Ellen Sandell

Ellen Sandell
MP
Ellen Sandell MP
	Sandell in 2014
Leader of the Victorian Greens
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 23 April 2024
Deputy	Sam Hibbins; Sarah Mansfield
Preceded by	Samantha Ratnam
Deputy leader of the Victorian Greens
	In office; 17 December 2018 – 23 April 2024
Leader	Samantha Ratnam
Preceded by	Nina Springle
Succeeded by	Sam Hibbins; Sarah Mansfield
Member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly for Melbourne
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 29 November 2014
Preceded by	Jennifer Kanis
Personal details
Born	26 November 1984 (age 40); Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia
Political party	Victorian Greens
Spouse	Lloyd Davies
Alma mater	University of Melbourne
Signature

Ellen Sandell (born 26 November 1984)^[1] is an Australian politician and environmentalist. She has represented the electorate of Melbourne in the Parliament of Victoria since 2014 as a member of the Victorian Greens and been the party's leader since April 2024.^[2]

She was a recipient of the Young Environmentalist of the Year Award in 2009 and director of the Australian Youth Climate Coalition between 2011 and 2012.^[3]^[4]

Early life

Sandell was born in Alice Springs, Northern Territory. She and her family moved to Mildura, Victoria, when she was five years old. She attended Sacred Heart Primary School and St Joseph's College, Mildura.^[5]

Sandell went on to study at the University of Melbourne, graduating in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts (majoring in Spanish and linguistics) and a Bachelor of Science (majoring in genetics).^[6] She joined the Australian Youth Climate Coalition in 2007, and became director in 2011.^[3]

Career

Whilst at university, Sandell became involved in student politics and was elected as the environment officer for the University of Melbourne Student Union in 2007.^[7] From 2007 to 2009, she was employed as a policy adviser in the Victorian Department of Premier and Cabinet,^[7] working on the Brumby Labor Government's climate change strategy and Green Paper.^[8] Sandell worked for the Australian Youth Climate Coalition (AYCC) between 2009 and 2012, serving as general manager before becoming the group's National Director. After departing the AYCC, Sandell worked as the ACT Greens campaign manager for Simon Sheikh's unsuccessful Senate campaign in the 2013 Australian federal election. In 2013, she was pre-selected as the Australian Greens candidate for the seat of Melbourne at the 2014 state elections.^[9]

Victorian Legislative Assembly

Sandell went on to win the seat of Melbourne at the 2014 election, defeating the Labor incumbent, Jennifer Kanis.^[10] She held the seat against the same Labor opponent at the 2018 election, with a slightly smaller margin. Following that election, Sandell was appointed deputy leader of a reduced Greens party-room in the Victorian Parliament, serving with leader Samantha Ratnam.^[11]^[12]

Personal life

Sandell has three children.^[13]^[14]^[15] She lives in Kensington.^[16]

References

^ "State Finalist Young Australian of the Year 2009", Australian of the Year Awards Archived 24 May 2014 at the Wayback Machine
^ "Victorian Greens Choose New Leader, Challenge Election on Housing". Mirage News. 23 April 2024.
^ ^a ^b Crew, Becky: "Standing up for the planet" Archived 24 May 2014 at the Wayback Machine, Cosmos magazine, 27 October 2011
^ Centre for Sustainability Leadership: "Alumni Profile: Ellen Sandell" Archived 24 May 2014 at the Wayback Machine
^ Stephens, Wade (27 April 2024). "Mildura youth leaves its mark on new leader". Sunraysia Daily. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
^ University of Melbourne, Faculty of Arts: "Arts Alumni Awards, past winners 2013" Archived 6 June 2014 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 5 June 2014
^ ^a ^b "Ellen Sandell – The Drum Opinion", ABC
^ "Ellen Sandell – LinkedIn"
^ Price, Nic (31 December 2013). "Greens select candidates for Melbourne, Northcote and Richmond seats for 2014 state poll". Herald Sun. Archived from the original on 17 April 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2023.
^ Cowie, Tom; Schetzer, Alana. "Victorian election 2014: Greens win Melbourne in historic victory". The Age. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
^ Ellen Sandell (17 December 2018). "Very excited to share that I've been elected as Deputy Leader of the Victorian Greens". Twitter.
^ "Hansard Wednesday 19 December 2018". Victorian Legislative Assembly. 19 December 2018. Archived from the original on 21 April 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
^ Sandell, Ellen (19 May 2018). "Victorian MP and mother Ellen Sandell: My advice for Jacinda Ardern". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
^ "Last week we welcomed our son Gabriel to the world". Facebook. Ellen Sandell. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
^ Ratnam, Samantha (13 July 2022). "A win for Victorians and a plan to get one million homes off gas!". North West City News. Hyperlocal News. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
^ "Ellen Sandell – Greens State MP for Melbourne". Ellen Sandell MP. Retrieved 20 November 2024.

External links

Website

Victorian Legislative Assembly
Preceded by Jennifer Kanis	Member for Melbourne 2014–present	Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by Samantha Ratnam	Leader of the Victorian Greens 2024–present	Incumbent