The cover of the 5 June edition of the Guardian Weekly magazine, featuring an illustration by Guardian Design, highlights Australia's battery-powered revolution. The issue explores how households are transforming the energy market from within, alongside other compelling stories.
Australia's Battery-Powered Revolution
Last week, as the war in Iran continued to choke global oil supplies, the UK government announced a 13% increase in the cap on energy prices. However, a related story from the other side of the world caught my eye. In Australia, the energy minister announced a fall of up to 10% in the benchmark electricity price in parts of the country, driven by record levels of renewables and batteries in the power grid.
Australia was already a world leader in domestic solar power. But with little fanfare, it is also pioneering a revolution in home renewables and battery usage, proving that with the right policy initiatives, profound changes can be made to the ways energy markets work. Australia's energy industry is definitely not above criticism – it also remains a major exporter of fossil fuels, for example. But for our cover story, Adam Morton and Petra Stock take a look at how the nation's households have become producers and players in the market, not just consumers – and what other countries can learn from the example.
Five Essential Reads in This Week's Edition
The Big Story: Is the Iran War Trump's Vietnam Moment?
The current Middle East conflict has been far shorter than the war that defined the 1960s and early 1970s, but it has rapidly revealed the strategic weakness of US firepower in an interconnected world, argues Patrick Wintour.
Health: Cancer Breakthroughs from the World's Largest Oncology Conference
From groundbreaking genomic tests to tumour-shrinking injections, health editor Andrew Gregory reports from the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual meeting in Chicago.
Feature: The People Fighting Back Against Pothole-Riddled Roads
The dire state of roads has provoked pothole vigilantes and become a political flashpoint from Manchester to Manhattan. How did we get here? Oliver Franklin-Wallis reports.
Opinion: If You're Still on Elon Musk's X, Ask Yourself This: Why?
Some argue that quitting the platform formerly known as Twitter cedes the space to malign actors. But it's an open sewer, beyond redemption, says Jonathan Liew.
Culture: Children's Illustrators on the Art of Storytelling
From The Twits to The Gruffalo and an angry bear in search of his hat … famous illustrators talk to Stuart Heritage about how they bring children's books to life.
What Else We've Been Reading
If, like me, you await the forthcoming US/Mexico/Canada men's football World Cup with a mix of anticipation and mild fear, Tom Davies's reminiscences of his travels around America in 1994, when the tournament was last held there, are a homage to simpler times. – Graham Snowdon, editor
This week I've been enjoying a deep dive into the style of Arsenal fans celebrating their Premier League win. It's a witty, vibrant reminder of how sport brings people together, and provides excellent inspo for how to dress if you ever need to stand out in a crowd of hundreds of thousands. – Michelle Lane, CRM executive
Other Highlights from the Guardian Website
- Audio: Trump: the boy who cried 'peace' in the Middle East
- Video: This model is not a real person: how AI is changing online shopping
- Gallery: A trip to the future: the best of Belfast photo festival
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