it, we’ve started our energy conversation. To wrap things up we were going to tell you a good joke about infinity, but it doesn’t have an ending…
…and we’ll be leaving now.
