On Faith and Belief

Dr Mehreen Faruqi is the Greens' senator for New South Wales. She is a civil and environmental engineer and life-long activist for social and environmental justice. In 2013, she joined the NSW Parliament, becoming the first Muslim woman to sit in an Australian parliament. In 2018, she became Australia's first Muslim senator. She has been a passionate advocate against racism and misogyny.

Since emigrating from Pakistan in 1992 Mehreen has worked in leadership positions in local government, consulting firms and as an academic in Australia and internationally. This includes her roles as Manager of Environment and Services for Mosman Council, Manager of Natural Resources and Catchments for Port Macquarie-Hastings Council, Director of the Institute of Environmental Studies (UNSW) and an Associate Professor in Business and Sustainability (AGSM, UNSW).

While in NSW parliament, she introduced the first ever bill to decriminalise abortion. Mehreen has been a leading voice in opposition to the greyhound racing industry, privatisation of public transport, and removal of laws that protect native vegetation. Since joining the federal senate in August 2018, Mehreen has been an outspoken advocate for public education, anti-racism, social housing and animal welfare.

Ko Parengarenga te moana, Parengarega is the ocean.
Ko Tawhitirahi te maunga, Tawhitirahi is the mountain.
Ko Awapoka te awa, Awapoka is the river.
Ko Kurahaupo te waka, Kurahaupo is the ocean going canoe.
Ko Potahi raua koTe Reo Mihi oku marae, Potahui and Te Reo Mihi are my traditional meeting places.
Ko Te Aupouri, ko Ngati Kuri, ko Te Rarawa, ko Ngapuhi nui tonu oku iwi, My tribes are Te Aupouri, Ngati Kuri, Te Rarawa and Ngapuhi.
Ko Hinemoa taku ingoa, my name is Hinemoa Elder.

Dr Hinemoa Elder has lived on Waiheke Island for 21 years. She is a child and adolescent psychiatrist, working at the Child and Family Unit at Starship Hospital, in Auckland. She is also a Maori Strategic Leader for the Centre of Research Excellence (CoRE) for the Ageing Brain.

Anne-Marie Te Whiu is an Australian-born Māori belonging to the Te Rarawa iwi in Aotearoa NZ. She is a poet, editor, cultural producer and weaver. She was a 2021 Next Chapter Fellowship recipient, and her writing has been published broadly. Most recently she edited Woven (Magabala Books, 2024). This year she has been awarded the Varuna Residential Fellowship Writers and a Bundanon Artist Residency.  
Anne-Marie’s forthcoming debut poetry collection titled Mettle will be published by University of Queensland Press.