For Philip Waters, standing for election comes back to a simple idea: everyone deserves to be heard, and compassion should shape how we treat animals, people and the planet. This is home, and he wants to help build a future that cares for both the community and the world around it.

Philip is a Deaf Auslan user, and his lived experience of disability is an important part of what he brings to this campaign. As Australia’s first Deaf Auslan-using candidate, he hopes to open the door for others, too. He wants people with disability to be part of making decisions, not just the subject of them. For him, inclusion means having a genuine place in the conversation.

His care for animals and the environment sits alongside that commitment to people. He does not see these as separate concerns or a choice between one and another. He wants a community that treats animals with kindness, looks after the planet and makes room for people whose experiences are too often overlooked. At the heart of it is a belief that care should extend beyond ourselves.

Philip holds a postgraduate degree in International and Community Development. He wants to bring that learning together with his own lived experience, while recognising that no one person has all the answers. His approach is to listen, ask questions and take people’s experiences seriously. He believes the people who live with an issue should have a say in how it is addressed.

With family connections across the region and a home in Montmorency, Philip has a personal stake in its future. If elected, he would work towards a community where people with disability are included, animals are treated with compassion and the environment is valued. He wants voters to know what matters to him: kindness, fairness and a willingness to listen, with care for animals, people and the planet guiding his work.