Informed voting matters - gearing up for the vote on the Voice
Small Steps Vol. 85: Helpful resources to inform your vote 🗳️; electrifying households in the race to net zero 🏡; and tips to keep your mental health in check 🧠.
Kick start
📣 Make sure your vote is an informed one. On 14 October 2023, Australians will go to the polls to vote in the first federal referendum since 1999. In this historic vote, the nation will decide whether to amend the Australian Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing a body called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice (the Voice).
While this isn’t, and shouldn’t be, a partisan issue, we’ve seen a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding out there. We firmly believe everyone should be going to the ballot with an informed stance, so we’ve collated a list of helpful resources below to help you with your pre-referendum reading.
It’s essential to acknowledge this continent always has been, and always will be, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land and that sovereignty was never ceded. The Giant Leap team will be voting ‘YES’ in support of the Voice as a key step in recognising 65,000 years of continuous Indigenous connection to the land, water and skies, and toward meaningful self-determination for First Nations peoples.
Image sourced here.
What we’re thinking about
🔌 Are households the real key to net zero? In this great piece, the AFR profiles Saul Griffith and presents his argument that Australia needs to focus on decarbonising households, not industry, in order to hit our net zero targets. Griffith, prominent engineer, entrepreneur and co-founder of Rewiring Australia, argues that providing subsidies for the electrification of households, small businesses, and their vehicles can deliver rapid decarbonisation benefits while generating a substantial economic return, estimated to be five to ten times the initial subsidy investment. This outcome, he argues, significantly surpasses the "multiplier effect" typically associated with production subsidies for hydrogen and battery materials, which have become the focal point of industry appeals and policy initiatives.
Griffith makes the compelling point that, “You can go buy solar and a battery and an electric car tomorrow and have emissions reductions on Thursday,” but if you started building a hydroliser, solar plant and the necessary emission lines today, the emissions reduction would only start from 2033. In his words, “That’s a practical reason why this demand side and the distributed generation is where the majority of near term emission reductions can be done. And of course, near term emission reductions count more than long-term emissions reductions in terms of our climate outcomes.”
We recommend reading the article in full here.
🧠 Fighting founder burnout. According to this piece in Inc. Australia, 40% of the CEOs of America’s fastest growing startups said that starting a company has had a negative impact on their mental health. We wouldn’t be surprised if these stats held up in Australia too. Here are three science-backed ways for founders (and everyone else) to combat anxiety, depression and burnout:
Make the time for exercise to help reduce anxiety, boost your mood and improve brain function;
Take regular breaks and come back to tasks with a fresh mind; and
Spend time with the people you like, no matter how busy you are.
New paths
🐛 Goterra is hiring for several great roles, including a Head of Technology, Product Manager - Hardware, National Production Manager - Insects, a Senior Mechanical Engineer, and more.
🧑🏻💻 Trace is looking for an Account Executive (Go-to-market UK) (remote).
🇺🇸 US-based? MoreGoodDays is after a Fibromyalgia Support Coach (Peer Support) (United States).
📦 Sendle wants a Director of Partnerships, AU.
🐏 Want to get into VC? Our friends at Black Sheep Capital are hiring a Venture Analyst in Brisbane. Check out the job description here, and apply here.
🔥 Also, check out our Giant Leap Fund jobs board for over 45+ available positions or fill out our expression of interest form. There’s even more jobs at ethical companies on the global B-Work job board.
Giant leaps
🎙️ Great Wrap’s Julia and Jordy Kay featured on the Make Good podcast to discuss their incredible success to date with the business.
👏🏼 Keeping on podcasts, Trace CEO and co-founder Cat Long featured on Cake Equity’s Startup Equity Matters podcast this week, talking about how you can use equity to change the world. Nice one!
🎉 In a big week for WORK180, CEO and co-founder Gemma Lloyd landed a spot on Nine News to discuss gender-neutral parental policies, and co-founder Valeria Ignatieva shared the importance of employers supporting individuals going through menopause with Women’s Agenda.
👩🏼 Our Investment Associate Hannah Mourney landed a feature in OnImpact, talking about her passion for closing the funding gap for medical innovation and supporting impact founders.
For the road
🫶🏼 Kindness is the key to happier, engaged employees. There’s decades of research to support it, argues Publicis CEO Andrew Swinand in the Harvard Business Review. Even something as simple as recognising good work within the workplace and being considerate and genuine with feedback can go a long way.
🎙️ Marketing hacks galore. In a tip-packed episode of the 20Growth podcast, Hubspot’s VP of Growth outlines his top secrets for generating rapid scale. He outlines why revenue and usage does not correlate, and why diversifying marketing channels is always better than over-investing in one.
🌡️ Get ready for a hot secondary summer. Larger startups Canva and SafetyCulture are gearing up for major secondary rounds next year, as they look to incentivise early investors and staff and delay their path to IPO.
🤖 Why AI is unlike any other innovation before it. Mustafa Suleyman, founder of Deepmind, one of the most advanced AI outfits in the world, outlines his rationale on how and why AI technology will change everything. Check it out for his pitch on why this tech will have as profound an impact as the introduction of electricity.
🦾 Keeping on AI… A new study from Deloitte has taken Australia’s temperature on the trend, and has found that Australian businesses are very slow to adopt it. However, over one third of employees are already using generative AI without their employer realising.
📚 Don’t underestimate your management skills. There’s an art to giving feedback, building culture and cultivating high performers. Startmate has partnered with The Mintable to launch the Startmate Manager Fellowship for anyone needing a deep dive on this crucial skill set. Applications are open now.
💡 Turning power bills into cheques. As power prices rise, those who have been dabbling in the wholesale energy market and have their own solar and battery capabilities are actually being paid for their power. Want to get started? Check out Amber Electric.
👼 How much money do you really need to start angel investing? Tech investor Solai Valliappan has pulled together a helpful cheat-sheet to get you started. How much you invest depends on your appetite for risk and amount you have on hand. She also suggests keeping funds handy for follow-on rounds to ensure your percentage ownership of the company (or your pro-rata).
🌊 Will your home be underwater in 2100? Another stark reminder of the impact the climate crisis will have on us all. If you live near the coast, make sure you’re having a good day before clicking into this one. Punch in your suburb and give it a go here.
🌏 The planet is not warming evenly. NASA has created an interesting visualisation showing how various regions of the world are warming at different rates -- with the northern hemisphere copping the brunt of the trend.
Save the date
📅 12 September: Applications close for SheLovesTech, one of the world’s largest women-led tech awards. To enter, you must run a technology startup with at least a minimum viable product -- past the conceptual stage -- with less than US$5M external funding raised. You also need either a women founder, or a product where women are the primary users. Read more about the awards here.
📅 20 September: Energy Lab is holding its fourth annual ScaleUp Showcase. Sign-up to learn more about the fascinating work being done in the energy-tech sector and see pioneers in action. Registration is free, but places are limited.
📅 22 September: Applications close for the NSW Government Female Founders Program. Based in Newcastle and Led by the University of Newcastle, the program goes into the basics of business building and is aimed at those with an idea that are looking to commercialise it. Learn more here.
📅 September 28: HEXPO is on in Melbourne - Kick your entrepreneurial brain into gear at HEXPO, the massive event for those interested in launching a startup. Early bird sale ends September 19. Tickets here.
📅 October 25: SXSW Sydney. This huge event is gearing up to set Australia’s tech, culture and art agenda for the next year. The Giant Leap team will be there - grab your tickets here.
📅 November 8-9: Purpose Conference, Sydney. Australia’s most anticipated purpose-driven business conference is back. It runs over two days at the Carriageworks in Sydney - the Giant Leap team will be there as well! Tickets here.
📅 November 28: Climate Salad’s Australian Climate Tech Festival & Awards 2023, Sydney. Gear up for a full day of interactive demos, engaging content, inspiring pitches, networking and awards on climate tech at the Sydney Town Hall. Tickets here, Climate Salad members receive a discount.