Marisa Paterson (born 6 November 1982) is an Australian anthropologist, academic and politician. She was elected to the

Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly for the Australian Capital Territory, known in short as the ACT Legislative Assembly, is the unicameral legislature of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It sits in the Legislative Assembly Building, Canberra, Leg ...

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, representing the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also known as the Labor Party or simply Labor, is the major Centre-left politics, centre-left List of political parties in Australia, political party in Australia and one of two Major party, major parties in Po ...

for the electorate of Murrumbidgee.

Early life and education

Paterson was born in Melbourne but spent much of her childhood in the high country of Victoria. She graduated from

Monash University Monash University () is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (state), Victoria, Australia. Named after World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the ...

with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and Psychology, before moving to Canberra in 2005 to pursue a Masters of Anthropology and participatory Development at the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...

. Following that, Paterson moved to Darwin, Northern Territory to pursue a PhD with

Charles Darwin University Charles Darwin University (CDU) is an Australian public university with two campuses in Darwin and six satellite campuses in metropolitan and regional areas of the Northern Territory. It was established in 2003 after the merger of Northern Ter ...

, studying the impacts of gambling in remote Indigenous communities before returning to Canberra in 2013 to taking up work in a range of research schools and centres at the ANU. In 2017 she became the Director of the Centre for Gambling Research at the ANU and continued to work for the centre until her election to the ACT Legislative Assembly in 2020.

Political career

Paterson contested the seat of Murrumbidgee at the 2020 ACT elections and was elected in 4th position in the five member electorate. She was the only new Labor Member to be elected at the 2020 elections. She is currently the Deputy Chair of the Standing Committee on Justice and Community Safety and the Chair of the Environment, Climate Change and Biodiversity Committee. Paterson has campaigned in parliament for reform of the justice system, including expanding restorative justice in the ACT and the shifting of the presumption of bail for serious driving offences. She has also introduced motions on the protection and education of the ACT's snakes and the introduction of safety initiatives in Canberra's night life districts. She is the only non-aligned Labor Member of the ACT Legislative Assembly.

Gambling reform

Paterson has been a fierce advocate for gambling reform in the ACT and Australia. In 2022, she initiated her "Bets Off. Game On." which attracted the support of local Canberra community groups and 1015 signatories. In 2023, Paterson campaigned to keep the

Molonglo Valley Molonglo Valley is a district in the Australian Capital Territory in Australia. The district is subdivided into divisions (suburbs), sections and blocks and is the newest district of the ACT. The district is planned to consist of thirteen suburb ...

, one of Canberra's newest districts, free from any future poker machines being established and has sought to reform the community club sector to end its reliance on poker machine revenue.

Selected publications

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Paterson, Marisa 1982 births Living people 21st-century Australian politicians Australian anthropologists Australian women anthropologists Australian Labor Party members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly Australian National University alumni Academic staff of the Australian National University Charles Darwin University alumni Members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly Monash University alumni Women members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly 21st-century Australian women politicians Anti-gambling advocates