Mehreen Faruqi
| The Honourable Mehreen Faruqi MLC | |
|---|---|
 Faruqi in 2015 | |
| Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council | |
|
Assumed office 19 June 2013 | |
| Preceded by | Cate Faehrmann |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Lahore, Pakistan |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Political party | Greens New South Wales |
| Spouse(s) | Omar Faruqi |
| Alma mater |
University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore University of New South Wales |
| Occupation | Environmental engineer |
| Website |
mehreenfaruqi |
Mehreen Saeed Faruqi is a Pakistani-born Australian politician. She has been a Greens MP in the New South Wales Legislative Council since 19 June 2013, when she was appointed to the vacancy caused by Cate Faehrmann's resignation to contest the Senate.[1]
Early life and education
Faruqi holds a Bachelor of Civil Engineering from the University of Engineering and Technology in Lahore, Pakistan and worked as a consultant in Pakistan before moving to Sydney in 1992. She received a Masters and a Ph.D in Environmental Engineering from the University of New South Wales (UNSW).
Career
Early career
Before her appointment to the Legislative Council, Faruqi had a 25-year career as a professional engineer and academic. She worked in positions in local government, consulting firms and higher education institutions in Australia and internationally. These included roles such as Manager of Environment and Services at Mosman Council, Manager of Natural Resources and Catchments for Port Macquarie-Hastings Council, and as the Director of the Institute of Environmental Studies at UNSW.[2]
At the time she was appointed to parliament, she was Academic Director of the Master of Business and Technology Program and an Associate Professor at the Australian Graduate School of Management for UNSW.[2]
Political career
Farqui joined the Greens in 2004 in Port Macquarie and ran as a candidate for the Legislative Assembly seat of Heffron in 2011 and at the 2012 by-election. She was chosen to replace Cate Faehrmann in 2013, becoming the first Muslim woman to be a member of an Australian parliament.[3]
In parliament, Faruqi has carriage of the following portfolios for The Greens NSW: Animal Welfare, Drugs and Harm Minimisation, Environment, Lower Mid North Coast, Multiculturalism, Roads & Ports, Status of Women, Transport, Western Sydney, and Young People.
Faruqi is a vocal pro-choice advocate, introducing the first parliamentary bill to decriminalise abortion in New South Wales in June 2014.[4] Faruqi is also an advocate for public transport and environmental sustainability. In March 2014, she successfully moved a motion in parliament ordering the release of all government documents relating to the creation of the business case for the WestConnex motorway. This uncovered evidence of the NSW government's plan for mass outsourcing of public service work[5] and uncertainty among WestConnex staff and advisers on the viability of the project.[6]
Key published works
- Faruqi, M. (2012). 'Embracing Complexity To Enable Change', in: D. Rigling Gallagher; N. Christiansen and P. Andrews; eds, Environmental Leadership: A Reference Handbook, Vol. 2, pp. 772–781, Sage, Thousand Oaks, California. ISBN 9781412981514
- Harding, R, Hendriks, CM, and Faruqi, M. (2009). Environmental Decision-Making - Exploring complexity and context, Federation Press, Sydney. ISBN 9781862877481
Awards
Judy Raper Award for Leadership in Engineering, UNSW School of Chemical Engineering (2013).[7]