Stop Adani Coal Convoy Event in Coffs Harbour April 21

"We are hosting a very special Easter Sunday gathering at Coffs Harbour Showgrounds.

With the Coffs Coast Climate Action Group we will have a short meetup as the #StopAdani Convoy heads off on their journey north.

Arrive at 8:30am for a special Welcome to Country and guest speaker Bob Brown.

This is a public event. If you are a local Coffs Harbour supporter of Climate Action and Action for Earth then join this morning event to Stop Adani."

The Greens Plan for Housing

 

Our plan to make sure everyone has an affordable home:

▲	Build rent-controlled and well-designed public & community homes · More »
▲	Give renters real rights including long term leases, a home for your pet, and no more unfair rent increases · More »
▲	$30 million in legal aid for renters to defend their rights · More »
▲	Support first home buyers by phasing out unfair tax rules: Phase out unfair tax rules, including ending the negative gearing and capital gains tax discount · More »
▲	Increase funding for temporary accommodation services so that no one has to sleep on the streets · More »

Mehreen Faruqi - Greens Senate Candidate

Will you volunteer for our campaign?

 
The election was finally called this morning for May 18, and the time to act is now. We need your help. Winning a NSW Senate seat for The Greens will depend on you, our fabulous supporters. We need you to help to hand out flyers, drop off leaflets, make phone calls and staff polling booths. You are the force behind our campaign, and together with all our other candidates I know we can get this done. If you can offer any help during the campaign, please volunteer now. 

Together, we can achieve a strong Greens voice in the Senate to ensure urgent action on climate change and hold the next Government account.

Volunteer Here »
  Mehreen Faruqi
Greens Senator for NSW

The Greens NSW are proud to throw their support behind students taking part in tomorrow’s School Strike 4 Climate.

“These are school students from cities and towns across the country standing up for the planet and their future. We stand in solidarity with them,” Senator Mehreen Faruqi said.
“These kids are striking because governments have failed to act. They have failed to address the climate crisis and we congratulate these young people for their courage to stand up and organise.
“Quitting coal and rapidly transitioning to clean, renewable energy will benefit all of us, and we must act now to hand the next generation a sustainable future.
“I'm inspired by the actions of these school students. We need more young people involved in politics to have a say in decisions that impact them and their future,” Faruqi said.

Video: I am Mehreen Faruqi - Our new Greens' Senator

See also:

Sen. Mehreen Faruqi (Greens-NSW) Maiden Speech (Aug 21, 2018)

 

Senator FARUQI (New South Wales): Good evening. Assalamoalikum. We are gathered here today on stolen land. I acknowledge the traditional custodians of this land, the Ngunnawal and Ngambri people, and pay my respects to their elders, past, present and emerging. We must recognise that sovereignty was never ceded. All Australians, whether they were born here or have come from somewhere else, have an obligation to remember: this land always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

 
First Nations people still face the worst of racism and discrimination. We must commit and recommit to ending this, not on behalf of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities but alongside them. There is still a reluctance among many to acknowledge that we are a settler colonial society. It is a simple fact. Australia is a nation built on the invasion and colonisation of sovereign nations. It surprises me and saddens me that this reality is still denied, often vehemently. It is my belief that there must be a First Nations voice enshrined in the Constitution and a truth-telling about history. A makarrata commission must oversee treaties with First Nations peoples that recognise the continuing occupation, acknowledge their sovereignty and respect their right to self-determination. 

Read full transcript

 

Launching the Greens' Cowper Campaign

The Town Green in Port Macquarie was a brilliant venue for the launch of the Greens' Cowper campaign.

Dr Mehreen Faruqi and Dr Sally Townley

Dr Sally Townley is the Greens Cowper candidate.

Dr Faruqi will be ratified as our Greens' senator on August 16.

"Dr Townley is an environmental scientist and Coffs Harbour councillor.  She is married with two teenage children and lives in Bellingen.

“The Australian government needs to show leadership now. I am concerned about the corporatisation of our natural resources.  For example, the Adani mine means we are facilitating a giant corporation by giving them, free, vast amounts of water which is obviously a scarce resource,” she said.

Dr Faruqi and Dr Townley launch the Greens campaign in beautiful Nambucca Heads

Launching the Greens' campaign in Bellingen Shire

She said one of the party’s key platforms was making the transition to renewable energy.

“We know the technology is there.  So many domestic houses have already adopted it,” said Dr Townley, who wants cleaner electricity and sustainable jobs.

Dr Townley says the Greens are about showing that they offer people a much better future than Labour or the coalition can.

Dr Faruqi enjoyed a 25-year career as an engineer and environmental manager in local government, including at Port Macquarie-Hastings Council. She has also held senior academic positions at the University of NSW. She was appointed to NSW Parliament in 2013 and will join the federal Senate later this month.

 She said it was wonderful to be back in Port Macquarie, where her journey with the Greens started, to launch the campaign for a fellow environmentalist.  

“The Greens are building a future where everyone is treated equally and fairly and all of us have access to things we need for a good life,” said Dr Faruqi.

“It’s a critical time for Australia.  We are a very wealthy country but many of us are being left behind, because the major parties are working for the big end of town.  We can tackle climate change and we can fund public services: health, education and our ABC.

“We can ensure that everyone has a home and protect our environment, our forests and our koalas,” she said." 

Bellingen Courier Sun

Coffs Harbour to Port Macquarie: Cowper is Precious