Background

David is a first-time candidate. He is an Aucklander born and bred: his great-great-grandparents farmed the land at the mouth of the Wade River, near the Whangaparaoa Peninsular. His grandparents, Bob and Irene Lowry, were part of Auckland's flowering literary and arts scene of the 1950's and 1960's, and good friends with notable figures such as Colin McCahon, James K Baxter and A.R.D. Fairburn.

Achievements

David briefly came to public attention in 1991 when, during the first round of radio frequency tendering, he bid $1 for a television channel in Dunedin and won the tender. His first involvement in politics was his early twenties working in community access radio in Sydney, while on his OE. On returning to New Zealand he worked for the NZ Maori Council on broadcasting issues, including the Waitangi Tribunal claim on the airwaves, and the high court case on government ownership of broadcasting assets. He also studied for a conjoint Bachelor of Commerce (economics) and Bachelor of Arts (political studies) at Auckland University, followed by a Master of Public Policy at Victoria University of Wellington. His masters thesis was on the deregulation of broadcasting.

Community Involvements

David has worked as a "Freelance Bureaucrat" since finishing university. He has been a contractor and project manager for a wide range of central and local government agencies, including Inland Revenue, the Department of Internal Affairs, Department for Courts, Crown Company Monitoring and Advisory Unit of Treasury, Ministry of Health, Department of Child Youth and Family, Auckland City Council and Manukau City Council.
Besides being the candidate for Rodney, David is also a member of the Green Party's Policy Committee, convenor of the Broadcasting Policy development group and convenor and spokesperson for the Auckland province transport issues committee.

Interests/Hobbies

When he's not busy working on working on policy or campaigning for the Greens, David likes to spend his free time reading, sailing on the Hauraki Gulf, and relaxing at the traditional kiwi bach - which his extended family still keeps on a piece of land near the Wade river. He describes himself as Seriously Green, which he says involves taking a disciplined and evidence-based approach to bringing about social, cultural, environmental and economic change. His main focus and concern is in the area of ecological economics: understanding how best to address the complex issues of making a smooth transition to a carbon-neutral economy, dealing equitably with the problems of oil and resource depletion, and discovering how current and future generations can live well in harmony with the ecosystem.

Additional

He decided to make the transition from officialdom into politics because of his deep concern that New Zealand appears to be failing, at many levels, to acknowledge and address the seriousness of the problems facing us in the 21st Century. He felt he could serve the public more effectively in the political arena than in a "behind-the-scenes" role.

Contact

Phone: 021 255 9071
Email: david [dot] hay [at] greens [dot] org [dot] nz