Solar plant viewing platform, Broken Hill, 2018

This image is drawn from an ongoing series exploring the social, economic and cultural transformation of Broken Hill. As Australia’s first heritage city, Broken Hill is celebrated for its continuous 130-year history of mining operations, the struggle and victories won by the steadfast trade unions, and the pioneering environmental conservation work carried out by passionate community groups. It has always been a city of extremes, where seemingly irreconcilable phenomena strike a balance that has led to greatness.

Today, Broken Hill faces a declining population, changing climate, and an uncertain economic future based on the whims of various extractive industries. In the face of this uncertain future, the people of Broken Hill are driving a period of rapid cultural transformation; away from the extractive, production and labour-based economies of the past, towards a more sustainable cultural economy powered by renewable energy.