Craig
Christie arrived in Coffs around a decade ago, leaving the corporate
world and the city behind to spend quality time with his family and
follow his dreams in one of the most beautiful natural environments
in the world.
I
was born in South Africa in the early 70’s and my family arrived in
Australia a decade later around the time Bob Hawke was elected. I
remember the excitement and energy and was very interested in the
Aussie version of politics. I have always been intrigued by politics
and enjoyed many family discussions from a very young age about local
and international politics, philosophy and religion.
Leadbeater’s possum or eastern long-neck turtles?
Eastern long-neck turtle – there is a turtle nesting area/beach only a few km from my local beach.
What’s
your precious place and why?
Leadbeater’s possum or eastern long-neck turtles?
Eastern long-neck turtle – there is a turtle nesting area/beach only a few km from my local beach.
Easily
the beach - whether on the headland, sand, or sea, with friends,
family or on my own. The sea and surrounds are so vast, powerful and
hardy yet so soft and fragile also. I am always recharged and lighter
after some time at the beach.
I
think my favourite would have to be our asylum seeker/refugee
policy. It is not necessarily popular, but I am proud that the
Greens give a voice to those that seemingly have very little say in
their lives. The Greens have emerged as the champions for the
vulnerable, treating all with dignity, but processing asylum
seekers’ claims on the mainland for example makes economic sense
also.
Best
part of your work with the Greens?
Communicating
and working with others about how to make this planet a better place.
There are a lot of problems out there, especially if you read the
papers or catch the news etc; however there is a myriad of solutions
with dedicated and clever people working on getting things done.
What keeps you going?
.
What keeps you going?
I am optimistic that Australians and humans everywhere will value our connection to each other and the world around us. Keeping this vision in mind helps get through the tougher and more depressing moments.
Favourite
political song?
Nelson
Mandela. Self-sacrificing political conviction coupled with a
beautiful heart. He transformed such a terrible personal and broader
tragedy into a personal and national liberation with patience,
forgiveness and hard work.
Comfort
food?
Curries
and spicy foods – we usually have chillies growing at home so they
get added to many meals!
I
would spread the money around various renewable energy ventures.
Some money towards a manufacturing hub here on the Mid North Coast
of NSW but also some seed money for various community co-operative
wind farms. That amount of money would go a long way initially but
these projects are sustainable and would also provide on-going
benefits for many communities and the environment.
Dark
chocolate is normally always in the fridge.
Best
coffee/drink in town?
I
don’t drink coffee, however a banana smoothie made at home does
the trick for me.
Three
apps you can’t live without
I
can live without apps. I work in IT, so the more time away from
technology in my spare time the better.
Lawyer,
physicist, footballer, writer… it changed all the time and it
still does, more recently I have been writing children’s books and
also teaching Tai Chi so I’ll get back to you when I am all grown
up!
Morning
run for sure, with young kids it has been early mornings for runs on
the beach or surfing for many years now – everyone is up so why
not
That
humanity invents the replicator in the next few decades. It is a
technology from Star Trek that basically makes most things. A future
where material things don’t matter would take care of a lot of insecurities and hopefully see humanity co-operate and take care of
each other and our environment the way we should, rather than
compete for everything.
No
more weapons or war. Even just half of the annual global military
expenditure spent instead on social or environmental projects would
make a massive difference.
What
advice would you give a new volunteer?
Pace
yourself and learn as much about Greens policies as you can. The
Greens have great policies and the more you can share with others
the better.
Ancient
China to spend time with the Taoists, I love the philosophy of ‘less
as more’ and learning from the balance and harmony of nature as
those ancient sages did.
I am a volunteer so I do other work to make a living, but volunteering with
The Greens helps make life worth living. If we didn’t have a
political party like The Greens in Australia I would be keen to join possibly an activist group nationally or globally such as GetUp or
Avaaz that also do important work helping people stand up against
corrupt or oppressive governments and dodgy corporations.
If you have specific questions for Craig please add them in the comments section. There is also a facebook forum to enable people to ask candidates questions. Coffs Harbour Electorate Candidate Forum and Craig will also be attending a number of Candidate Forums including this one.