Love songs for nature to inspire climate activism

Instead of being an ode to fresh love or song of heartbreak, the anthem of the summer could be one that inspires people to curb climate change and defend the natural world.

That's the hope behind an annual environmental music prize that Wayilwan woman Sunny Luwe has been nominated for, among 30 finalists.

The indie pop artist's nominated track, We've Got The Power, was inspired by a rainforest protection rally in Brisbane organised by the Bob Brown Foundation.

"I had my phone and I made some field recordings, and literally left the rally and wrote this song straight away," the singer-songwriter based on Kombumerri country, which spans much of the Gold Coast, told AAP.

Samples from the rally are weaved throughout the track and the film clip is peppered with protest scenes.

Environmental Music Prize founder Edwina Floch said songs had the potential to bring the movement to mass audiences and the uninitiated.

"The environmental groups have very large engaged audiences and that's wonderful, but they're already the converted," she said.

"How do we speak to new and different types of people in a way that resonates for them?"

Now in its third year, the 2025 shortlist is populated by some big names, including Peter Garrett, the Midnight Oil frontman, long-time environmental activist and ex-federal Labor minister.

The septuagenarian rocker's recent solo album includes a track called Innocence Parts 1 & 2, described as "a cry from the heart about living in the climate emergency".

King Stingray, Angus and Julia Stone, Ocean Alley and Anna Lunoe also feature on a finalist list that spans a range of genres and touches on environmentalism in a range of ways, some more directly than others.

When Ms Floch first went looking for songs that referenced nature and conservation, the tracks were "few and far between".

"There are a lot of love songs out there, but most of them are dedicated to some ex-boyfriend or person that you probably never want to speak to again," she said.

"And I thought, wouldn't it be wonderful if there were more love songs about the tree climbed as a child or the whale you want to protect?"

Luwe expects nature and conservation to remain a source of inspiration for her in the future.

She came to music a bit later in life than some of her peers after a career as a school teacher.

Working with young people had strengthened her resolve to do her bit for the planet, as an educator, activist and artist.

"What kind of world are they going to get to grow up in with the inaction we're essentially seeing in the climate space?" Luwe said.

The winner of the $20,000 prize will be announced on December 17.