Marisa Paterson (born 1982) is an Australian anthropologist, academic and politician. She was elected to the

Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly for the Australian Capital Territory (known in short as the ACT Legislative Assembly) is the unicameral legislature of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). It sits in the Legislative Assembly Building on Civic Sq ...

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

, representing the

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms the f ...

Education

Paterson graduated from

Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has a ...

with a Bachelor of Arts in anthropology and psychology. She completed a Masters of Applied Anthropology and Participatory Development at the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...

. She graduated with a Doctor of Philosophy in anthropology from Charles Darwin University for her thesis, "From card games to poker machines: gambling in remote Aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory".

Career

Paterson worked at the Auckland University of Technology for some time, before 2017. On 25 August 2022, Paterson and the Auckland University of Technology announced an agreed position on her complaint of sexual harassment, stalking, and bullying while working there.MLA Marisa Paterson who previously revealed she was sexually harassed reaches settlement with New Zealand university
Antoinette Radford and Emmy Groves, ABC News Online, 2022-08-25 As director of the Centre for Gambling Research at the Australian National University, Paterson's focus has been on modelling the impact of gambling on Indigenous communities. At the

2020 Australian Capital Territory general election The 2020 Australian Capital Territory general election was held between 28 September and 17 October 2020 to elect all 25 members of the unicameral ACT Legislative Assembly. The incumbent Labor/ Greens coalition government, led by Chief Minister ...

, Paterson won one of the five seats in Murrumbidgee. Paterson was the only new Labor member elected at the 2020 election.

Selected publications

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References

1982 births Living people 21st-century Australian politicians Australian anthropologists Australian women anthropologists Australian Labor Party members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly Australian National University alumni Academic staff of the Australian National University Charles Darwin University alumni Members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly Monash University alumni Women members of the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly 21st-century Australian women politicians {{Australia-politician-stub