Southern River resident and Greens candidate for Burt Muhammad Salman hopes to tear down the walls preventing new migrants from engaging with Australian society and make Burt the home of renewable technologies.
Mr Salman came to Australia in 2009 as a skilled migrant where he worked in the mining, oil and gas sector.
Since then he started So Change Inc, an organisation helping new migrants settle into Australian life.
He said it was important for new migrants to overcome barriers to engage with the broader Australian population.
“Australia is a lucky country, I truly believe that you can turn your luck and that happened to me,” he said.
“I want to help new Australians overcome barriers so they can be more involved in the culture and politics.”
With the downturn of the resources sectors, which he said he had experienced first hand, he suggested unemployed people could find jobs in the booming renewable energy sector.
“There is a lot of unemployment and generally in Burt there is bigger unemployment,” he said.
“If I get elected my first focus will be on job creation and renewable energy technology.
“Maybe making some incubators the new inventors can develop technologies and new enterprises in renewable technologies.”
He also said transport access was an issue for communities in Harrisdale and Piara Waters and he would push for better road links and public transport access in those areas.
He decided to join the Greens after identifying with their social policies.
