MILDURA’S Katie Clements has launched her campaign to win a seat on Mildura Rural City Council.
Mildura’s council elections will be held in October and Ms Clements has been endorsed as a Greens candidate.
The high school teacher has lived in the area with her family for 18 years and said she was passionate about social justice and the environment.
“I really want to make a difference in the community,” she said.
“I had been thinking about running for a little while and I’ve always been interested in politics, but not just politics, governance as well.
“I feel that the Greens are the most beneficial to the people in this area.
“I just don’t think that the two major parties are really for the environment and people that need help.
“I don’t think they’re doing enough for those sorts of issues so I wanted to join the Greens to help put more pressure on those areas so that we are looking after the environment more and we are looking after people who need more assistance.”
Ms Clements is interested in several other community issues, including mental health and supporting migrants and refugees.
As a member of the Sunraysia Mallee Suicide Prevention Network, Ms Clements wants to examine the community’s needs for mental health support.
“We do have lots of support here but it doesn’t seem to have an impact on suicide rates,” she said.
But she said there were many issues impacting the community and is keen to listen to anyone.
“(Something) I’ve been really enjoying is getting people who don’t necessarily agree with my politics and having a conversation with them about how I can be a good candidate for Mildura.
“I really welcome all points of view as long as they are framed in a respectful manner and I’m more than happy to answer questions or have conversations with people.”
Ms Clements said some members of the community had already approached her with concerns about the level of noise from the Mildura International Flight Training Academy.
“I’ve been talking to people about that but I need to learn and understand how things work with the council in terms of what they can actually help with as well,” she said.
“At the moment I’m really looking to talk to more people about what the issues are.”
