I completely reject any allegations of bias at the Politics in the Pub event in question. Every follow-up question I asked on climate change was grounded in scientific fact, and my intention was simply to push panellists for more complete answers.

I held no agenda in fulfilling my role as facilitator on the evening. I did not receive any “internal” text messages until after the event had concluded, so every facilitation decision was my own. I stand by those decisions. Feedback I have received from the evening has been overwhelmingly positive. 

I am purely a volunteer who desires a better standard of democratic discourse in our country, in our state, and in our community. I have had no formal training as a “Master of Ceremonies”, but I would back my skills as a volunteer facilitator at 25 years of age against any form of proficiency test. My aim is always to be fair, warm, and encourage a more meaningful dialogue for all involved.

I also reject Mr Shepherd’s statements all but confirming a “Green bias” in the audience; on the contrary, I believe the audience was filled with rational citizens sick to death of the lack of significant progress made in this country on the fight against dangerous climate change. I consider myself one of those citizens.

I intend on continuing to volunteer my time to Politics in the Pub going forward; specifically, I will continue to volunteer as facilitator. I won’t be pressured to stand down. The only instance in which I would step away is if the citizens that turn up on those Monday nights to engage with democracy at Politics in the Pub overwhelmingly deemed that I was unfit for the role. Only two such people have (wrongly) given any suggestion of bias in my conduct, so I shan’t be disappearing just yet.

Mariam Koslay's article is all very well, but why not state that Leah Ferrara is representing the Greens?

The article states: "One of the few who decided to announce her political standing, Ms Ferrara says that it’s important people know who and what they voted for," and yet there is no mention of the party which she represents in the article; and that representation is exactly why people voted for her. 

Goulburn Mulwaree needs people like Leah on the council, and it needs a local paper to air the views of all sides of politics.

Yes, she's "young and fresh-faced," but it's far, far more important that she's Green!

October is Mental Health Month, and it is over this month that we put extra emphasis on understanding and recognising mental health issues. Although it is important to reflect in this month, I implore everyone to extend their reflection outside of October. The signs of mental health issues can be hard to detect or even deliberately hidden, therefore mental health awareness should be something we think about on a day-to-day basis.

This year’s theme for Mental Health Month is ‘Learn and Grow’.  My organisation, Youth Off The Streets, has and always will encourage our young people to constantly learn about recognising and coping with various mental health issues ... but we still cannot reach every affected young Australian. Without continuous care and support, our young people run the risk of developing these long term issues and this is not something we can allow to happen.