Irene Portelli

I am the Chairperson of Circular Economy FNQ, where we are building a Transition Accelerator Lab for circular economy solutions in regional and remote Australia.  Through Shopping Centres in Homework Centres as the kids are the people who inherit and run what we are building.

Our purpose is to create a high-trust, collaborative environment linking schools, universities, industry, First Nations knowledge holders, and community, to accelerate practical solutions for regenerative agriculture, decarbonised re-manufacturing, and cost-of-living resilience in hubs through third places - like Shopping Centres, CWA halls and Libraries.

At the core of our work are three interconnected systems projects:

Environmental system

We are advancing biogenic iron dust, BID, research and Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) especially in the Antarctic Circumpolar Current as part of an Ocean Treaty pathway, recognising phytoplankton as a critical lever in climate regulation. This work connects Desert communities with Ocean communities and breaks down barriers of difference.  Where I reside within the World Heritage “sandwich” — the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest — sustainable mining of BID through science-led Citizen Science camps and extra-curricular programs aligning with globally aligned ocean governance.  exOIS.

Social system

Using the new currencies toolkit, we design mechanisms that ensure circular economy profits and extended life-cycle practices actively reduce the cost of living, support minimum income security, and keep value circulating locally. SDG 5 (Gender Equality) and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) are non-negotiable foundations of this work, ensuring disadvantaged communities—especially women and young people—are not excluded from the emerging circular industrial economy.

Built & industrial system

We focus on demand reduction first, through passive housing, tiny homes, housed through caravan-park pathways that reduce energy draw and utility costs. This is complemented by open-source micro-factories delivering waste-to-energy and re-manufacturing solutions designed specifically for regional conditions.

Across all projects, we are measuring what Kate Raworth describes as the regional “layer cake”—social foundations and ecological ceilings—because Far North Queensland is exceptionally rich in natural capital. We work closely with First Nations peoples, the planet’s original scientists and engineers, recognising that their knowledge systems are essential to understanding and stewarding complex living systems.

I am also the founder of We Made It Better for the Planet Pty Ltd, which delivers a waste to energy Microfactory in an Open Source delivery model to achieve SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) in full across the regions we expand into. Fifty percent of profits are reinvested into SDG10 Reduced Inequalities and SDG5 Gender Equality and SDG14 - Ocean Treaty & Environmental Science extra-curricular Camps and Homework Centres.

All of this work is being the foundation for my Master’s in Data Science thesis, reporting via feedback loops of the application of system thinking using the DEAL framework, the Sustainable Development Goals, and ISO 59000-aligned ESG metrics, including Blue Carbon-credit methodologies linked to phytoplankton research through Ocean Pastures in the Global South -driving climate regulation—an approach to climate action widely supported by leaders such as Sir David Attenborough.