The Eurobodalla Greens and the Bega Valley Greens have announced that veteran campaigner Will Douglas has been pre-selected as the Greens candidate for the seat of Bega in the March 2019 State election. A co-founder of the Eurobodalla Greens, Will has been a Shire resident for 20 years, and works as a high school teacher in Science, Maths and English. He has also worked for the University of Sydney (research) and QANTAS Airways (international travel) and has recently done consultancy work in aviation education. Will holds a Masters Degree in Science in the field of marine ecology, as well as two teaching diplomas. A keen conservationist, Will does volunteer work in weed control and bush regeneration and in 2015 started Burra Creek Landcare. Will lives on a small farm to the west of Moruya in a passive solar house of his own design. He is married with two sons and two daughters at University. He is passionate about protection of the environment through education and community mobilization, and equally so about closing the gap in education and opportunity for indigenous Australians.
Above: Greens standing for the Council 2016 elections sucessful in seeing Clr McGinlay elected as a Green Councillor . From L to R: Margaret Perger, Patrick McGinlay, Laura Hawkins and Will Douglas. Many in the Eurobodalla will remember Will from Council's 2016 election where, along with fellow Green campaigners gained the votes to see Councillor Pat McGinlay take up his role as a Greens councillor in the chamber. Patrick McGinlay has been announced as the Green's candidate for the next Federal election representing Eden Monaro. In a media release the NSW Greens announce its candidate for the electorate of Bega in the 2019 NSW State election. Will Douglas of Moruya has had long experience in the Greens, having stood in Federal (Cunningham) and State (Wollongong) elections previously, as well as supporting lead candidates in Local Government elections (Eurobodalla Shire).Will has had an eclectic professional life. Graduating from the University of Sydney with a Masters Degree in Science, he also worked there in the research field of coral reef fish ecology. He left research to become a secondary science teacher. A 6 month trip spent driving around Australia with a mate led to a bad attack of the travel bug and led to him working as a Long Haul Flight Attendant with QANTAS Airways. “It was overseas, and especially in third world and developing countries such as Nepal and Zimbabwe, that I gained a perspective on how fortunate we are in Australia. Yet the disadvantage in many communities here, particularly for indigenous people, stands in stark contrast to the wealth and comfort enjoyed by most Australians. That this can exist after decades of economic prosperity points directly to a deficiency in government at all levels”. During this time Will also studied Health Education so as to further inform his continuing teaching practice. Will currently works as a contract-based relief teacher in the public high school system across a variety of faculties and has extensive experience working with indigenous students, students with learning difficulties and others suffering disadvantage generally. The move to Moruya resulted from a tree change out of the city and into the beautiful and inspiring country that is the Far South coast of NSW. He is married, with four children all studying at the University of Sydney in Veterinary Medicine, Marine Ecology, Law, International Studies and Anthropology. “The children were raised on a small cattle property surrounded by Deua National Park and schooled locally at Moruya High, experiences informing their fields of study”, he said.Will brings a wealth of experience to the candidacy. “Parenting and teaching have shaped my life and informed my politics. Environmental conservation and social justice underpin everything I do!” Will is a regular volunteer with NPWS, founded and coordinates Burra Creek Landcare and frequently assists with weed and feral animal control on Australian Bush Heritage properties. For over a decade he coached and managed junior basketball and soccer teams in Moruya. “Having been part of the local community for nigh on twenty years, I am conscious of the lack of public transport on the South Coast, the disadvantage in many of our villages and towns, the lack of opportunity for youth and the desperate need for adolescent mental health support facilities”, he said when asked about his reasons for standing for State government. “There is continuing assault on the local landscapes up and down the coast by developer dominated mentalities in local government. The slippery slope to a US style gun culture underpinned by Huntfest in Narooma must be resisted- this is not what most locals want for the South Coast. The threats posed to marine parks and local recreational and commercial fisheries by an “access at any cost” dogma in defiance of the science are manifest and serious. The impact of climate change on future quality of life will dwarf all other issues, however, and will need serious and urgent attention by qualified and informed government”, he said, “ and this is clearly absent at present.”
