Biography

Parliamentary service

• State: Elected to the Tasmanian House of Assembly for Lyons, 1989. Defeated at general elections 1998.
• Federal: Elected to the Senate for Tasmania 2004. Re-elected 2010. Resigned 10.8.2015.

Committee service

• Joint Select: Parliamentary Budget Office served from 23.11.2010 to 23.3.2011; Australia's Clean Energy Future Legislation served as Deputy Chair from 14.9.2011 to 7.10.2011
• Joint Statutory: Public Accounts and Audit served from 4.7.2011 to 7.7.2011; Corporations and Financial Services served from 4.7.2011 to 7.7.2011; Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity served from 20.9.2012 to 5.8.2013
• Senate Legislative and General Purpose Standing: Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport: Legislation served from 1.7.2005 to 10.9.2006; Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport served from 23.8.2008 to 13.5.2009; Education, Employment and Workplace Relations served as Substitute member from 10.11.2008 to 23.6.2009; Education, Employment and Workplace Relations: References served as Substitute member from 11.11.2008 to 23.11.2009; Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport: References served from 14.5.2009 to 11.9.2012; Environment, Communications and the Arts: Legislation served as Substitute member from 13.5.2010 to 15.6.2010; Environment and Communications: Legislation served as Substitute member from 13.10.2011 to 7.11.2011; Economics: Legislation served as Substitute member from 19.6.2012 to 25.6.2012; Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport: Legislation served as Substitute member from 20.9.2012 to 25.3.2013; Economics: Legislation served as Substitute member from 11.10.2012 to 27.2.2013; Environment and Communications: References served as Substitute member from 11.12.2013 to 15.5.2014; Environment and Communications: Legislation served as Substitute member from 26.6.2014 to 7.7.2014
• Senate Select: Agricultural and Related Industries served from 14.2.2008 to 26.11.2009; Climate Policy served from 17.3.2009 to 15.6.2009; Electricity Prices served from 23.8.2012 to 1.11.2012; Health served as Substitute member from 3.11.2014 to 3.11.2014

Parliamentary party positions

• Australian Greens. Served: 01.07.2005 to 10.08.2015
• Deputy Leader of the Federal Parliamentary Australian Greens from 10.11.2008 to 13.4.2012.
• Australian Greens Spokesperson on Climate Change, Resources and Energy, Trade, Finance and Administration, Competition Policy and Small Business, Art, Food Security and Regional Australia from 1.7.2011 to 1.7.2012.
• Leader of the Federal Parliamentary Australian Greens from 13.4.2012 to 6.5.2015.
• Australian Greens Spokesperson on Arts, Climate Change, Defence and National Security, Finance and Administration, Food Security, Foreign Affairs, Forests (Tasmania), Prime Minister and Cabinet, Regional Australia, Resources and Energy, Treasury, Whaling and Antarctica from 1.7.2012 to 11.11.2013.
• Australian Greens Spokesperson on Prime Minister and Cabinet, Treasury and Finance, Foreign Affairs and Defence, Climate Change, Resources and Energy, Arts, Food Security and Regional Australia, Forests (Tasmania), and Antarctica from 11.11.2013 to 1.7.2014.
• Australian Greens Spokesperson on Arts, Climate Change, Foreign Affairs, Prime Minister and Cabinet, Treasury from 1.7.2014 to 25.5.2015.

Other positions

• Regional Councillor (Oceania) to the World Conservation Union (IUCN) from 2000.
• Vice-President of the World Conservation Union (IUCN), 2005.

Personal

• Born: 14.5.1953, Latrobe, Australia
• Gender: Female

Qualifications and occupation before entering Federal Parliament

• CertEd (University of Tasmania).
• BA(Hons) (University of Tasmania).
• Secondary school teacher from 1975 to 1984.
• Environmental activist from 1980.
• Participated in Franklin River blockade, 1983.
• Research officer for the Australian Bicentennial Historical Records Search from 1987 to 1988.
• Leader of the Wesley Vale Pulp Mill campaign from 1988 to 1989.
• Member of the House of Assembly (Tas.) from 1989 to 1998.
• Participated in Tarkine wilderness protest, 1995.
• Adviser to Senator R Brown from 2000 to 2004.

State/Territory Government service

• Elected to the Tasmanian House of Assembly for Lyons, 1989. Defeated at general elections 1998.
• Parliamentary Leader of the Greens from 1993 to 1998.

Honours

• Received the Women 88, Australian Bicentennial Award, 1988.
• Appointed to the Global 500 at the United Nations Environment Programme, 1990.
• Appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia, 11.6.2018.

Publications

• An activist life, University of Queensland Press, St Lucia, Qld: 2017.